MXE records are a specialized DNS record type offered by some DNS providers, including eNom, that simplify mail server configuration by allowing you to point directly to an IP address instead of a hostname. In this article, we will explain what DNS MXE records are, how they work, and when to use them.
The "MXE" in the MXE record stands for "Mail Exchange Extended" or "Mail Exchanger Easy", which is a proprietary DNS record type that combines the functionality of an A record and an MX record into a single entry. Unlike standard MX records that point to a hostname, MXE records allow you to specify an IP address directly.
This simplifies mail server configuration by eliminating the need to create a separate A record for your mail server hostname. MXE records include a priority value, just like standard MX records, to handle multiple mail servers.
When an email is sent to a domain with an MXE record, the DNS provider internally handles the resolution by creating a virtual hostname that points to the specified IP address. The sending mail server sees this as a standard MX record pointing to a hostname, but the DNS provider manages the hostname-to-IP mapping automatically.
This approach is particularly useful for users who have a mail server with a static IP address but don't want to manage separate A and MX records. The priority value works the same as with standard MX records, allowing you to set up multiple MXE records for redundancy.
The key difference between MXE and MX records is what they point to:
Note that MXE records are a proprietary feature and are not part of the standard DNS specification. They are only available with certain DNS providers like eNom.
Here's what an MXE record looks like for the domain example.com:
This record tells mail servers to deliver email for example.com directly to the IP address 192.168.1.100 with a priority of 10.
