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    Alibaba Cloud DNS:Domain name management

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    Alibaba Cloud DNS:Domain name management

    Last Updated:Nov 01, 2025

    This topic describes how to manage domain names in Alibaba Cloud DNS. You can add and delete external domain names, retrieve domain names that are added by other accounts, and transfer or reclaim DNS records for domain names that are registered with Alibaba Cloud.

    Add a domain name

    • You do not need to add domain names that are registered with Alibaba Cloud. After you register a domain name, you can configure its DNS records directly in the Alibaba Cloud DNS console.

    • To use Alibaba Cloud DNS for an external domain name or a subdomain, you must add the primary domain name or subdomain to the Alibaba Cloud DNS console to enable the DNS resolution service.

    • This section describes how to add an external primary domain name in the Alibaba Cloud DNS console. For more information about how to add a subdomain, see Subdomain management.

    Procedure

    1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud DNS - Public Zone page. Click the Add Zone button.

    2. In the Add Zone dialog box, enter the primary domain name and select an instance to attach. If no paid instances are available, click Purchase Package Instance to open the purchase page. After the purchase, select the new instance from the Attach Instance drop-down list and click OK. For more information, see Purchase and attach a domain name.

      Note

      For a comparison of different instance editions, see Edition comparison. Paid editions provide a 100% monthly availability Service-Level Agreement (SLA), higher query speeds, and enhanced security. We recommend that you use a paid edition for production services.

    3. After a domain name is successfully added, it appears on the Public Zone page.

      Note

      If the DNS server status is not Normal after you add the domain name, see View and handle DNS server status for troubleshooting information.

    Retrieve a domain name

    Domain name retrieval is for external domain names. When you try to Add a Domain Name in the Alibaba Cloud DNS console, you may receive a message that the domain name has already been added by another account. If you are the registrant, you can use the domain name retrieval feature to add the domain name to your current account.

    Warning

    When you retrieve a domain name to a new account, its previous DNS records are deleted.

    Procedure

    1. On the Alibaba Cloud DNS - Public Zone page, click the Add Zone button.

    2. After you enter the domain name, a message is displayed indicating that the domain name has been added by another account. Click Retrieve Zone.

    3. When prompted for registrant identity verification, copy the Host and TXT Record Value. Do not close this dialog box.

    4. Go to the console of the domain name's current DNS service provider. Add a TXT record with the information that you copied.

    5. After you add the TXT record, return to the registrant identity verification dialog box in the Alibaba Cloud DNS console and click OK. Alibaba Cloud DNS automatically scans for the TXT record. If the scan confirms that the TXT record is correct, you will receive an email notifying you that the domain name was successfully retrieved. The domain name is then added to the account that initiated the request.

    Delete a domain name

    In the Alibaba Cloud DNS console, you can delete external domain names. When you delete a domain name, its DNS records are also deleted. You cannot delete domain names that are registered with Alibaba Cloud.

    Procedure

    1. On the Alibaba Cloud DNS - Public Zone page, find the target domain name. In the Actions column, click the More icon and then click Delete. In the confirmation dialog box, click OK.

    Warning

    This operation removes the domain name and all its DNS records. Before you proceed, confirm that you want to delete the domain name.

    Inactive domain name cleanup mechanism

    Alibaba Cloud DNS - Public Zone has an inactive domain name cleanup mechanism. DNS data for inactive domain names is deleted after 30 days. This mechanism applies only to external domain names. Domain names registered with Alibaba Cloud and their independently hosted subdomains are never considered inactive and are not cleaned up, regardless of whether they use the Free Edition of DNS.

    Warning

    Rules for determining inactive domain names:

    • The domain name is an external domain name that uses the Free Edition of DNS, and its NS records at the domain name registrar are not changed to the DNS server addresses assigned by Alibaba Cloud DNS.

