> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.controlplane.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Node-Local DNS

> Run a per-node DNS cache on a Managed Kubernetes (mk8s) cluster to lower DNS latency, reduce load on cluster DNS, and avoid UDP conntrack races.

## Overview

The Node-Local DNS add-on runs a small DNS cache on every node in the cluster as a DaemonSet. Pods send their DNS queries to the local cache on the node instead of reaching the central cluster DNS service over the network, which:

* **Lowers DNS latency** — most lookups are answered from the on-node cache.
* **Reduces load on cluster DNS** — only cache misses are forwarded to the cluster DNS service.
* **Avoids UDP `conntrack` races** — a well-known source of intermittent 5-second DNS timeouts in Kubernetes.

The cache listens on the standard link-local address (`169.254.20.10`), caches in-cluster (`cluster.local`) and reverse-lookup zones, and forwards everything else to the cluster DNS service. It also exposes Prometheus metrics, which the [Metrics](/mk8s/add-ons/metrics) add-on collects when enabled.

This add-on is **recommended alongside the [KubeVirt](/mk8s/add-ons/kubevirt) add-on**, where reliable in-cluster name resolution for VM guests matters most.

## Supported Providers

* All providers are supported

## How to Enable

The Node-Local DNS add-on can be enabled during cluster creation or at any time thereafter. It takes no configuration — enabling it is a simple toggle.

### At Cluster Creation

* **Through Cluster Manifest**: Add the following snippet to your cluster manifest when creating the cluster:

  ```yaml YAML theme={null}
  spec:
    ...
    addOns:
      nodeLocalDns: {}
    ...
  ```

* **Using the Console**: If you're creating the cluster through the console, navigate to `Add-ons`, find the `Node-Local DNS` add-on in the list of available add-ons, and toggle it on.

### After Cluster Creation

If the Node-Local DNS add-on was not enabled during cluster creation, you can still enable it using either of the following methods:

#### Using Manifest

To enable the Node-Local DNS add-on after cluster creation, add the following to your cluster's YAML manifest:

* **Direct Edit & Apply**: Navigate to your cluster in the Console, and use the `Edit & Apply` option.
* **CLI Application**: Apply the entire manifest using the `cpln apply >_` command or through the `cpln` [CLI](/cli-reference/overview).

  ```yaml YAML theme={null}
  spec:
    ...
    addOns:
      nodeLocalDns: {}
    ...
  ```

#### Using the UI

1. **Navigate to the Control Plane Console**: Open [Control Plane Console](https://console.cpln.io/console/).
2. **Select Your Kubernetes Cluster**: In the Control Plane Console, go to `Kubernetes` in the left sidebar, and click on the cluster you wish to configure.
3. **Enable the Add-on**: Choose `Add-ons`, find the `Node-Local DNS` add-on in the list, and toggle it on.

<Note>
  Once the add-on reconciles, the per-node cache is rolled out as a DaemonSet across the cluster's nodes. No changes to your workloads are required — pods automatically use the local cache for DNS resolution.
</Note>

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="KubeVirt (VM Workloads)" href="/mk8s/add-ons/kubevirt" icon="server">
    Recommended companion add-on for VM DNS
  </Card>

  <Card title="Metrics" href="/mk8s/add-ons/metrics" icon="chart-line">
    Collect the cache's Prometheus metrics
  </Card>

  <Card title="mk8s Overview" href="/mk8s/overview" icon="server">
    Managed Kubernetes basics
  </Card>
</CardGroup>