Free DNS Time-to-Live Diagnostic Tool

DNS TTL & Caching Health Checker

Analyze your domain's DNS TTL settings under two key lenses: Everyday Page Load Latency vs. Server Migration Readiness.

Caching Performance Score
70 / 100
Evaluates lookup speed vs cache efficiency
Shortest TTL
5 minutes (300s)
Fastest record expiration duration
Longest TTL
1 day (86400s)
Maximum cached retention duration
Records Inspected
17
A, AAAA, CNAME, MX, TXT, NS, SOA
1. Everyday Load Performance
Optimal Caching
Optimal DNS Caching Balance
Your DNS TTL settings strike a healthy balance between fast initial DNS connection speeds and reasonable infrastructure agility.
2. Server Migration Agility
Short Prep Needed
Requires Short Pre-Migration Lowering (2–4 Hours)
Your web records have moderate TTLs. Lower your A and CNAME TTLs to 300 seconds 4 hours before switching servers to guarantee smooth cutover.

DNS Record TTL Inventory (tonyherman.com)

Host / Record Type Target / Value TTL (Duration) Everyday Performance Lens Migration Lens
tonyherman.com A
192.0.79.156
22.8 hours (82069s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com A
192.0.79.180
22.8 hours (82069s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com NS
ns2.rackspace.com
17.2 minutes (1032s) Lookup Overhead Instant Propagation
tonyherman.com NS
ns.rackspace.com
17.2 minutes (1032s) Lookup Overhead Instant Propagation
tonyherman.com SOA
Primary NS: ns.rackspace.com (Admin: hostmaster.rackspace.com)
5 minutes (300s) Lookup Overhead Instant Propagation
tonyherman.com MX
[Priority 10] web15.webstix.com
10.9 hours (39257s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com TXT
test-record
1 day (86400s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com TXT
test-record-2
1 day (86400s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com TXT
v=spf1 mx a include:_spf.getresponse.com ~all
1 day (86400s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com TXT
google-site-verification=RdQRuEnt_vOkC-0FfPA6ecI2D-fwWZNAuFNZBGP2ndo
1 day (86400s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com A
192.0.79.156
22.8 hours (82020s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com MX
[Priority 10] web15.webstix.com
1 day (86400s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com TXT
v=spf1 mx a include:_spf.getresponse.com ~all
17.2 minutes (1032s) Lookup Overhead Instant Propagation
tonyherman.com NS
ns.rackspace.com
1 day (86400s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com A
192.0.79.180
1 day (86400s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
tonyherman.com A
192.0.79.156
1 day (86400s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
www.tonyherman.com CNAME
tonyherman.com
15.1 hours (54449s) Optimal Speed 24h Prep Needed
Actionable Recommendations & Best Practices
[Migration Prep] Pre-Migration TTL Reduction Checklist

Planning a server move? 24 hours BEFORE updating your A/CNAME record IP addresses, reduce their TTL setting in your DNS portal to 300 seconds (5 minutes). This ensures fast propagation during the cutover.

[Best Practice] Post-Migration TTL Restoration

Once your server migration is complete and verified stable for 24 hours, remember to raise your TTL values back to 3,600s or 86,400s to regain optimal DNS caching performance.

Understanding DNS TTL: Performance vs. Agility

DNS Time-to-Live (TTL) is a numerical setting (measured in seconds) attached to every DNS record. It dictates how long recursive DNS resolvers, ISPs, and web browsers are permitted to cache your server's IP address before requesting a fresh update.

Why Low TTL Hurts Everyday Speed

When you set a low TTL (e.g. 300s / 5 minutes) on a domain that is not migrating, every returning visitor's browser or local ISP must continuously send fresh DNS queries to resolve your server IP. This adds an extra 20ms to 150ms round-trip latency to page load times. For everyday stability, TTLs should be set to 3,600s (1 hour) or 86,400s (24 hours).

How to Manage TTL for Zero-Downtime Migration

If you are planning to switch web hosts or move to a new server IP, follow this two-step process:
1. 24 hours BEFORE migration: Reduce your A and CNAME TTL values to 300s (5 minutes).
2. 24 hours AFTER migration: Once the new IP is verified stable, raise your TTL back to 3,600s or 86,400s to regain maximum DNS caching speed.