DNS Monitoring
FlareWarden tracks DNS records for all your uptime monitors. Detect unauthorized changes to your DNS configuration and troubleshoot resolution issues.
Automatic DNS Monitoring
DNS monitoring is automatic for all uptime monitors
FlareWarden checks that your domain resolves with each check, and looks up its DNS records every hour, keeping a history of every change. When two lookups in a row agree that its A, AAAA, CNAME, MX, TXT or CAA records changed, it alerts you, following your DNS alert setting on the Notifications page.
DNS Record Types Monitored
Track all common DNS record types for comprehensive monitoring
| Record | Purpose | Example |
|---|---|---|
| A | IPv4 address | 192.0.2.1 |
| AAAA | IPv6 address | 2001:db8::1 |
| MX | Mail server | 10 mail.example.com |
| CNAME | Alias to another domain | www.example.com |
| TXT | Text records (SPF, DKIM, etc.) | v=spf1 include:... |
| CAA | Certificate authority authorization | 0 issue "letsencrypt.org" |
What We Detect
Comprehensive DNS change detection and alerting
Resolution Failures
When DNS stops resolving entirely (NXDOMAIN, timeout, etc.)
IP Address Changes
When A or AAAA records point to different IP addresses. For a name that is an alias (CNAME), we alert when its target changes.
MX Record Changes
Changes to mail server configuration that could affect email delivery
TXT Record Changes
SPF, DKIM, or verification record modifications
Domain Registration
Registration and ownership information for each website's domain
FlareWarden reads the registration of the domain registered for each website's address (www.example.com is read as example.com) from the domain's registry, over RDAP or, where a registry has no RDAP service, WHOIS.
Expiry Reminders Beta
Get emailed 30, 7 and 1 days before the registration expires, so you can renew it before losing the name. How reminders work
Registrar Changes
Detect when a domain is transferred to a different registrar, which could indicate unauthorized transfers.
Nameserver Changes
Track when nameserver records change in WHOIS, which affects where your DNS is hosted.
Status Changes
Monitor domain status flags like clientTransferProhibited, serverHold, and other registrar locks.
Why DNS Monitoring Matters
Critical security and operational insights from DNS tracking
Detect DNS Hijacking
Unauthorized DNS changes can redirect your visitors to malicious sites. Early detection limits exposure.
Troubleshoot Outages
DNS issues can look like server outages. Knowing DNS is the problem saves debugging time.
Track Infrastructure Changes
Keep a record of when IPs changed during migrations or CDN switches.
DNS Watches
Watch other records under your site's domain
From a site's DNS page you can watch up to 20 names under its
domain, such as your MX records, _dmarc, your SPF
record or the CNAME a subdomain points at. FlareWarden looks
them up every 15 minutes and alerts you when their values
change, or when they stop resolving, once two lookups in a row
agree. Watches use no monitors from your plan, and their alerts
follow your DNS alert setting on the Notifications page.
Webhook Events
Integrate DNS alerts with your existing tools
DNS events can trigger webhooks:
dns.failed - DNS resolution failed
dns.recovered - DNS resolution recovered
dns.changed - Your site's DNS records, or a DNS record you watch, changed their values