Generic DNS
Works for any registrar — record values you will need.
Most domain registrars give you a "DNS records" or "Manage DNS" screen with a table of records: type, name, value, TTL. osmRouter needs two of them.
The records
| # | Type | Name | Value | TTL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A | @ (or your apex, e.g. example.com) | 198.51.100.10 | 600 |
| 2 | A | * (wildcard) | 198.51.100.10 | 600 |
That's it. Two A records, both pointing at our edge IP.
The IP 198.51.100.10 in the tables above is a placeholder (RFC 5737 reserved
for documentation). Your osmRouter operator's actual edge IP is shown in your
dashboard at Domains → Add a domain — use that value when you add the records.
Different operators run on different IPs.
Why two records
- The apex
A(@) routes traffic for the bare domain (e.g.example.com) to our edge. - The wildcard
A(*) routes traffic for every undefined subdomain (e.g.api.example.com,app.example.com) to the same edge.
Without the wildcard, only the apex works. You'd have to add a new A record at the registrar every time you create a subdomain — annoying and slow.
TTL
600 (10 minutes) is a sane default. Lower means faster propagation when you change records; higher means less DNS server load. Anything in the 300–3600 range is fine.
What to do if your registrar requires the bare name (not @)
Some registrars don't accept @ for the apex. Use one of these instead:
- The full domain itself (e.g.
example.com) - A blank Name field
- A single space
The validator only cares about the resolved value — it doesn't care which UI convention your registrar uses.
Verifying propagation
After saving the records, you can confirm they're live with dig:
$ dig example.com +short
198.51.100.10
$ dig api.example.com +short
198.51.100.10If both return the right IP, you're done — the osmRouter verifier will catch up within a minute.
Per-registrar walkthroughs
The Add-domain modal in the dashboard has inline tabs for the registrars most osmRouter customers use. Standalone pages here:
Common pitfalls
- TXT instead of A. osmRouter does NOT use TXT records for verification. If a guide tells you to add one, it's outdated.
- CNAME instead of A. The apex (
@) cannot be a CNAME per the DNS spec. Some registrars hide this with "CNAME flattening" or "ALIAS" records — those work for the apex, but the wildcard must beA. *.example.comas the Name field instead of*. Some registrars expect just*, others want*.example.com. The validator only sees the resolved value, so use whichever your registrar accepts.