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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallTo give a Java Edition Minecraft server a memorable GoDaddy address, create a DNS A record that points a hostname such as play.yourdomain.com to the server’s numeric IPv4 address. If the server listens on anything other than Minecraft’s default Java port, 25565, add an SRV record as well. The SRV record tells Minecraft which custom port to use, so players can enter the hostname without appending :port.
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The essential distinction is simple: the A record identifies the server’s IP address; the SRV record maps the Minecraft service to a non-default port. This guide covers GoDaddy DNS entries, verification, common mistakes, custom-port examples, and what is and is not established for Bedrock Edition.
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Have these details ready before opening the DNS manager:
- The domain registered in GoDaddy, such as
yourdomain.com. - A hostname players will use. A subdomain such as
playproducesplay.yourdomain.com. You can instead use the bare domain by using@for the A-record name. - The server’s public numeric IPv4 address. An A record contains an address only, never a port or a URL.
- The TCP port on which the Java server actually listens. The default is
25565; a custom setup might use another number. - Access to the DNS records for the domain. If another provider supplies the domain’s authoritative nameservers, changing records in GoDaddy will not affect players until you edit DNS at that provider.
This article uses play and yourdomain.com as examples. Replace them with your own hostname and domain. GoDaddy’s field names and page layout can change, so use the record types and values below even if the surrounding controls look different.
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How the records work
| Record | Purpose | What to enter | When it is required |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Maps a hostname to an IPv4 address. | Name: play (or @ for the bare domain); Value: the numeric IPv4 address; no port. |
Always. |
| SRV | Publishes the Minecraft service’s TCP port and destination hostname. | Service _minecraft; Protocol _tcp; Name matching the hostname; Priority 0; Weight commonly 5 (or 0); Port set to the actual server port; Target set to the full hostname. |
When the server does not use port 25565 and you want players to omit the port. |
For a server on port 25565, an A record alone is sufficient for a Java client. For any other port, the SRV record is what lets a player enter play.yourdomain.com instead of play.yourdomain.com:2026. You can still give players the explicit port as a fallback, but that is a different connection string.
Step 1: Choose the address players will type
Using a subdomain
A subdomain keeps the domain’s main website or email records separate from the game server. In this guide, the A-record Name is play, and the resulting address is play.yourdomain.com. Other labels such as mc or survival work the same way.
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Using the bare domain
If you want players to type yourdomain.com, create the A record with Name @. The SRV record, when needed, must refer to that same service name. A subdomain is usually easier to read and less likely to collide with records used by a website, but both arrangements are valid when the DNS zone accepts them.
Step 2: Add the A record in GoDaddy
- Sign in to GoDaddy and open the DNS management page for the domain.
- Choose the option to add a DNS record and select type A.
- Set Name to only the host label, such as
play. Do not pasteplay.yourdomain.cominto a field that automatically appends the domain. For a bare-domain address, use@. - Set Value to the server’s numeric public IPv4 address, for example
203.0.113.42. Do not add:25565, a slash, spaces, or a protocol prefix. - Leave the record’s other settings at their normal DNS defaults unless your network administrator has a specific TTL policy, then save the record.
The address in the Value field must be the routable address players can reach from the internet. A private address such as 192.168.x.x, 10.x.x.x, or 172.16.x.x is normally only an internal network address and will not direct outside players to a home server. If your provider changes your public address, the A record must be updated; DNS cannot compensate for an address that has changed.
Step 3: Add an SRV record for a custom port
Skip this step if the Java server listens on 25565 and players are happy to use the A-record hostname. Add it when the server uses another port, such as 2026 or the 25570 value used in one published example. The number is not special: it must exactly match the port configured on your server and exposed by your router or hosting firewall. No source has established a test of port 2026 specifically; it is only an example here.
- In the same DNS manager, add a record of type SRV.
- Set Service to
_minecraft. - Set Protocol to
_tcp. Minecraft Java connection discovery uses TCP here; do not substitute_udp. - Set Name to the same host label used by the A record, such as
play. If you used the bare domain, use the zone’s representation for that host. Do not put the server’s IP address in this field. - Set Priority to
0. - Set Weight to
5, a commonly shown value. Some guides use0; either value is acceptable for a single server because there is no second SRV destination to balance. - Set Port to the server’s actual listening port, digits only. Enter
2026, not:2026. - Set Target to the complete hostname, such as
play.yourdomain.com. An SRV target must be a hostname, not an IPv4 address. - Remove accidental leading or trailing spaces from every field and save the record.
Conceptually, these entries create the lookup _minecraft._tcp.play.yourdomain.com. The A record resolves the target hostname to an IP address, while the SRV record supplies the custom port. If the target is typed as an IP address, or if the target points to a different hostname than the A record, the chain is broken.
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Record examples
| Use case | A record | SRV record | Player enters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subdomain, default Java port | Name play; Value server IPv4 |
Not required | play.yourdomain.com |
| Subdomain, custom port 2026 | Name play; Value server IPv4 |
Service _minecraft, Protocol _tcp, Name play, Priority 0, Weight 5, Port 2026, Target play.yourdomain.com |
play.yourdomain.com |
| Subdomain, custom port 25570 | Name play; Value server IPv4 |
Same fields, with Port 25570 and Target play.yourdomain.com |
play.yourdomain.com |
| Subdomain, custom port without SRV | Name play; Value server IPv4 |
None | play.yourdomain.com:2026 |
The last row is a deliberate fallback, not a custom-IP setup that hides the port. Without SRV, the client has no DNS-published port and must be told the port explicitly.
