A record

An A record is the basic DNS entry that points your domain name to the IP address of the server hosting your website.

Severity if missing

High

What it is

Every website lives on a server with an IP address — a string of numbers like 93.184.216.34. People don't remember numbers, so DNS translates your domain name into that address. The A record is exactly that translation: "yourdomain.com lives at this IPv4 address".

Without a valid A record, browsers have no way to find your server, and your website simply won't load.

Why it matters

The A record is the foundation everything else sits on. It's not a security control by itself, but the IP it points to reveals where and with whom your site is hosted — useful context when assessing a domain. Pentrawl also uses it to identify your hosting provider.

The risk

A missing A record means the domain does not resolve to a server, so the website is unreachable.

How Pentrawl checks it

Pentrawl looks up the A record for your domain, reports the IPv4 address (or addresses) it resolves to, and identifies the organisation that owns that address via public registry data.

How to fix it

Add an A record through your DNS provider, pointing your domain to your server's IPv4 address. Your hosting provider supplies the correct IP.

Example A record

yourdomain.com. A 93.184.216.34

Related checks

Name servers → IPv6 (AAAA) → Hosting provider →

Check your domain's A record in seconds

Pentrawl scans this and 20+ other security checks in one automated pass.

Scan your website →