Starting today, ENS can connect with any DNS domain1 for free.
History
ENS has always been complementary to existing internet infrastructure. For years, DNS names could be imported into ENS without a protocol fee, but incurred hefty Ethereum gas fees, in some cases reaching 0.5 ETH.
The reason behind the high fee is that a large amount of data (DNSSEC proof) needed to be saved to the Ethereum blockchain to prove ownership of a domain. While this remains an option, interacting with the blockchain is no longer a required step in crypto-enabling a DNS name.
How It Works
Gasless DNSSEC is powered by CCIP Read (EIP-3668), an application-level standard for Ethereum smart contracts to fetch and verify offchain data. It was authored by Nick Johnson, the Founder and Lead Developer of ENS Labs.
In EP5.1, ENS DAO approved the activation of a new smart contract that implements CCIP Read at the DNS TLD level. Having CCIP Read at the TLD level means that DNS records can be verified on-demand via an offchain gateway. The result is a free way to use DNS domains in the ENS ecosystem.
How To Use It
Configuring your DNS name to work with ENS can be accomplished in a few simple steps:
- Enable DNSSEC
- Add a TXT record in the format
ENS1 <ens-resolver-address> - Done! Now your DNS name can be resolved according to whichever ENS resolver you specified. Try it here.
For the easiest experience, we've created a special resolver that can read an Ethereum address from the same TXT record. The format is ENS1 dnsname.ens.eth <eth-address>. Learn more on our support docs.
1 Any DNS name where the TLD supports DNSSEC and uses the official ENS DNSRegistrar smart contract.
