Octodns

Manage DNS zones across multiple providers using octoDNS ("DNS as code"). Use when you need to (1) manage DNS records in YAML format, (2) sync DNS zones betw...

octoDNS - DNS as Code

Manage DNS zones declaratively across multiple providers using octoDNS. Think of it as "infrastructure as code" but for DNS records.

⚠️ CRITICAL SAFETY WARNING

octoDNS operates on "desired state" - the YAML file represents the ENTIRE zone.

If the zone file has 1 record but DNS has 50 records, octoDNS will DELETE 49 records.

MANDATORY SAFETY WORKFLOW:

1. For existing zones: ALWAYS dump first (scripts/dump.sh)
2. ALWAYS preview before applying (run without --doit)
3. REVIEW the diff carefully - unexpected "Delete" lines = DANGER
4. Never assume - verify the preview matches your intent

Quick Start

1. Install octoDNS

scripts/install.sh

This installs octoDNS core plus the easyDNS provider.

2. Dump existing zone (REQUIRED for existing zones)

If managing an existing zone with records already in DNS:

scripts/dump.sh example.com.

This creates config/example.com.yaml with ALL current records. Skipping this step will delete existing records!

3. Create a config file

scripts/init_config.sh example.com

Creates config/production.yaml with easyDNS provider configured.

4. Define your zone

Create config/example.com.yaml:

---
# Root record (@)
'':
  ttl: 300
  type: A
  value: 192.0.2.1

# www subdomain
www:
  ttl: 300
  type: CNAME
  value: example.com.

# Mail records
'':
  ttl: 300
  type: MX
  values:
    - priority: 10
      value: mail.example.com.

5. Preview changes (MANDATORY)

Always preview first - look for unexpected Delete lines:

scripts/sync.sh

(Note: dry-run is the default - no flag needed)

6. Apply changes (only when safe)

scripts/sync.sh --doit

Common Operations

Sync local YAML to DNS provider

scripts/sync.sh --zone example.com --doit

Dump existing zone to YAML

scripts/dump.sh example.com

Creates config/example.com.yaml from live DNS.

Validate zone file syntax

scripts/validate.sh config/example.com.yaml

Sync between two providers

scripts/sync_providers.sh route53 easydns example.com

Configuration

Provider Setup

Edit config/production.yaml:

providers:
  config:
    class: octodns.provider.yaml.YamlProvider
    directory: ./config
  
  easydns:
    class: octodns_easydns.EasyDnsProvider
    token: env/EASYDNS_TOKEN
    api_key: env/EASYDNS_API_KEY
    portfolio: env/EASYDNS_PORTFOLIO

zones:
  example.com:
    sources:
      - config
    targets:
      - easydns

Environment Variables

Set these for easyDNS:

export EASYDNS_TOKEN="your-api-token"
export EASYDNS_API_KEY="your-api-key"
export EASYDNS_PORTFOLIO="your-portfolio-id"

Supported Record Types

easyDNS provider supports:

• A, AAAA
• CNAME
• MX
• TXT
• NS
• SRV
• CAA
• NAPTR
• DS

Advanced Usage

Multiple Zones

Use dynamic zone config to manage all zones in a directory:

zones:
  '*':
    sources:
      - config
    targets:
      - easydns

Any .yaml file in config/ becomes a zone.

Provider-to-Provider Migration

See references/migration.md for migrating zones between DNS providers.

Dynamic DNS Updates

See references/dynamic-dns.md for automated DNS updates from scripts.

Workflow

1. Create/edit zone files in config/
2. Run scripts/sync.sh --noop to preview
3. Review changes
4. Run scripts/sync.sh --doit to apply
5. Commit zone files to git

Troubleshooting

"Provider not found": Install provider package:

pip install octodns-easydns

"Authentication failed": Check environment variables are set correctly.

"Zone not found": Ensure zone exists in DNS provider first, or use --force to create.

Documentation

• octoDNS docs: https://octodns.readthedocs.io/
• easyDNS provider: https://github.com/octodns/octodns-easydns
• Record format guide: references/records.md