deSEC RWTH Aachen DNS-Admin
Migrate DNS from deSEC to RWTH.
10 record types move as they are. 1 things work differently at RWTH, 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
- SSHFP
DS, HTTPS, SVCB, TLSA, NAPTR, LOC, CERT, URI, DHCID, DNAME, OPENPGPKEY, RP, SMIMEA aren't available
A typical deSEC zone at RWTH
Example records for example.com. Open any flagged row to read why it changed.
deSEC RWTH
- 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.
| Status | Type | Name | At RWTH | TTL | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exact | A | @ |
| 5m | |
| Exact | AAAA | @ |
| 5m | |
| Exact | MX | @ |
| 1h | |
| Exact | TXT | @ |
| 1h | |
| Exact | CAA | @ |
| 1h | |
| Exact | TXT | _dmarc |
| 1h | |
| Exact | SRV | _sip._tls |
| 1h | |
| Exact | CNAME | www |
| 1h |
How the move works
- 1
Connect deSEC
Connect deSEC with read-only access (API token).
- 2
Connect RWTH
Connect RWTH (DNS-Admin API token (PRIVATE-TOKEN header)). Write access is only used when you apply.
- 3
Review the preview
Check every record marked Review or Unsupported. Each one explains what changes and why.
- 4
Apply to RWTH
We snapshot the RWTH zone, write in batches, and leave deSEC untouched.
- 5
Verify
We query RWTH's own nameservers for every record and compare the answers before you switch.
- 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 deSEC
- The minimum TTL is 3600 seconds for most domains (deSEC sets it per domain) and the maximum is 86400.
- ALIAS/ANAME records and apex CNAMEs aren't supported; use A/AAAA or HTTPS records at the apex.
- Every zone is DNSSEC-signed automatically. Give the DS records to your registrar to complete the chain.
Access we need: Any token can read all RRsets. Applying needs write permission on the RRsets (token policies can restrict it); creating zones needs perm_create_domain.
Good to know about RWTH
- The DNS-Admin API is only reachable from the RWTH network (campus or VPN), so the hosted service cannot connect; use the DNSMigrator CLI from inside the network.
- Changes are staged and published by a zone deploy; RWTH deploys zones in 15-minute cycles, so updates can take that long to appear.
- Zones are assigned by the RWTH IT Center and cannot be created through the API; the SOA record is locked.
Access we need: A DNS-Admin API token with your DNS-Admin rights, optionally restricted to a sub-domain. Tokens are not read-only, so the same token is used for preview and apply.
Questions
Will there be downtime moving from deSEC to RWTH?
Not if both providers serve the same answers during the switch. The records are copied to RWTH 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 deSEC?
No. We never write to deSEC. 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 RWTH and publish its new DS record. The cutover plan walks you through each step.
Ready to see your own zone?
Start a free preview