How to add an MX record for Alibaba Mail?
This topic describes what an MX record is and how to add MX records for Alibaba Mail.
MX
MX stands for Mail Exchanger. An MX record points to a mail server. Email systems use MX records to locate the correct mail server based on the recipient's domain name.
Alibaba Mail MX record values
| Host Record |
Record Type |
Priority |
Record Value |
| @ |
MX |
5 |
mx01.mail.alibaba.com |
| @ |
MX |
10 |
mx02.mail.alibaba.com |
How to add
The following steps use Alibaba Cloud DNS as an example. If your domain name uses a different DNS service provider, you must add the records with that provider or contact them for assistance. For more information about how to identify your DNS service provider, see How to check your domain name and DNS service provider.
1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud DNS console. In the domain name list, find the domain name that you want to manage and click DNS Settings.
2. Click Add Record. Add two MX records using the values from the Alibaba Mail MX record values table.
DNS records usually take about 10 minutes to take effect. After you add the records, you must wait for them to propagate.
FAQ
1. What does priority mean?
Priority is relevant only if you have multiple MX records. If you have multiple records, the sender's mail server first tries to deliver the email to the server with the lowest priority number. If that server fails to receive the email, the sending server automatically tries the server with the next-lowest priority number. This process continues until the email is delivered or all servers have failed, which results in a delivery error.
2. How to check your domain name and DNS service provider
On the domain name resolution website, enter a domain name and click Detect Now. The domain name registrar is the service provider where you purchased the domain name, and the DNS service provider hosts the DNS for the domain.
3. How to check if the MX records have taken effect
Method 1: Use the Website Availability Monitoring tool. Enter your domain name and click Test Now. If the MX records appear in the DNS server resolution results, the records have taken effect.
Method 2: You can use the nslookup tool to query for various types of DNS record information, including MX records. On a Windows command line, run the `nslookup` command to enter an interactive mode where you can query for different types of DNS data.
As shown in the following figure, run the command nslookup -q=mx your_domain_name. If the command returns your MX records, the records have taken effect.
4. Does having MX records from multiple service providers cause issues?
If you have MX records from multiple email service providers, you may experience issues with receiving email. To avoid this, keep only the MX records for the one email service provider that you use.