Example: firstday.ca hosted on canada6.rebel.com
What’s an A Record?
An A Record is one of the most important parts of DNS. It tells the internet which IP address a domain should point to — in other words, where the website lives.
For example:
If someone types in firstday.ca, the A Record says:
“Send them to 35.182.184.239 — that’s where the site is hosted.”
Without this record, the domain wouldn’t know where to go, and the site wouldn’t load.
Why It Matters for Support
You’ll come across A Records all the time when helping customers — especially if a site isn’t loading or has just been moved. Here are some real-life examples:
| Scenario | What’s happening with A Records |
|---|---|
| The site isn’t loading | The A Record might be pointing to the wrong IP |
| The site shows a Rebel/Plesk default page | The IP is correct, but hosting isn’t set up yet |
| Customer migrated to a new provider | The A Record needs to be updated to the new IP |
| Domain is connected to Wix/Shopify/etc. | The A Record must be changed per their instructions |
| Emails work, but website doesn’t | The A Record could be broken — MX records are okay |
What Should It Look Like?
In Plesk, a proper A Record for firstday.ca looks something like this:
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | A |
| Host/Name | @ or www |
| Points to | 35.182.184.239 |
| TTL | 3600 (or leave as Default) 1hr |
@= root domain (firstday.ca)www= www.firstday.ca- IP = server IP from Hosting Settings in Plesk
Where Do You Find the Right IP?
To confirm what the A Record should point to:
- Log into the customer’s Plesk panel
- Go to Websites & Domains → Hosting Settings
- Copy the IPv4 Address listed (e.g.,
35.182.184.239) - Make sure the A Record in DNS Settings matches this IP
How to Check the A Record (with or without logging in)
You don’t always have to log into Plesk — here are free tools you can use:
| Tool | Use it to… |
|---|---|
| DNSChecker.org | See the current A Record worldwide |
| HostingChecker.com | Check what host/IP the domain points to |
| MXToolbox.com | Full DNS lookup including A, MX, TXT |
| Kloth.net | Run a quick DIG query without a terminal |
What Could Go Wrong?
Here are common A Record problems and how they affect the site:
| Problem | What Happens |
|---|---|
| Wrong IP address | Website loads a different or wrong site |
| Missing A Record | Site shows “domain not found” or times out |
| Points to right IP, but shows default page | Hosting setup is incomplete in Plesk |
| Points to old IP after migration | Site doesn’t show the new version |
How to View or Edit in Plesk
To check or change the A Record safely:
- Log into the customer’s Plesk
- Go to Domains → Hosting & DNS
- Look for an A Record with
@orwww - Check that it points to 35.182.184.239
- Click Edit to change it, or Add Record if missing
✅ This is safe for agents to do
❌ Don’t delete other DNS records unless you know what they do
A Note About www
A lot of customers expect both firstday.ca and www.firstday.ca to work.
Make sure:
- There’s a separate A Record for
wwwpointing to35.182.184.239, or - A CNAME record for
wwwthat points to@
Want to Check Like a Pro?
If you’re curious (not required), you can try:
In Terminal (Mac/Linux):
dig A firstday.ca +short
Or using Kloth.net:
- Go to https://kloth.net
- Enter
firstday.ca - Choose Record Type: A
- Click Look it up
Expected result:
35.182.184.239
Quick Agent Takeaways
✅ A Record = Tells the domain where the website lives
✅ Always match the A Record with the IP shown in Hosting Settings
✅ Use DNS tools (like DNS Checker or Hosting Checker) to verify
✅ Customers might see default pages if the IP is right but hosting isn’t fully set
✅ Changes to A Records can take a few minutes to apply — up to 1 hour sometimes