    • The domain name is an independently hosted subdomain of an external domain name that uses the Free Edition of DNS, and its NS records are not configured on the primary domain's DNS to point to the DNS server addresses assigned by Alibaba Cloud DNS.

    Transfer DNS records to another account

    You can transfer the DNS records of a domain name registered with Alibaba Cloud from your account to another Alibaba Cloud account. After the transfer, the original account can reclaim the management permissions and all DNS records. For more information, see Reclaim DNS records.

    Usage rules

    • You cannot transfer domain names that are attached to a paid Alibaba Cloud DNS instance. You can transfer domain names that use the Free Edition of DNS. To transfer a domain name that is attached to a paid instance, see Scenario 2: The domain name uses a paid edition of DNS.

    • You cannot transfer a domain name that is the suffix of a CNAME Access Domain Name in a Global Traffic Manager (GTM) instance. This is because a GTM CNAME Access Domain Name must be associated with a public domain name within the same account. For more information, see Access domain name.

    • This feature is available only for domain names registered under your account. It is not available for domain names registered under other accounts or for external domain names.

    • After you transfer domain names to another account in a batch, the new account obtains permissions to manage the DNS resolution. These permissions include DNS record management but not domain name registration management.

    • This feature is available only for Alibaba Cloud accounts, not for RAM users.

    • You can transfer domain names only between accounts on the China site (aliyun.com) or between accounts on the international site (alibabacloud.com). Cross-site transfers are not supported. A cross-site transfer is a transfer between a China site account and an international site account.

    Procedure

    1. Log on to Alibaba Cloud DNS - Public Zone.

    2. Click the Batch Operations button.

    3. On the Batch Operations page, on the Batch Manage Domain Names tab, enter the domain names to transfer and click Batch Transfer To Other Accounts.

      image

    4. In the Domain Name Resolution Transfer Identity Verification dialog box, enter the Verification Code from the text message or email, the Other Party's Logon Account, and the Other Party's Account ID. Then, click OK.

    5. To query the batch task results, click Download Details Log on the Batch Operation Records tab.

    Reclaim DNS records

    DNS record reclamation is a feature available for domain names registered with Alibaba Cloud. If the DNS records of a domain name have been transferred to another Alibaba Cloud account, you can use the Add Zone feature in the domain name's original account to reclaim the DNS records and their management permissions. For example, if the DNS records for a domain name in Account A are transferred to Account B using the Batch transfer DNS records to another account feature, you can then use the Add Zone feature in Account A to reclaim the DNS records from Account B.

    Procedure

    1. Navigate to the Alibaba Cloud DNS - Public Zone page and click Add Zone. In the Add Zone dialog box that opens, enter the domain name.

    2. A message appears in the dialog box: This Domain Name Was Transferred To Another Account For Management. Do You Want To Reclaim The DNS Management Permissions To The Current Account? To reclaim the domain name and its DNS records, select Reclaim Domain Name And DNS Records. The system checks the DNS instance attached to your domain name in Account B. If the instance is a paid edition, you must purchase an instance of the same edition for Account A. As shown in the following figure, select Attach An Instance Of The Same Edition To Ensure Smooth Migration. The system automatically attaches the instance to avoid service interruptions.

      Warning

      1. If the domain name is attached to a paid instance in Account B, you must purchase an instance of the same edition for Account A. Otherwise, the domain name is attached to a Free Edition instance by default when the DNS records are reclaimed. This may cause DNS records that are supported only by the paid instance to be paused, which can result in service interruptions.

      2. If you do not want to attach a paid instance after you reclaim the DNS records, you must check the DNS records in Account B before the operation. You must also disable the Update Lock and DNSSEC features.

      3. If the domain name uses a Free Edition DNS instance in Account B, you can directly reclaim the DNS records. The records are not affected, which ensures a seamless transfer.

    3. Select the instance to attach and click OK. The DNS records are then returned to the current account.

    FAQ and References

    For more information about issues related to domain names, see Domain name FAQ.