Step 4: Confirm DNS before testing Minecraft
DNS changes are not instantaneous. First verify that the public DNS response contains the records you intended; this separates a DNS entry problem from a server, firewall, or forwarding problem.
Check the SRV response
From a system with the nslookup utility, run:
nslookup -type=srv _minecraft._tcp.play.yourdomain.comReplace the hostname with yours. A working SRV response shows the priority, weight, port, and target. Confirm that the returned port is the one your server actually listens on and that the target is the full hostname you created with the A record.
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Check the A response
Run:
nslookup play.yourdomain.comThe answer should include the server’s public IPv4 address. If it returns an old address, the record may still be cached, the wrong DNS zone may have been edited, or the domain’s nameservers may point somewhere other than GoDaddy.
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- Open Minecraft Java Edition and choose Multiplayer.
- Select Add Server or Direct Connection.
- Enter
play.yourdomain.comwhen using port 25565 or a correctly configured SRV record. - If no SRV record is present, enter
play.yourdomain.com:custom-port. - Attempt the connection from outside the server’s local network when possible. A local test can succeed through router-specific hairpin behavior even while outside players remain blocked.
Propagation, caching, and what to expect
Resolvers cache DNS answers for the record’s TTL, and different networks refresh at different times. A new answer may appear quickly at one resolver while another still returns the previous value. There is no universal GoDaddy propagation duration established here. One forum user reported waiting 48 hours before discovering a separate problem; that anecdote is not an official timing guarantee and should not be used as a deadline.
During a changeover, test with more than one resolver or network, but do not keep editing the record simply because one cached lookup is old. Repeated edits can make diagnosis harder. Record the old and new IP addresses, the time of the change, and the exact nslookup output so you can tell whether the issue is stale cache or incorrect data.
Troubleshooting common failures
“Server not found” or no DNS answer
- Check the A-record Name. For a subdomain it should be
play, not the fullplay.yourdomain.comwhen GoDaddy appends the domain automatically. - Confirm that the domain’s nameservers actually use the DNS zone you edited.
- Look for spelling differences between the A-record label, the SRV Name, and the hostname entered in Minecraft.
- Wait for cached answers to expire, then query again with
nslookup.
The hostname resolves, but the connection times out
- Verify that the server process is running and listening on the port shown by the SRV response.
- Check router port forwarding and the host firewall. DNS only tells the client where to try; it does not open a port.
- Make sure the public IP in the A record is still current.
- Test the explicit address and port. If
play.yourdomain.com:2026also fails, the problem is likely reachability or server configuration rather than SRV syntax.
The A record works, but a custom-port hostname connects to the wrong port
- Run the SRV lookup and compare its returned Port with the server configuration.
- Use
_tcp, not_udp. - Enter only the number in the Port field; a colon makes the value invalid.
- Ensure the SRV Target is
play.yourdomain.com, not the numeric IP and not a different host. - Check for hidden spaces pasted into Service, Protocol, Name, Port, or Target fields.
Cloudflare is also involved
If the domain is managed through Cloudflare, the Minecraft A record must be DNS-only rather than proxied. A proxy is designed for supported web traffic and can prevent a direct Minecraft connection from reaching the game server. The SRV target must ultimately resolve through that DNS-only record.
An old guide says GoDaddy allows only port 25565
That claim appears in a roughly 15-year-old forum discussion and conflicts with newer instructions showing SRV records for custom ports. Treat the old statement as unreliable. The relevant test is whether the current DNS zone publishes a valid SRV record and whether the server and network accept the matching port.
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Java Edition and Bedrock Edition are not interchangeable
The A-record method is ordinary DNS and can provide a hostname, but the SRV behavior described here is specifically documented for the Java Edition connection pattern. A search summary reported possible Bedrock handling, but that behavior was not verified against a primary source. Do not promise players that the same SRV setup will work in every Bedrock client. Confirm the behavior for the exact Bedrock platform, client version, and hosting arrangement before publishing connection instructions.
Maintenance after the address works
- Keep the DNS hostname stable even if the server software, world, or hosting machine changes; update the A record when the public IP changes.
- When changing ports, change the server, firewall or router forwarding, and SRV Port together. A mismatch creates a valid-looking DNS answer that points to a closed or incorrect service.
- After changing an SRV target, query
_minecraft._tcpdirectly rather than relying only on a cached Minecraft server-list status. - Document whether players should use the bare domain, the
playsubdomain, or an explicit port. Mixing these instructions is a common source of support requests. - Do not expose administrative panels or unrelated services merely to make the game port reachable. Open only the port required by the server and apply the host’s normal security updates.
A concise decision guide
| Your server setup | DNS records | Connection address |
|---|---|---|
| Java server on 25565, subdomain desired | One A record for play |
play.yourdomain.com |
| Java server on a custom TCP port, subdomain desired | A record plus SRV record matching that port | play.yourdomain.com |
| Java server on a custom port, no SRV | One A record | play.yourdomain.com:port |
| Bare-domain address | Use @ for the A-record host and configure any SRV name for that same service |
yourdomain.com (or the explicit port when SRV is absent) |
If the DNS lookups return the expected address and SRV details, but Minecraft still cannot connect, stop changing DNS and investigate the listening process, firewall, router forwarding, public-IP changes, or hosting provider network. DNS can name a reachable service; it cannot create the service or bypass a blocked port.
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