What is DNS propagation and why it can take up to 48 hours?

What is DNS propagation?

To make viewing the web faster for their customers, Internet Service Providers cache all of their Domain Name System records. This caching process is called Propagation.

Caching means that the ISPs read and display websites from their local files instead of looking them up on the Internet each time their customers want to view a website. This is similar, on a massive scale, to the way the browser on your computer caches websites to speed up browsing.

Propagation ultimately speeds up web surfing by:

• Speeding up the time it takes for a web browser’s website request to return.
• Reducing the amount of traffic on the web, therefore running faster overall.

Why does propagation take so long?

The reason it takes so long for your, or any website to be visible to everyone once you launch it is that each ISP has an automated process that updates and caches DNS records every few days. Until their cache is reset, it will not display your launched website. There isn’t any set standard for this process and they can set propagation time anywhere from a few hours up to 48.

Can I speed the process up?

Unfortunately, no. You, WPX Hosting, or anyone else can do nothing to reduce DNS propagation time. It is simply a case of waiting for this automated process to complete itself.

How can I be sure the propagation is completed?

When you open whatsmydns.net (an online tool that you can use to check all DNS records added for a domain name), type in your website and select the type of record you would like to see.

On the left side, you can view the various locations where your website is being tested. On the right, you’ll find the corresponding records saved for each location. Once propagation is complete, all records—whether NS or A-type—will display the same results. For example, the website wpxexample.net is hosted at WPX and that is why the domain is pointed to WPX servers. This means the NS records will be the following:

ns1.wpx.net
ns2.wpx.net
ns3.wpx.net

This is how it should appear once propagation is complete: nearly all entries will be marked with a green checkmark, and the records will be consistent across all locations.

And that’s it! Now you know what the propagation process is and how to easily check when it’s fully completed.

If have any other questions on the topic, please contact WPX Support via live chat (use the bottom right-hand widget) and they will respond and help within 30 seconds or less.