Several days ago I purchased an unmanaged VPS account from SoftSys and so far I am far from impressed. In the setup instructions they sent me on the DNS, they pointed me to a page on their wiki which explained how to setup the DNS. I followed these instructions EXACTLY and changed the IP address for the nameservers for my domain with my domain registrar.

It's now over 48 hours since I've done all of this, and still the DNS doesn't work. My domain name is http://www.matrix-dns-server.com

Would someone out there be willing to walk me through how to setup the DNS? I can't figure out why following their directions DOESN'T WORK. I tried contacting them, but they were unwilling to assist even though I sent them screen shots proving that I had followed their instructions EXACTLY. All they want to do is charge me money.


Here are the instructions they gave me which I followed in every detail:

You can setup custom DNS on your VPS by following steps mentioned at: http://members.softsyshosting.com/knowledgebase.php?action=displayarticle&id=57

You will need to login to your registrar's control panel and find the area where you can specify both of your custom name server addresses.

After adding these custom nameservers to your domain registrar control panel, it will take 24 to 48 hours for your domain to delegate authority to your DNS server. Once this has taken effect, your DNS server has control over the DNS records for the domains which use your custom name server addresses.

Already updated you in ticket - your DNS report is clean: http://www.intodns.com/matrix-dns-server.com

Note that you are on UnManaged Plan and any support there is chargeable - for your reference it is outlined at: http://members.softsyshosting.com/knowledgebase.php?action=displayarticle&id=132 - For fully managed clients, this is covered under standard support. You are always free to take assistance from your local sysadmin.

As I said, if there is anyone out there willing to assist me in getting this to resolve, it would be appreciated. I don't wish to pay $50 / hour from Softsys

>nslookup -type=ns matrix-dns-server.com
Server: google-public-dns-a.google.com
Address: 8.8.8.8
Non-authoritative answer:
matrix-dns-server.com nameserver = ns1.matrix-dns-server.com
matrix-dns-server.com nameserver = ns2.matrix-dns-server.com


>nslookup -type=ns matrix-dns-server.com ns1.matrix-dns-server.com
Server: chi18.softsyshosting.com
Address: 50.31.20.219
matrix-dns-server.com nameserver = ns2.matrix-dns-server.com
matrix-dns-server.com nameserver = ns1.matrix-dns-server.com
ns2.matrix-dns-server.com internet address = 50.31.20.219
ns1.matrix-dns-server.com internet address = 50.31.20.219

>nslookup www.matrix-dns-server.com (http://www.matrix-dns-server.com) ns2.matrix-dns-server.com
Server: chi18.softsyshosting.com
Address: 50.31.20.219
Name: www.matrix-dns-server.com (http://www.matrix-dns-server.com)
Address: 50.31.20.219

>nslookup matrix-dns-server.com ns2.matrix-dns-server.com
DNS request timed out.
timeout was 2 seconds.
Server: UnKnown
Address: 50.31.20.219
Name: matrix-dns-server.com

>nslookup matrix-dns-server.com ns1.matrix-dns-server.com
Server: chi18.softsyshosting.com
Address: 50.31.20.219
Name: matrix-dns-server.com

dns lookup: www.matrix-dns-server.com (http://www.matrix-dns-server.com) (Analyse www.matrix-dns-server.com (http://www.matrix-dns-server.com))
Location IP address(es) TTL Resolve time
Singapore, Singapore: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 563
Amsterdam2, Netherlands: Checkpoint temporarily not available - - -
Florida, U.S.A.: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 288
Amsterdam3, Netherlands: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 123
Hong Kong, China: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 532
Sydney, Australia: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 209
München, Germany: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 150
Cologne, Germany: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 274
New York, U.S.A.: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 46
Cairo, Egypt: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 322
Amsterdam1, Netherlands: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 266
Stockholm, Sweden: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 178
Santa Clara, U.S.A.: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 106
Vancouver, Canada: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 186
London, United Kingdom: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 207
Madrid, Spain: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 340
Padova, Italy: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 211
Austin, U.S.A.: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 99
Amsterdam, Netherlands: Checkpoint temporarily not available - - -
Paris, France: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 305
Melbourne, Australia: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 462
Shanghai, China: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 610
Copenhagen, Denmark: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 138
Lille, France: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 115
San Francisco, U.S.A.: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 208
Zurich, Switzerland: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 160
Mumbai, India: 50.31.20.219 59m 59s 350
Chicago, U.S.A.: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 6
Nagano, Japan: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 626
Haifa, Israel: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 397
Auckland, New Zealand: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 779
Antwerp, Belgium: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 224
Groningen, Netherlands: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 359
Dublin, Ireland: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 110
Oslo, Norway: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 174
Kharkov, Ukraine: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 408
Manchester, United Kingdom: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 254
Vilnius, Lithuania: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 288
Bucharest, Romania: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 238
Bangkok, Thailand: No A records found for www.matrix-dns-server.com (http://www.matrix-dns-server.com) - - -
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 997
Jakarta, Indonesia: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 511
Cape Town, South Africa: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 642
Glasgow, United Kingdom: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 222
Lisbon, Portugal: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 140
Chicago, U.S.A.: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 27
Dallas, U.S.A.: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 72
Buenos Aires, Argentina: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 193
Istanbul, Turkey: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 415
Gdansk, Poland: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 183
Beijing, China: Nameserver error: Server failure - - -
Belgrade, Serbia: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 533
Toronto, Canada: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 57
Novosibirsk, Russia: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 567
Athens, Greece: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 354
Frankfurt, Germany: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 118
Sofia, Bulgaria: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 134
Budapest, Hungary: 50.31.20.219 1h 0m 0s 327

