← Dns / dns / internal-dns / internal-zones

Manage internal zones

Refer to the following sections to learn how to manage your internal DNS zones.

Configuration conditions

When setting up internal zones, observe the following conditions:

Internal zones can contain the same DNS record types that Cloudflare supports for public zones.
An internal zone can have the same name as a public zone in the same account.
Each internal zone can be linked to multiple views.¹
There can be several internal zones with the same name in one account. However, two internal zones with the same name cannot be linked to the same view.
Internal zones are not subject to any top-level domain (TLD) restrictions. This means that an internal zone can be created if its TLD is not registered publicly (for example, xyz.local), if it is created on the TLD itself (local), or even if on the root (.).

¹ Logical groupings of internal DNS zones that are referenced by Gateway resolver policies to define how a specific query should be resolved.

Create an internal zone

In the Cloudflare dashboard, go to the Internal DNS page.
Go to Internal DNS ↗
Select Create an internal zone.
Give your internal zone a name.
Add DNS records to your internal zone using your preferred option:

Import a formatted BIND file.
Select Add a record and choose Create under the record type you want to add. Refer to DNS record types for details.

Repeat this process for each internal zone you wish to add.

Use the Create Zone endpoint to create an internal zone. Specify your account ID and set the type to internal.

Example

Required API token permissions

At least one of the following token permissions is required:

Zone Zone Edit
Zone DNS Edit

Create Zone

curl "https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/zones" \
	--request POST \
	--header "Authorization: Bearer $CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN" \
	--json '{
		"account": {
				"id": "<ACCOUNT_ID>"
		},
		"name": "<ZONE_NAME>",
		"type": "internal"
	}'

Add DNS records to your internal zone using your preferred option:

Import a formatted BIND file. Refer to the DNS records how-to for guidance.
Use other API endpoints, such as /batch, to manage DNS records. Refer to Batch record changes for details.

Repeat this process for each internal zone you wish to add.

Other API actions

The API endpoints to manage internal zones are the same as for managing public zones. The main difference is that the zone type must be set to internal.

Refer to the following API documentation for details: