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Example: example.com is registered at Namecheap but I want to use Cloudflare DNS. So on my Namecheap DNS I set the domain's nameservers (I thought this changed the NS records) to the Cloudflare name servers - deb.ns.cloudflare.com and sri.ns.cloudflare.com). Later, then I do an NSLOOKUP directly again namecheap's name servers (dns1.registrar-servers.com) and query the NS records, I expected to see deb.ns.cloudflare.com and sri.ns.cloudflare.com. But I do not. I see namecheap's nameservers showing.

nslookup - dns1.registrar-servers.com
> set type=NS
> example.com
Server: dns1.namecheaphosting.com
Address: 216.87.155.33

example.com      nameserver = dns1.registrar-servers.com
example.com      nameserver = dns2.registrar-servers.com
Emilio
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  • Where exactly did you make this change? – Michael Hampton Apr 28 '19 at 22:11
  • At the registrar - Namecheap. – Emilio Apr 28 '19 at 22:16
  • Please be specific. What did you click on, where, etc – Michael Hampton Apr 28 '19 at 22:16
  • Domains, Manage, Domain tab, NAMESERVERS section, change from "Namecheap Basic DNS" to "Custom DNS", then enter the Cloudflare name servers. – Emilio Apr 28 '19 at 22:20
  • That is the correct place. You probably just need to wait for TTL to expire. – Michael Hampton Apr 28 '19 at 22:23
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    Think I realized my problem - setting the name servers in that area does NOT actually change the NS records in the example.com zone file at Namecheap. When I make those changes Namecheap is actually updating root/.com server DNS... – Emilio Apr 28 '19 at 22:24
  • @Michael How do you recommend I either adjust the question and/or answer it so as to turn this question constructive to the community? It's already got a downvote. Is it salvageable or should I delete it? – Emilio Apr 28 '19 at 23:33
  • I don't know why you got a downvote. But remember that if you changed the nameservers to CloudFlare's nameservers, you must then configure your DNS at CloudFlare. It is no longer relevant what Namecheap's nameservers say. CloudFlare will tell you if you haven't changed the nameservers correctly. – Michael Hampton Apr 28 '19 at 23:39
  • @Michael Totally agree about having configure DNS at Cloudflare. It was just confused why the NS records sitting in the zone file at the registrar hadn't changed, but apparently I had misunderstood the entire process. – Emilio Apr 28 '19 at 23:42
  • Registrar is one provider, DNS provider another (potentially). The DNS provider has your zone content. How do you think any action at the registrar could change the content of the zone, handled elsewhere? – Patrick Mevzek Apr 29 '19 at 00:23
  • @PatrickMevzek The registrars have a relationship with the root and TLD name server hosters, so they communicate the changes to them. Are you suggesting it works differently? – Emilio Apr 29 '19 at 23:16
  • @Emilio. No. I am not suggesting anything I am explaining exactly how it works being inside it. Registrars send to registry the list of nameservers to be used for each domain. Those nameservers may not be necessarily under control of a registrar, they are under control of a DNS provider. Sometimes a registrar is a DNS provider, sometimes not. Sometimes a given domain owner uses its registrar as DNS provider, sometimes not. The content of the zone is only controlled by the DNS provider. If it is not the registrar, nothing done at the registrar could change the **content** of the zone. – Patrick Mevzek Apr 29 '19 at 23:29
  • @Emilio And no, registrars have no relationship with the root nameservers. They are just accredited and under contract with one or more registries, and a given registry manages one or more TLDs. Through a specific channel (often EPP) a registrar, on behalf of its clients, instruct the registry which nameservers to list in its parent zone, for some specific domain the registrar sponsors. This creates the delegation from the registry authoritative nameserver on some TLD to a given domain name in this TLD. Then the content of the zone is under the control of the DNS provider controlling those NS. – Patrick Mevzek Apr 29 '19 at 23:32

1 Answers1

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Changing the nameservers for your domain at the registrar does not update the NS records in the domain's zone file at the registrar. Changing the nameservers results in a change being made at the parent domain, in this case .com.

Emilio
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