Overview
This topic is intended for users of the paid editions of Alibaba Cloud DNS. This topic describes the rules that Alibaba Cloud DNS executes when your instance expires.
Terms
Term | Description |
Instance ID | The unique product ID that is automatically generated after you purchase a paid instance of Alibaba Cloud DNS. You can view valid instance IDs on the Editions tab in the Alibaba Cloud DNS console. |
Release an instance | The action that the system takes to delete an instance in the Alibaba Cloud DNS console. After the instance is deleted, the paid Domain Name System (DNS) cluster associated with the instance becomes invalid. |
Bind a domain name | The action of binding a domain name to the paid instance of Alibaba Cloud DNS you purchased. After the domain name is bound to the instance, you need to change the registered DNS server name at the domain name registrar to the paid DNS server name allocated by Alibaba Cloud DNS. Then, you can use the paid resolution services of Alibaba Cloud DNS. |
Unbind a domain name | The action of unbinding a domain name from an Alibaba Cloud DNS instance. After the domain name is unbound from the instance, you can bind the domain name to another Alibaba Cloud DNS instance. |
Free DNS cluster | A cluster of DNS servers that provide authoritative DNS services for users of the free edition of Alibaba Cloud DNS. These DNS servers are named |
Paid DNS cluster | A cluster of DNS servers that provide authoritative DNS services for users of the paid editions of Alibaba Cloud DNS. These DNS servers are named |
DNS record | The domain name resolution record that you add in the Alibaba Cloud DNS console. |
Update prohibition lock | A lock feature provided by domain name registrars. When enabled, this lock protects the registration information and DNS server name of a domain name from being changed. |
DNS cluster degradation | The action that the system automatically takes to attempt to change the name of the registered DNS server to degrade a DNS cluster from the paid edition to the free edition. Such degradation occurs seven days after the related Alibaba Cloud DNS instance expires or after you unbind a domain name from the related Alibaba Cloud DNS instance. |
Rules on the expiration of Alibaba Cloud DNS instances
If you do not renew your Alibaba Cloud DNS instance on the day it expires, the paid DNS cluster continues providing domain name resolution services without interruption.
If you renew your Alibaba Cloud DNS instance within seven days (the seventh day excluded) after it expires, the paid DNS cluster continues providing domain name resolution services without interruption.
If you do not renew your Alibaba Cloud DNS instance on the seventh day after it expires, the system automatically releases the instance, and the DNS records on the paid DNS cluster cannot be used. For more information, see the "Impacts of the expiration of Alibaba Cloud DNS instances" section of this topic.
Impacts of the expiration of Alibaba Cloud DNS instances
Impacts of instance expiration and suggestions for users who intend to continue using a paid Alibaba Cloud DNS instance after the instance expires
Status | Impact | Suggestion |
Within seven days (the seventh day excluded) after the Alibaba Cloud DNS instance expires | The paid DNS cluster continues providing domain name resolution services without interruption. | Renew the Alibaba Cloud DNS instance. |
Seventh days after the Alibaba Cloud DNS instance expires |
| The instance is released on the seventh day after expiration. You cannot continue using the same instance by renewing the instance. To resume the domain name resolution services, perform the following steps:
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For information about how to modify DNS server configurations at a domain name registrar, see Change the DNS server.
Suggested check items for users who intend to stop using a paid Alibaba Cloud DNS instance after the instance expires
Check the items and perform the operations listed in the following table to make sure that all the requirements are met. After that, the paid DNS instance can be smoothly degraded to the free edition.
100% service availability is not guaranteed for free instances of Alibaba Cloud DNS and after-sales technical support is not provided for free instances. 100% service availability is guaranteed only for paid instances.
DNS resolution becomes unavailable if you do not We recommend that you change the DNS server names assigned for a paid edition of Alibaba Cloud DNS to those assigned for a free edition of Alibaba Cloud DNS after the paid instance expires. Otherwise, the DNS records stored in the paid DNS cluster become unavailable after the paid Alibaba Cloud DNS instance is released. In this case, service interruption may occur.
DNS records are not automatically deleted after the paid instance expires. However, DNS records or features may be disabled due to the differences between the free edition and the paid edition. We recommend that you reconfigure DNS records based on the following checklist and disable update prohibition lock and DNS Security Extensions (DNSSEC) before modifying the name of DNS servers. This ensures that the DNS records are compatible with the free edition.
The following table provides the checklist:
Feature | Check item | Operation |
Time to live (TTL) | Whether the minimum TTL value is less than 600 seconds | No further operation is required if the minimum TTL value is greater than or equal to 600 seconds. If the minimum TTL value is less than 600 seconds, change the minimum TTL value to 600 seconds. |
Host record | Whether the number of subdomain levels specified by the host record is greater than 10 | No further operation is required if the number of subdomain levels specified by the host record is less than or equal to 10. If the number of subdomain levels specified by the host record is greater than 10, change the subdomain levels to 10 or less by modifying DNS records. |
Resolution line (DNS request source) | Whether the resolution lines in use are beyond the specification of the Alibaba Cloud DNS free edition | Resolution lines supported by the Alibaba Cloud DNS free edition include the default line, lines deployed outside the Chinese mainland, and lines provided by China Unicom, China Mobile, China Telecom, and China Education and Research Network (CERNET). Make sure that you use one of the preceding lines or the default line. |
Weight settings | Whether the number of IP addresses configured for a single resolution line of a domain name is greater than 10 | No further operation is required if the number of IP addresses configured for a single resolution line of a domain name is less than or equal to 10. Note that excessive IP addresses will become invalid after the DNS cluster is degraded to the free edition. We recommend that you delete or suspend excessive IP addresses. |
URL forwarding | Whether the number of URLs configured for URL forwarding is greater than 2 | No further operation is required if the number of URLs configured for URL forwarding is equal to or less than 2. Note that excessive URLs will become invalid after the DNS cluster is degraded to the free edition. We recommend that you delete or suspend excessive URLs. |
Secondary DNS | Whether secondary DNS is enabled | No further operation is required if secondary DNS is disabled. Note that secondary DNS will become invalid after the DNS cluster is degraded to the free edition. |
DNS record backup | Whether the feature of DNS record backup is enabled | No further operation is required if the feature of DNS record backup is disabled. Note that the feature of DNS record backup will become invalid after the DNS cluster is degraded to the free edition. |
Update prohibition lock | Whether the update prohibition lock is enabled | No further operation is required if the update prohibition lock is disabled. If the update prohibition lock is enabled, disable it at the domain name registrar. For more information, see Enable the update prohibition lock. |
DNSSEC | Whether DNSSEC is enabled | No further operation is required if the DNSSEC feature is disabled. If the DNSSEC feature is enabled, remove the related delegation signer (DS) record at your domain name registrar and then disable DNSSEC in the Alibaba Cloud DNS console. |
Change DNS servers:
DNS instances are not released within seven days after the Alibaba Cloud DNS instance expires: To ensure the security of DNS resolution, change the name of DNS server to that of the free edition before unbinding a domain name from an instance. For more information, see Unbind a domain name from an instance.
DNS instances are released after seven days after the Alibaba Cloud DNS instance expires: change the name of DNS server to that of the free edition. For more information, see Change the DNS server.