Free · live registry data · no login

DNS Snapshot Before Transfer

Save every record so nothing is lost when you move.

How it works

Snapshot every DNS record before you transfer a domain

When a domain leaves a registrar that also hosts its DNS, the zone is usually deleted and email, website and verification records disappear with it. This tool queries the live records for the apex and the hostnames that matter most: www, mail, autodiscover, DKIM selectors, DMARC and SRV. It returns a table plus a BIND zone-file export and a CSV you can paste into MailShrine DNS, Cloudflare or any other host before you start the move.

Results appear here after you click Take snapshot.

How this works

1
Query the apex
A, AAAA, MX, TXT, NS, SOA, SRV, CAA and DS are fetched over DNS-over-HTTPS from Cloudflare with Google as fallback.
2
Probe common hostnames
www, mail, autodiscover, DMARC, DKIM selectors, SRV names and any hosts you add are resolved for CNAME, A, AAAA, TXT and SRV.
3
Export two formats
Results are de-duplicated and rendered as a BIND zone file and a CSV, ready to import or paste.

Frequently asked questions

How do I export DNS records before a domain transfer?: Either download a zone file from your current DNS host or use a snapshot tool like this one that queries the public records. Save the output, recreate the records at the new host, and only then start the transfer. Public queries cannot see records that nobody has published, so add any unusual subdomains manually.
Why are some of my subdomains missing?: DNS has no public directory of hostnames; a resolver can only answer for names it is asked about. We check the names that almost every domain uses and any you type in. Check your DNS host's dashboard for anything else, such as staging or internal hosts.
Can I import this zone file into MailShrine DNS?: Yes. The export follows the standard BIND format with $ORIGIN and $TTL lines, which MailShrine DNS, Cloudflare, Route 53 and most hosts accept. Remove the SOA and NS lines if the importer manages those for you.
Does transferring a domain change DNS records?: Not by itself. The transfer changes the registrar of record; nameservers stay what they were. The risk is that registrar-hosted DNS is deleted when the domain leaves, so the records vanish even though the nameserver names are unchanged.
What TTL should I set before moving?: Lower TTLs to 300 seconds a day before any planned nameserver change so mistakes can be corrected quickly. The snapshot keeps the TTLs currently published; adjust them in the export if you plan to switch hosts.

Every MailShrine domain includes WHOIS privacy, transfer lock, Anycast DNS with DNSSEC and two business mailboxes.