What Happens when you type hitesh.ai on Browser and hit ENTER?

As you can see in above image after you type hitesh.ai and hit enter and it opens right? Partially Correct, Because when you press Enter, your computer first tries to find the IP address of hitesh.ai.
Computers don’t really understand domain names like hitesh.ai, they only understand IP addresses, because an IP address tells where the website is actually located on the internet.

So this is what happens step-by-step:

1. First, your browser checks if the IP address of hitesh.ai is already saved in the cache.

2. If it’s not found in cache, the request goes to a recursive DNS server (usually your ISP / WiFi DNS).

3. The recursive DNS server follows a proper process and finds the correct IP address of hitesh.ai.

4. Once the browser gets the IP address, it sends a request to the web server where that website is hosted.

5. If the website needs data, the server queries the database server.

6. Finally, the response is sent back to the browser and it gets displayed on your screen.

DNS is basically the internet’s phonebook — it converts domain names into IP addresses.
Think of DNS as saving a contact name (hitesh.ai) and dialing its number (IP address).

Why do we need DNS Records?

Simple, Because DNS records act as Internet’s Phonebook and Translate easy to remember names like google.com to complex IP Addresses like 216.58.216.164 which all Humans tend to forget even if we remember some websites IP Addresses then we may not be able to access other websites on the internet if we do not have DNS records of that website. This is where DNS Records comes into picture which makes the Internet Surfing so easy by giving IP Addresses of the websites when we give URL to it.

Types of DNS Records

So you must have noticed i have repeatedly said DNS Records in above lines “So apart from IP Address which other Records are stored in DNS Server?” So let us see one by one about types of DNS Records.

NS Records

NS Records are short for Name Server Records. They tell us which authoritative DNS servers control the DNS records for a domain

Look at the above image carefully it shows us NS Record which Authoritative DNS Server contains Records of .com domain which is in image as example.com DNS to which NS Records points.

A Record (Address Record)

The first and most important record is the A Record.

When you type hitesh.ai in your browser, the browser needs the actual IP address of the server where the website is hosted.
This is exactly what an A record gives.

A record basically means: hitesh.ai → 123.45.67.89

Real-life example (House Address)

Think of it like this:

1. hitesh.ai is the house name

2. 123.45.67.89 is the house address

You can’t reach the house by just knowing the name. You need the proper address, right?
Same thing happens on the internet. Without the A record, the browser has no idea where the website lives.

A/AAAA Records (Domain → IPV4/IPV6)

Look at the diagram where you can see:

1. Client types hitesh.ai

2. DNS server checks A/AAAA records

3. DNS returns IP like 192.168.2.2

4. Now client uses that IP to connect to the server

So technically A Record = Domain name → IPv4 Address

Example: hitesh.ai → 123.456.7.8

AAAA Record (IPv6 Record)

What problem does it solve?

AAAA record is also used to give IP address, but it gives the IPv6 address.

IPv6 is like the new version of IP addresses.

Real life example (New phone number format)

Old phone numbers were shorter (IPv4)
New phone numbers are longer (IPv6)

So basically,

1. A record = old style address (IPv4)

2. AAAA record = new style address (IPv6)

Example: hitesh.ai → 2606:2800:220:1d:2ab:1794:9712:733a

So, AAAA Record = Domain name → IPv6 Address

CNAME Record (Nickname Record)

What problem does it solve?

Many websites work with both:

• hitesh.ai

• www.hitesh.ai

But both should open the same website, right?

Instead of writing IP twice, we use CNAME record.

Real life example (Nickname):

1. My real name is Pritesh, but my friends call me “Prit” sometimes.

2. Both names mean the same person.

Same way:
www.hitesh.ai is like a nickname of hitesh.ai

So CNAME record simply says:

“www.hitesh.ai points to hitesh.ai”

A lot of beginners have confusion that links like hitesh.ai/cohort can be redirected to chaicode.com/cohorts/webdev. DNS cannot redirect paths like /cohort. That redirection is handled by the website server, not by DNS.

Beginners Confusion on A Record vs CNAME Record

So to clear this confusion Think of A record like:
Contact name → phone number
You type the name, you directly get the number (IP).

Whereas CNAME record does NOT give an IP.
It points one domain name to another domain name.

CNAME Record works like Nickname → Name. Just like “Prit” is not my phone number, it just points to “Pritesh”. I hope this clears the confusion.

MX Record (Mail Exchange Record)

Now let’s talk about emails.

If someone sends a mail to: support@hitesh.ai

How does the internet know where to deliver it? That is what MX record solves.

MX record tells the world:

“If you want to send email to this domain, deliver it to this mail server.”

Example:

hitesh.ai → mail.hitesh.ai

Real-life example (Post office):

1. Websites are like houses.

2. Emails are like letters.

When you send a letter, it doesn’t directly come to your home.
It goes through the post office system first.

