Cannot create new account

[DReade83]

cPanel won't allow me to create a new account because the DNS already exists?!
This is correct; the client didn't want a web server, just DNS hosting with
email forwarding. Now they need a website.

I used the Add DNS Zone option which doesn't state anywhere that using this
tool prevents you from creating an account for WWW access.

Now cPanel is suggesting I remove the DNS records, which will almost certainly
prevent emails from being received, re-adding the account and thus re-adding
the DNS.

I am not deleting DNS records for live domains.

Surely there's a decent, logical way of doing this that doesn't involve deletion of live domain data...?

[mtindor]

I am not deleting DNS records for live domains.

Surely there's a decent, logical way of doing this that doesn't involve deletion of live domain data...?

you aren't deleting DNS for live domains? Oh well, your loss then. You've got a zillion choices here. If you added a DNS zone separate from creating a Cpanel account for the domain, it's doing just what it should do.

Here is one way (kinda convoluted, but I think your attitude is crappy so you get a quick solution):

1.
cd /var/named (or /var/named/chroot/var/named)
cp domainname.ext domainname.ext.backup
(or copy the contents to your notepad for reference)

2. Go into WHM and remove the DNS Zone via the zone manager

3. Create the Cpanel account (which will allow it to create a new zone)

4. Modify the newly created zone via WHM's zone manager.

It can't take more than a minute to do. That's what I would do. Life is too short for worrying about 1-2 minute DNS outage.

The nameservers won't even stop responding to your custom mail forwarding entries until you complete step #2. Between Step #2 and Step #4 shouldn't take you more than a minute or two and then the zone is back up.

NOTE: Think about this - you create a zone via WHM. Then one day you go to add a new account and you overwrite your custom entries. Then if that happened, you'd be complaining that Cpanel allowed you to create a new web hosting account that ended up overwriting your existing custom zone file. So Cpanel is damned if they do or damned if they don't as far as your concerned.

Mike

[DReade83]

Thanks I'll try that.

But what's wrong with adding the option to link to an existing DNS zone if one is detected? It gives the option to use the domain's registrar name servers, why not "use existing DNS zone". So simple!

[cpanelkenneth]

When creating the account, check the box labeled Overwrite any existing DNS zones for the account.