Synchronize DNS across Amazon Route 53 and IBM NS1 Connect to build resilient, highly available applications
Learn practical multi-provider DNS strategies for always-on applications with Amazon Route 53 and IBM NS1 Connect.
Build application resilience across Amazon Route 53 and IBM NS1 Connect
Cloud Sync reduces application downtime risk by synchronizing DNS records, traffic steering, and health checks across Amazon Route 53 and IBM NS1 Connect in near real time.
More than simple record replication, Cloud Sync translates routing intent between providers, so application behavior remains consistent across different DNS platforms. With both providers continuously synchronized and serving production traffic, organizations can build true multi-provider DNS resilience without relying on custom synchronization scripts. Fully managed and SLA-backed.
Spotlight
Benefits
Cloud Sync continuously synchronizes Amazon Route 53 and IBM NS1 Connect, allowing both providers to actively serve production DNS traffic. Because both environments remain synchronized, there is no recovery or promotion step during a provider outage—applications continue serving traffic using the remaining authoritative DNS provider.
Meet compliance requirements for redundancy and continuity. Cloud Sync enables multi-provider DNS without redesigning architectures, helping regulated industries meet resilience standards.
By continuously synchronizing DNS records, traffic steering policies, and health checks, Cloud Sync helps ensure consistent routing behavior during incidents. DNS outages can cost organizations hundreds of thousands of dollars per hour while directly impacting customer experience, brand reputation and revenue. Cloud Sync reduces this operational risk by maintaining an always-available secondary DNS provider.
Whether modernizing DNS, consolidating after M&A or meeting continuity mandates, Cloud Sync enables controlled parallel operation across providers. Organizations can migrate, consolidate or expand DNS infrastructure at their own pace while reducing operational complexity, migration risk and application downtime.
Cloud Sync allows Amazon Route 53 customers to extend their DNS architecture with NS1 Connect as a fully managed, enterprise‑grade authoritative DNS platform. As needs grow, teams can take advantage of NS1 Connect’s advanced capabilities—such as advanced traffic steering, RUM‑based routing, and analytics—for specific use cases that go beyond Amazon Route 53.
Gain visibility into DNS changes across providers with activity logging and auditability. Cloud Sync helps organizations strengthen operational governance, simplify compliance, and troubleshoot changes more effectively.
Features
- DNS Synchronization
- Advanced DNS Translation Engine
- Synchronization with 100% SLA
- Seamless API Integration
Amazon Route 53 and NS1 Connect Synchronization
Cloud Sync establishes secure, control-plane only API connections to Amazon Route 53 and NS1 Connect to synchronize DNS configurations in near real time. It goes beyond standard Secondary DNS (XFR) as it keeps DNS records, traffic steering and health checks aligned across providers.
Advanced DNS Translation Engine
Cloud Sync translates DNS intent—not just DNS records. It reconstructs equivalent traffic steering policies, alias records and health-check behavior across providers, preserving routing intent even when Amazon Route 53 and IBM NS1 Connect implement these capabilities differently. Unlike traditional zone transfers (XFR), Cloud Sync maintains application behavior instead of simply copying records.
Managed, 100% SLA-Backed Sync Service
Cloud Sync is a fully managed, SLA-backed service that eliminates the need for custom synchronization scripts, Terraform glue, and in-house translation logic. Unlike internally developed scripts that require continuous maintenance, testing, monitoring and updates as DNS APIs evolve, Cloud Sync removes this operational burden while reducing configuration drift and synchronization failures.
Seamless API Integration
Continue managing DNS the way you do today, whether through a provider portal/UI, APIs, Infrastructure as Code or CI/CD automation. Cloud Sync handles the synchronization across providers in the background, without requiring you to rework established tools or workflows.
DNS Synchronization made easy for you
IBM Cloud Sync and NS1 Connect bundles for Amazon Route53 synchronization, available in Essentials,Standard-250 and Standard-1000 editions. These bundles available on AWS Marketplace include Cloud Sync and NS1 Connect queries, records, traffic steering filter chains, health check monitors and more.
