Custom domain works only sometimes on some browsers

Support
,
1

Hello!

I am trying to set up a Netlify site (zealous-shockley-33330d.netlify.app) at a custom domain (wolfpackgames.com) and running into a problem.

Observed Issue
The domain will work sometimes (perhaps 15% of the time) and for some users, but often I receive a ‘DNS address not found (DNS_PROBE_POSSIBLE)’ or ‘This site can’t be reached (DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN)’ error. There seems to be no pattern to when and on what browser it works: for instance, I’ve been able to load the website on Brave browser but not on Chrome at the same time.

Screen Shot 2022-01-25 at 11.59.45 AM
Screen Shot 2022-01-25 at 11.59.45 AM1920×872 56.7 KB

I am seeing behavior similar to this post , however I was unable to resolve the issue by following the thread. It seems that for some of the posters in this thread, Netlify was able to see an issue from their end and help resolve it. Hoping you can help here, too!

DNS Setup
This custom domain is wolfpackgames.com which was purchased from dan.com. On dan.com I have two records configured: An A record for the apex domain pointing to Netlify’s load balancer IP 75.2.60.5 and CNAME record for www subdomain pointing to zealous-shockley-33330d.netlify.app. The nameservers are set according to Netlify’s specifications. I have been communicating with dan.com’s support team and as far as they can tell everything is working on their end. There haven’t been any changes to this configuration for well over 48 hours now so I don’t think it’s a propagation issue.

Dig
This is the response I receive when running dig trace.

dig trace wolfpackgames.com

; <<>> DiG 9.10.6 <<>> trace wolfpackgames.com
;; global options: +cmd
;; Got answer:
;; ->>HEADER<<- opcode: QUERY, status: NXDOMAIN, id: 15677
;; flags: qr aa rd ra; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 0, AUTHORITY: 0, ADDITIONAL: 0

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;trace.				IN	A

;; Query time: 2 msec
;; SERVER: 2603:7080:b105:3ec9:c6b3:1ff:fed9:d7a9#53(2603:7080:b105:3ec9:c6b3:1ff:fed9:d7a9)
;; WHEN: Tue Jan 25 12:18:08 EST 2022
;; MSG SIZE  rcvd: 23

;; Got answer:
;; ->>HEADER<<- opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 45423
;; flags: qr rd ra; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 0, AUTHORITY: 0, ADDITIONAL: 0

;; QUESTION SECTION:
;wolfpackgames.com.		IN	A

;; Query time: 3 msec
;; SERVER: 2603:7080:b105:3ec9:c6b3:1ff:fed9:d7a9#53(2603:7080:b105:3ec9:c6b3:1ff:fed9:d7a9)
;; WHEN: Tue Jan 25 12:18:08 EST 2022
;; MSG SIZE  rcvd: 35

In case it is useful here is some more dig info:

dig www.wolfpackgames.com @dns1.p08.nsone.net

; <<>> DiG 9.10.6 <<>> www.wolfpackgames.com @dns1.p08.nsone.net
;; global options: +cmd
;; Got answer:
;; ->>HEADER<<- opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 17909
;; flags: qr aa rd; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 2, AUTHORITY: 0, ADDITIONAL: 1
;; WARNING: recursion requested but not available

;; OPT PSEUDOSECTION:
; EDNS: version: 0, flags:; udp: 1232
;; QUESTION SECTION:
;www.wolfpackgames.com.		IN	A

;; ANSWER SECTION:
www.wolfpackgames.com.	20	IN	A	167.172.136.193
www.wolfpackgames.com.	20	IN	A	67.207.81.229

;; Query time: 159 msec
;; SERVER: 2620:4d:4000:6259:7:8:0:1#53(2620:4d:4000:6259:7:8:0:1)
;; WHEN: Tue Jan 25 12:19:24 EST 2022
;; MSG SIZE  rcvd: 82

dig wolfpackgames.com @dns1.p08.nsone.net

; <<>> DiG 9.10.6 <<>> wolfpackgames.com @dns1.p08.nsone.net
;; global options: +cmd
;; Got answer:
;; ->>HEADER<<- opcode: QUERY, status: NOERROR, id: 47553
;; flags: qr aa rd; QUERY: 1, ANSWER: 2, AUTHORITY: 0, ADDITIONAL: 1
;; WARNING: recursion requested but not available

;; OPT PSEUDOSECTION:
; EDNS: version: 0, flags:; udp: 1232
;; QUESTION SECTION:
;wolfpackgames.com.		IN	A

;; ANSWER SECTION:
wolfpackgames.com.	20	IN	A	34.196.254.27
wolfpackgames.com.	20	IN	A	34.194.149.67

;; Query time: 34 msec
;; SERVER: 2620:4d:4000:6259:7:8:0:1#53(2620:4d:4000:6259:7:8:0:1)
;; WHEN: Tue Jan 25 12:19:33 EST 2022
;; MSG SIZE  rcvd: 78

Please let me know if you require any additional information. Thank you for looking into this!

