Resolve DNS directly or choose your upstreams.
BuckDNS combines recursive resolution, authoritative zone serving and forwarding in one DNS server.
Follow the DNS hierarchy
In recursive mode, BuckDNS starts with root hints and follows referrals through the DNS hierarchy until it reaches the authoritative nameservers for the answer. It follows aliases and caches useful responses.
This mode does not require a public recursive provider for ordinary lookups. It still sends DNS queries to the DNS hierarchy; it does not make DNS activity invisible.
Use forwarding when it fits your network
Forwarding sends requests to providers you configure. BuckDNS supports DNS-over-HTTPS, DNS-over-TLS, UDP and TCP upstream paths. Encrypted upstream connections apply to forwarding; direct recursion uses standard DNS.
Conditional forwarding can route selected domains to another resolver. More specific matching zones take precedence, allowing internal names and reverse lookups to follow an appropriate path.
Choose validation and disclosure controls
DNSSEC validates signed DNS answers. It is separate from transport encryption, and enabling one does not imply the other. Optional QNAME minimization reduces the query detail disclosed during recursive lookups.
Cache policy and refresh behavior affect repeat lookups. Actual latency depends on the query, cache state, network and authoritative services; no fixed response-time guarantee applies.