dns lookup: matrix-dns-server.com (Analyse matrix-dns-server.com)
Location IP address(es) TTL Resolve time
Singapore, Singapore: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Amsterdam2, Netherlands: Checkpoint temporarily not available - - -
Florida, U.S.A.: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Amsterdam3, Netherlands: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Hong Kong, China: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Sydney, Australia: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
München, Germany: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Cologne, Germany: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
New York, U.S.A.: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Cairo, Egypt: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Amsterdam1, Netherlands: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Stockholm, Sweden: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Santa Clara, U.S.A.: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Vancouver, Canada: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
London, United Kingdom: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Madrid, Spain: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Padova, Italy: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Austin, U.S.A.: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Amsterdam, Netherlands: Checkpoint temporarily not available - - -
Paris, France: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Melbourne, Australia: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Shanghai, China: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Copenhagen, Denmark: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Lille, France: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
San Francisco, U.S.A.: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Zurich, Switzerland: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Mumbai, India: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Chicago, U.S.A.: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Nagano, Japan: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Haifa, Israel: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Auckland, New Zealand: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Antwerp, Belgium: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Groningen, Netherlands: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Dublin, Ireland: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Oslo, Norway: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Kharkov, Ukraine: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Manchester, United Kingdom: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Vilnius, Lithuania: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Bucharest, Romania: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Bangkok, Thailand: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Jakarta, Indonesia: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Cape Town, South Africa: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Glasgow, United Kingdom: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Lisbon, Portugal: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Chicago, U.S.A.: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Dallas, U.S.A.: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Buenos Aires, Argentina: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Istanbul, Turkey: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Gdansk, Poland: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Beijing, China: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Belgrade, Serbia: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Toronto, Canada: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Novosibirsk, Russia: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Athens, Greece: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Frankfurt, Germany: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Sofia, Bulgaria: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -
Budapest, Hungary: No A records found for matrix-dns-server.com - - -

From provider's instructions:


Add other zone records:
- Five "A" records " "(blank), "*", "ftp", "mail", "www" with the corresponding IP addresses


Looks like you forgot to add the (blank) A record

---


www is resolving fine

Rex Swain's HTTP Viewer
http://www.rexswain.com/httpview.html

Code last updated 24 October 2010

Parameters:
URL = http://www.matrix-dns-server.com/
UAG = Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 8.0; Windows NT 6.1; Trident/4.0; SLCC2; .NET CLR 2.0.50727; .NET CLR 3.5.30729; .NET CLR 3.0.30729; .NET4.0C)
REF = http://www.rexswain.com/httpview.html
AEN =
REQ = GET ; VER = 1.1 ; FMT = AUTO
Sending request:
GET / HTTP/1.1
Host: www.matrix-dns-server.com
User-Agent: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 8.0; Windows NT 6.1; Trident/4.0; SLCC2; .NET CLR 2.0.50727; .NET CLR 3.5.30729; .NET CLR 3.0.30729; .NET4.0C)
Referer: http://www.rexswain.com/httpview.html
Connection: close

• Finding host IP address...
• Host IP address = 50.31.20.219
• Finding TCP protocol...
• Binding to local socket...
• Connecting to host...
• Sending request...
• Waiting for response...

Receiving Header:
HTTP/1.1·403·Forbidden(CR)(LF)
Content-Type:·text/html(CR)(LF)
Server:·Microsoft-IIS/7.5(CR)(LF)
X-Powered-By:·ASP.NET(CR)(LF)
Date:·Sat,·31·Dec·2011·21:39:52·GMT(CR)(LF)
Connection:·close(CR)(LF)
Content-Length:·1233(CR)(LF)
(CR)(LF)

From provider's instructions:



Looks like you forgot to add the (blank) A record

---


www is resolving fine

Interesting - looks like their screen shot must be missing that blank record then, because I made mine look just like theirs. Just added it - thanks for the help!

I'm in the exact same boat as you. I think I can handle the rest but setting up the DNS was something I didn't think I'd need to do. Their instructions are pretty terrible as well. Did you ever get it working? I implore you to help out with any details you can. Their instructions are vague with "abc.com" and the IP address they give which is local which does nothing either.

The softsys guys are now saying that if I follow the instructions 100% that it'll work. Tried to the letter, complete fail. What BS.