With Simple DNS Plus you can host DNS for your own domain names (and/or for others).
First a domain name must the registered on the Internet.
You can use the "WHOIS" look up function in Simple DNS Plus to find an available domain name.
There's a growing number of companies (registrars) and resellers offering domain name registration for ".com", ".net", and ".org" domain names.
For country specific names (such as ".uk") the choice is often limited to a single registrar.
See the complete list of registrars at http://www.icann.org
When registering a domain name (or modifying a registration), you have to specify which DNS servers will be responsible for the domain name (also referred to as "host records" - or NS-records).
Here you need to specify your own DNS server(s) - by name - such as "ns1.yourname.com".
If you are already hosting other domain names you can use the existing "ns..." name for your server(s).
Otherwise you may have to first create these "host records" ("ns1.yourname.com" = IP address).
With some registrars you can do this as part of the domain name registration, others have a separate process for this.
When in doubt, contact your registrar for details.
It usually takes 24 to 72 hours for a new domain name and changes to become fully active on the Internet.
You can configure your domain name in Simple DNS Plus even before you have registered it and use it yourself, but other people on the Internet won't be able to access it before it is registered and active.
Next you need to configure the domain in Simple DNS Plus.
From the main window, click the "Records" button.
The first time you do this, you may be prompted to enter "Domain name of this DNS server" and "Administrator's e-mail address" using the Options dialog. This data is used as defaults for some of the DNS records automatically created by Simple DNS Plus.
Enter the DNS server name (such as "ns1.yourname.com") and an e-mail address (for example hostmaster@yourname.com").
You should now be in the DNS Records window.
This is where you work with your domain names and records.
The easiest way to configure a new domain name is through the Quick Domain Wizard (click the "Quick" button).
Simply enter the domain name, and the IP addresses of your web, mail, and FTP servers (all optional).
Once you have done this, close the DNS Records window, and your domain name is ready to go!
Depending on your requirements and possibly requirements from the registrar, you may also need to setup a secondary DNS server.