Similarly, MX record is like the “post office address” for your domain email.

In above MX diagram:

1. Sending Mail Server sends the email

2. DNS checks MX record

3. MX record points to mail.example.com

4. Then Mail Server receives the email

So MX record is mainly used for email routing.

Beginners Confusion on NS Record vs MX Record

NS record tells us Which DNS servers control your domain?

Example: piyushgarg.dev → ns1.cloudflare.com

It is like “Which office holds the records of this area?” so NS Record tells us that Cloudflare manages DNS for piyushgarg.dev.

Whereas MX record tells us Where emails for this domain should be delivered

Example: hitesh.ai → mail.hitesh.ai

This is “Where should letters (emails) be delivered?”

MX record answers: “Emails of hitesh.ai should go to this mail server”

So i hope the difference between mail server and DNS Server clears this confusion.

TXT Record

So when everyone hears about TXT Records most of people think “What is a TXT record and why does everyone keep talking about it?”

It’s very simple a TXT record is just a record that stores plain text inside DNS. This text is mainly used for verification and security purposes.

Now “Why TXT Records even Exist? and why do we have to store plain text in DNS?” because without TXT records Anyone could pretend to send emails from your domain and services wouldn’t know if you actually own a domain also without TXT Records Spam and fake emails would be much easier.

TXT records solve these problems by adding verification rules inside DNS. TXT records work silently in the background but it’s importance cannot be underestimated.

How All DNS Records Work Together for One Website (hitesh.ai)

Till now we understood DNS records one by one, but the real magic happens when all of them work together for a single domain.

So let’s take the example of hitesh.ai and understand how everything connects using the diagrams.

Low Level (detailed) approach of - What these diagrams are showing

Both diagrams together are showing just one thing:

How a single domain like hitesh.ai uses multiple DNS records to:

1. open a website

2. handle world wide web (www)

3. receive emails

4. and decide which DNS provider manages everything

You can think of DNS like a well-organized address system instead of just one record.

Step-by-Step: What Happens for hitesh.ai

Step 1: Who controls DNS for hitesh.ai? (NS Record)

From the diagrams, we can see entries like:

1. hitesh.ai → ns1.cloudflare.com

2. hitesh.ai → ns2.cloudflare.com

This is done using NS Records.

NS records tell the internet which DNS servers are responsible for a domain.

Real-life analogy: NS record is like saying “For all information about this house, talk to this local post office.”

So first Root DNS → points to .ai TLD (Top Level Domain) then .ai TLD → points to Cloudflare DNS after which Cloudflare → stores actual records of hitesh.ai

Without NS records, no other DNS record would matter.

Step 2: How does the website open? (A / AAAA Record)

From the diagram:

• hitesh.ai → 123.45.67.89 (A Record)

• hitesh.ai → IPv6 address (AAAA Record)

This means when you type hitesh.ai , the DNS converts it into an IP address after which Browser connects to that server and the Website loads.

Real-life analogy: A record can be said, “This house name is located at this exact street address.”

So A Record Provides IPv4 address and AAAA Record provides IPv6 address

Both do the same job, just for different IP versions.

Step 3: What about www.hitesh.ai? (CNAME Record)

In the diagram, we see www.hitesh.ai → hitesh.ai

This is done using a CNAME Record.

It means www.hitesh.ai is just another name for the same website.

Real-life analogy: CNAME is like saving “Mom” and “Mother” for the same phone number

So browser first resolves www.hitesh.ai then DNS says: “Go to hitesh.ai” and only then A/AAAA record is used and finally Website opens.

Important beginner note:
CNAME never points directly to an IP. It always points to another domain name.

Step 4: How emails work for hitesh.ai? (MX Record)

From the diagram, hitesh.ai → mail.hitesh.ai

This is done using MX Records.

MX records tell where emails should be delivered.

So when someone sends: hello@hitesh.ai

DNS checks MX record and says: “Deliver this email to mail.hitesh.ai”

Real-life analogy: MX record is like saying, “All letters for this house should go to this mailbox building.”

Without MX records Emails will fail even if your website works perfectly

How All Records Work Together (High Level approach)

For a single domain like hitesh.ai, DNS records work like this:

• NS Record → Who manages DNS?

• A / AAAA Record → Where is the website hosted?

• CNAME Record → Are there alternate names like www?

• MX Record → Where should emails go?

Each record solves a different problem, but together they make the website fully functional.

Key Takeaway’s:

1. A / AAAA → opens your website

2. CNAME → alias / nickname

3. MX → email delivery

4. NS → DNS manager

5. TXT → proof, security, trust

DNS is not just about opening websites. It’s a complete system that connects domain names, servers, emails, and DNS providers together.