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dnsmigrator

RFC 2136 dynamic DNS (AXFR + DDNS) Cloudflare DNS

Migrate DNS from AXFR/DDNS to Cloudflare.

16 record types move as they are. 2 things work differently at Cloudflare, and the preview shows exactly which of your records they affect.

Free preview. Read-only. Nothing changes until you apply.

What works differently

Generated from the same provider capability data the migration engine uses.

Moves as-is

  • A
  • AAAA
  • CNAME
  • MX
  • TXT
  • NS
  • SRV
  • CAA
  • PTR
  • DS
  • TLSA
  • SSHFP
  • NAPTR
  • URI
  • HTTPS
  • SVCB

TTLs below 60s are raised

Cloudflare's minimum TTL is 60 seconds. Shorter TTLs are raised to 60s and shown as translated.

A typical AXFR/DDNS zone at Cloudflare

Example records for example.com. Open any flagged row to read why it changed.

AXFR/DDNS Cloudflare

  • ExactA@

    192.0.2.70

  • ExactAAAA@

    2001:db8::70

  • ExactMX@

    10 mx1.mail.example.net. +1

  • ExactTXT@

    "v=spf1 include:_spf.example.net -all"

  • ExactCAA@

    0 issue "letsencrypt.org"

  • ExactTXT_dmarc

    "v=DMARC1; p=reject; rua=mailto:dmarc@example.com"

  • ExactSRV_sip._tls

    100 1 443 sip.example.net.

  • ExactCNAMEwww

    example.com.

How the move works

  1. 1

    Connect AXFR/DDNS

    Connect AXFR/DDNS with read-only access (Primary server + TSIG key (HMAC-SHA256/512; SHA1/MD5 for legacy servers)).

  2. 2

    Connect Cloudflare

    Connect Cloudflare (Scoped API token). Write access is only used when you apply.

  3. 3

    Review the preview

    Check every record marked Review or Unsupported. Each one explains what changes and why.

  4. 4

    Apply to Cloudflare

    We snapshot the Cloudflare zone, write in batches, and leave AXFR/DDNS untouched.

  5. 5

    Verify

    We query Cloudflare's own nameservers for every record and compare the answers before you switch.

  6. 6

    Switch nameservers

    Lower TTLs a day or two ahead, remove any DS record if DNSSEC is on, then point the domain at the new nameservers at your registrar.

Good to know about AXFR/DDNS

  • We reach the primary only over TCP port 53 at a public address; servers on private networks must expose port 53 publicly and allow our egress IPs.
  • Zones can't be listed or created over DNS: list them in the connection and create them on the server first.
  • Records of types we can't encode (e.g. LOC, CERT) and DNSSEC records are skipped when reading; signing stays with the server.

Access we need: The TSIG key needs zone-transfer (AXFR) rights for the preview and an update-policy grant for the managed zones to apply.

Good to know about Cloudflare

  • Proxied (orange-cloud) records hide the origin IP. Moving them to another provider sends traffic straight to the origin.
  • Apex CNAMEs are flattened by Cloudflare. Other providers need an ALIAS record or static A/AAAA records instead.
  • Cloudflare Registrar only allows Cloudflare nameservers, so domains registered there must be transferred out first.

Access we need: Zone → DNS → Read for the preview, Zone → DNS → Edit to apply.

Questions

Will there be downtime moving from AXFR/DDNS to Cloudflare?

Not if both providers serve the same answers during the switch. The records are copied to Cloudflare and verified before you change nameservers, so resolvers get the same answer from either side while caches expire.

Do I have to delete anything at AXFR/DDNS?

No. We never write to AXFR/DDNS. Keep the old zone for a week after cutover so you can switch back instantly if anything looks wrong.

What about DNSSEC?

If DNSSEC is on, remove the DS record at your registrar and wait for it to expire before switching nameservers. Then enable DNSSEC at Cloudflare and publish its new DS record. The cutover plan walks you through each step.

Related migrations

Ready to see your own zone?

Start a free preview