2

Welcome to the forums @sandraguo

While the command dig wolfpackgames.com @dns1.p08.nsone.net show the entries wolfpackgames.com in Netlify DNS this does not show the NS configuration for the domain.

% dig wolfpackgames.com SOA +noall +answer

; <<>> DiG 9.10.6 <<>> wolfpackgames.com SOA +noall +answer
;; global options: +cmd
wolfpackgames.com.	244	IN	SOA	ns1.huaweicloud-dns.org. hwclouds\.cs.huawei.com. 1 7200 900 1209600 300

Shows Huawei Cloud as the SOA and

% dig wolfpackgames.com +noall +answer NS

; <<>> DiG 9.10.6 <<>> wolfpackgames.com +noall +answer NS
;; global options: +cmd
wolfpackgames.com.	172800	IN	NS	ns1.huaweicloud-dns.org.
wolfpackgames.com.	172800	IN	NS	ns1.huaweicloud-dns.com.
wolfpackgames.com.	172800	IN	NS	ns1.huaweicloud-dns.cn.
wolfpackgames.com.	172800	IN	NS	ns1.huaweicloud-dns.net.

shows the same for nameservers.

Checking whois records shows both hauweicloud and nsone nameservers

% whois wolfpackgames.com | grep 'Name Server'
   Name Server: DNS1.P08.NSONE.NET
   Name Server: DNS2.P08.NSONE.NET
   Name Server: DNS3.P08.NSONE.NET
   Name Server: DNS4.P08.NSONE.NET
   Name Server: NS1.HUAWEICLOUD-DNS.CN
   Name Server: NS1.HUAWEICLOUD-DNS.COM
   Name Server: NS1.HUAWEICLOUD-DNS.NET
   Name Server: NS1.HUAWEICLOUD-DNS.ORG

I see no such A record

% dig wolfpackgames.com +noall +answer A

; <<>> DiG 9.10.6 <<>> wolfpackgames.com +noall +answer A
;; global options: +cmd

or CNAME

% dig www.wolfpackgames.com +noall +answer CNAME

; <<>> DiG 9.10.6 <<>> www.wolfpackgames.com +noall +answer CNAME
;; global options: +cmd

However, you are a using external DNS (which is why you would set the above mentioned records) then there is no need to set the Netlify DNS *.nsone.net nameservers—they are for when you wish to use Netlify DNS.

3

Thank you for the reply coelmay, this is helpful. Can you help me unpack this a bit more? I am dev helping out with getting this site up for another party, so I just reconfigured the nameservers and records based on my reading of the Netlify docs.

Is it possible that the nameservers were set up previously with Huawei Cloud, and would this cause any issues with setting the site up on Netlify? If so, how could I flush or reset them?

Is it possible that I am mixing the external DNS settings and Netlify DNS settings in a way that is causing the observed issue? I did add the domain to Netlify and this is what the domains page looks like. I believe that these DNS records were autogenerated, but is this where I ought to put the A record and CNAME record, as it seems it did not set up from the external DNS?

Screen Shot 2022-01-25 at 4.05.26 PM
Screen Shot 2022-01-25 at 4.05.26 PM1068×1138 103 KB

This does not quite explain why the site sometimes works. If it is totally not pointed in to the right place, then the domain should never reach the Netlify site, right?

4

Yes, nameservers where previously configured to point to Hauwei Cloud. If these were removed at the registrar when the Netlify DNS Nameservers were added then it is simply a matter of time, waiting for propagation to finish, though I do note you have waited for some 48 hours now. DNS Checker shows propagation on numerous DNS around the world see wolfpackgames.com @ DNS Checker.

This is possible too. You need to decide weather external DNS or Netlify DNS is what you need/want (see [Support Guide] Should I use Netlify to manage my DNS?). Then follow the steps outlined in the relevant documentation (see external or Netlify documentation). Ensure the Namservers are correctly set at the registrar and then wait for propagation.

The NETLIFY records are auto-generated when using Netlify DNS (see link above.) The only records (A/CNAME/MX) to configure in Netlify Domains section of the UI is those pointing to external services. Do not add A/CNAME records here pointing to the Netlify site.

The reason it may work sometimes is, as per DNS Checker above, some DNS are pointing to Netlify DNS, and as the domain is configured there, it loads. It depends on which region you are are and which DNS you hit.