DNS Propagation

Unfortunately we don't have complete control over how long DNS changes take to apply. This is because DNS is a decentralized system spread around servers all over the world that have to coordinate with each other.

Quick tips

• If you need a change to work instantly, use a brand new subdomain that's never had records before. This forces all the DNS servers to go all the way to TakingNames.io for the records, bypassing caches.
• If you need to reuse a subdomain rather than using a new one, try to plan ahead of time, and a day or two before the change, make sure the TTL is set to a value 300 seconds (5 minutes) or lower.
• If you've just purchased domain, you might need to give it a bit of time until TakingNames.io has control over the records. I think this only takes a few minutes but maybe longer.

The gory details

The basic reason that DNS sometimes takes a while is because when a program (such as your web browser) makes a request to a DNS server (often provided by your ISP) for DNS information, that server is going to cache (save) the answer. So even if the true answer changes, you're going to get the old answer for a while. How long is supposed to be controlled by the "TTL" value. Unfortunately not all DNS servers properly obey TTLs, which is why you often see warnings that DNS can take up to 48 hours.

For more in-depth information on this topic, check out this article.

If you run into problems or have more questions, feel free to reach out on the IndieBits forums.