PTR Record
A DNS record that maps an IP address back to a hostname (reverse DNS), published under the in-addr.arpa or ip6.arpa special zones.
A PTR (pointer) record provides reverse DNS: given an IP, what is its hostname. The IP `192.0.2.5` is queried as `5.2.0.192.in-addr.arpa PTR ?`, and IPv6 addresses use a nibble-reversed lookup under `ip6.arpa`. PTR records are configured by whoever controls the IP block, typically the hosting provider or ISP, not the domain owner. They are critical for mail servers (Gmail and most receivers reject mail from IPs without matching forward and reverse DNS), traceroute readability, and SSH connection logging. PTR is the one common record type where the answer's authority lives with the network owner, not the domain owner.
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Referenced on
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