HF PanelDocsv1.0.0

Dynamic DNS

Give a computer, camera or router at home or in the office a name like home.yourdomain.com that follows its changing IP address.

Dynamic DNS gives a computer, camera or router at home or in the office a name like home.yourdomain.com that follows its changing IP address. Your router, or a small script, tells the server whenever the address changes, and the name's DNS record is updated at once.

Where: Control Panel › Domains › Dynamic DNS

Dynamic DNS screen

Note: the names only work when the server runs DNS for your domain (the domain uses the server's nameservers). If the server does not run DNS, the screen says so.

Add a Dynamic DNS name

  1. Under Add a Dynamic DNS name, enter the Name, for example home or office.vpn.
  2. Choose the Domain.
  3. Optionally, enter a First address (IPv4 or IPv6). Without one, the first update sets it.
  4. Tick Email me when the address changes if you want an email each time.
  5. Click Add.

The name can use letters, digits and dashes, and can't be the domain itself. It must not already be in use — delete its records in the DNS zone editor first if needed.

After you click Add, the token is shown (see below).

Note: your plan allows a set number of Dynamic DNS names (10 by default). The card shows how many you use, for example 2 of 10.

Copy the token and the set-up details

Each name has a secret token. It is shown once, straight after you make the name or a new token:

Important: copy the token now — it is shown only once. Make a new one if you lose it.

The card Token for home.yourdomain.com shows everything you need:

Section Details
Token the secret token, with a Copy button
Router (dyndns2) Server, Username (your Dynamic DNS name), Password (the token) and Host name
Update address the address for routers that ask for an update URL
From a script a ready-made curl command

Set up your router

Most routers have a Dynamic DNS setting. Choose the dyndns2 or custom Dynamic DNS service, then enter:

Router field Value
Server the server shown on the screen
User name / host name your Dynamic DNS name, for example home.yourdomain.com
Password the token

The update address uses basic authentication. It answers good, nochg, badauth, nohost or abuse, like other dyndns2 services.

Update from a script

Run the curl command shown on the screen every few minutes, for example from a cron job on the computer at home:

text
curl -fsS 'https://<update address>?token=<your token>'

Add &ip= to set an address; without it, the address the request comes from is used. You can also send an IPv6 address with &ipv6=.

Your Dynamic DNS names

The table lists each name:

Column What it shows
Name the full host name
IPv4, IPv6 the current addresses
Last change when the address last changed
Last update when the router or script last checked in, and how many updates there were
Email me On or Off — click to switch the email on address changes
Token the first characters of the token, so you can tell which one is in use

Buttons on each row:

  • History — the last 100 updates with Time (UTC), Result, Address, From and Client.
  • New token — makes a new token. The old one stops working at once: change it in your router too.
  • Delete — deletes the name and its DNS records.

Limits

  • 120 updates and 12 address changes per name an hour. Updates that change nothing only count.
  • After 20 refused requests (wrong token or unknown name) from one address in 15 minutes, that address must wait 15 minutes.
  • The records an update writes have a TTL of 60 seconds, so changes reach everyone quickly.