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URL-to-IP conversion means resolving the hostname in a web address through DNS to find one or more IP addresses. It does not usually convert the entire URL, and the address returned is not necessarily permanent or unique to a website.
What does URL-to-IP conversion mean?
A URL such as https://www.example.com/page contains a hostname, www.example.com. A DNS lookup asks for address records associated with that hostname. The browser can then use an address to reach a server. The URL’s scheme, path, and other parts are not themselves translated into an IP address.
If the URL already uses a literal IP address as its host, that hostname does not need to be resolved through DNS. Google Public DNS describes DNS as the web’s “phone book”: visiting a website ordinarily involves a DNS lookup. Google Public DNS overview.
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Use a DNS lookup page or a command-line DNS utility. Query the hostname only, not the full URL with its scheme or page path, and select the address record type you want to inspect.
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- Extract the hostname. From
https://www.example.com/page, usewww.example.com. - Choose an address family. Query an A record for IPv4 or an AAAA record for IPv6.
- Run the lookup. Enter the hostname and record type in a DNS lookup interface, or use a DNS command-line utility. The result shows the answer returned by the resolver you queried.
- Interpret the result as current DNS data. A hostname may have multiple answers, and another resolver or a later lookup may return a different set.
Google’s DNS troubleshooting documentation explains how to enter a domain and record type in its lookup page and shows command-line query examples: Google Public DNS troubleshooting.
What A and AAAA records tell you
| Record type | Address family | What it returns |
|---|---|---|
| A | IPv4 | An IPv4 address associated with the hostname |
| AAAA | IPv6 | An IPv6 address associated with the hostname |
Some IPv6-only networks use DNS64 with a compatible NAT64 gateway. In that setting, a resolver can synthesize an AAAA answer for a destination that has only an IPv4 address; this is a network-specific mechanism, not a general conversion performed for every lookup. Google Public DNS DNS64 documentation.
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Why can one hostname have several IP addresses?
DNS can return multiple addresses for a hostname. The answer can depend on the resolver and the DNS state at the time of the query, so a lookup is a view of current DNS data—not proof that the hostname maps permanently to one machine. A different answer does not by itself mean that the site has changed ownership or that one result is incorrect.
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Not reliably. Even after DNS returns an address, web connections can still depend on the hostname. In particular, TLS Server Name Indication (SNI) identifies a server using a hostname; the TLS specification does not permit a literal IPv4 or IPv6 address in the SNI HostName field. RFC 6066, section 3. Replacing a hostname with an IP can therefore change or break behavior that relies on the hostname, including TLS negotiation.
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Using a lookup to troubleshoot a connection
A DNS lookup helps separate name resolution from later connection problems. If the hostname does not resolve, investigate DNS resolution. If it resolves but connecting to a known fixed IP also fails, the problem may lie elsewhere in network connectivity. Google’s troubleshooting guidance recommends comparing a hostname URL with a fixed-IP URL as a diagnostic step; that comparison can narrow the issue but does not identify every possible cause. Google Public DNS troubleshooting.
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