Cloudflare DNS is a robust, high-performance, and easy-to-manage Domain Name System (DNS) service. It offers superior performance and reliability for your domain while providing crucial protection against Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks and DNS hijacking.
Cloudflare's DNS Services: A Closer Look
Cloudflare provides two main types of DNS services:
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Authoritative DNS: This service acts as the official source of information for your domain's DNS records. Cloudflare manages these records, ensuring they're always up-to-date and securely delivered. This is crucial for ensuring your website and other online services are accessible. It features unlimited and unmetered DDoS protection (Cloudflare DNS | Authoritative and Secondary DNS | Cloudflare).
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Public DNS Resolver (1.1.1.1): This is a free, public DNS service that anyone can use to improve their internet browsing speed and privacy. Unlike many other DNS resolvers, 1.1.1.1 does not sell your data (What is 1.1.1.1? | Cloudflare, IP addresses ยท Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 docs). It's fast, and it prioritizes privacy.
Key Features and Benefits
- Enhanced Speed and Reliability: Cloudflare's global network ensures fast DNS resolution, leading to quicker website loading times.
- Robust Security: Protection against DDoS attacks and DNS hijacking is built-in. Using Cloudflare's proxy feature directs traffic through Cloudflare's servers, shielding your origin server from attacks (What is the difference between "Proxied" and "DNS Only"? - DNS ...).
- Easy Management: The Cloudflare dashboard provides a user-friendly interface for managing your DNS records.
- Privacy Focused (1.1.1.1): The public resolver prioritizes user privacy by not selling user data. It supports encrypted DNS protocols like DoT and DoH (Introducing 1.1.1.1 for Families).
Practical Examples
- A business uses Cloudflare's authoritative DNS to manage their domain's DNS records, ensuring high availability and protection from attacks.
- A user switches to Cloudflare's 1.1.1.1 public DNS resolver to experience faster internet browsing speeds and enhanced privacy.
Cloudflare DNS offers a comprehensive solution for managing and securing your domain's DNS, ranging from robust security measures to improved performance and user privacy options.