You can also purchase Cloud Sync as an add-on to any NS1 Connect package on the NS1 Connect page. Please select your desired package, volume of queries, records, traffic steering filter chains, etc and ensure to add Cloud Sync in the IBM Marketplace. Cloud Sync starts at USD 75 per month.
Cloud Sync FAQ
Cloud Sync is a multi‑cloud DNS synchronization and automation service that keeps DNS zones, records and traffic‑steering configurations aligned across providers—currently IBM NS1 Connect and Amazon Route 53—without relying on legacy zone‑transfer (XFR) methods.
IBM NS1 Connect is a managed authoritative DNS platform that improves application availability, performance, and resilience with intelligent traffic steering, automation and DNS analytics.
DNS synchronization is the process of keeping supported DNS configurations consistent across multiple DNS providers. Cloud Sync automatically synchronizes supported DNS records, traffic steering configurations and health checks between Amazon Route 53 and IBM NS1 Connect, helping organizations build resilient multi-provider DNS without custom synchronization scripts.
Multi-provider DNS uses two or more authoritative DNS providers to serve production DNS traffic, reducing reliance on a single provider. Cloud Sync enables multi-provider DNS by synchronizing supported DNS configurations between Amazon Route 53 and IBM NS1 Connect, helping improve DNS resilience and business continuity.
Getting Cloud Sync up and running is a lightweight configuration task—connecting DNS providers and defining synchronization rules—without any migration or change to existing DNS operations.
Cloud Sync propagates changes in near real-time. This ensures DNS configurations remain aligned across providers and reduces the risk of inconsistencies during updates or incidents.
Yes, Cloud Sync offers a 30-day free trial with an NS1 Connect trial included so you can evaluate multi-provider DNS synchronization in your own environment. This allows you to validate setup, synchronization results and operational benefits before committing.
Yes. Cloud Sync operates by synchronizing DNS data between Amazon Route 53 and NS1 Connect, which serves as the second authoritative DNS provider.
Your existing Amazon Route 53 zones, configurations and workflows remain unchanged. Cloud Sync works alongside Amazon Route 53, synchronizing DNS data without affecting your AWS ownership or access.
With Cloud Sync, you designate a single primary provider (Amazon Route 53 or IBM NS1 Connect) as the source of truth for changes. Both providers remain authoritative and actively serve DNS traffic (active-active), while Cloud Sync ensures updates propagate consistently across both environments.
Yes, both Cloud Sync and NS1 Connect are available via AWS Marketplace. This allows you to simplify procurement and consolidate billing, using credits within your existing AWS agreements.
Traditional DNS zone transfers (XFR) replicate standard DNS records only and are not supported by Amazon Route 53. The protocol cannot carry provider-specific routing logic or health-based decisioning. Cloud Sync goes further by synchronizing both DNS records and advanced configurations—such as traffic steering, health checks, and alias records—across providers.
Cloud Sync is a managed synchronization service, not a configuration tool. It removes the need to build and maintain custom pipelines by continuously keeping DNS providers aligned with SLA-backed reliability.
Many regulated industries require removal of critical single-provider dependencies. Cloud Sync enables multi-provider DNS architectures while providing activity logging and auditability of DNS changes, helping organizations strengthen governance, simplify compliance, improve operational visibility, and reduce operational risk.
No. DNSSEC configuration must be managed independently with each DNS provider. Amazon Route 53 does not currently support the DNSSEC record management capabilities required for Multi-Signer DNSSEC operation across supported DNS providers. If those capabilities become available in Route 53, Multi-Signer DNSSEC support would be considered for the Cloud Sync roadmap.
No. DNSSEC configuration must be managed independently with each DNS provider. Amazon Route 53 does not currently support the DNSSEC record management capabilities required for Multi-Signer DNSSEC operation across supported DNS providers. If those capabilities become available in Route 53, Multi-Signer DNSSEC support would be considered for the Cloud Sync roadmap.