Use PD Cloudflare DNS’s BIND-format import/export tools when moving DNS record data or keeping a readable copy. An import adds records; it is different from restoring a snapshot that makes the live zone match an older state.

Export a current copy

Open the target zone’s Records page and choose Export or its Import / Export page. Copy or download the BIND-format data using the available control. Clients can download their zone file from their own DNS page through the module’s enabled DNS Manager client-menu entry, or My Tools and its DNS page.

Keep the exported file with the zone name and date. A DNS zone file contains DNS records; it is not a backup of website files, mailboxes or every Cloudflare account/security setting.

Prepare an import

Review the file against the intended zone and current live records. Check the names, record types, addresses, mail priorities and service-specific fields. Do not assume a file for one domain is ready for another merely because it imports as valid syntax.

Import and verify

1. Open the intended zone’s Records → Import or Import / Export page.
2. Paste the BIND-format zone data.
3. Review the preview showing the new records before writing them.
4. Confirm the intended import once.
5. Read the result and compare the final record list with the planned additions.
6. Check the DNS answers and the affected applications separately.

Records already present are skipped, existing records are not overwritten, and provider-owned SOA/nameserver records are left alone. An import is not a request to replace all current records with the file.

Handle a partial result

The module checks the owning customer’s record allowance before import; if that check refuses the planned additions, they are not written. A later provider refusal can still follow records already added, so inspect the live zone before retrying. Read the result and current list before retrying; do not assume the operation rolled back completely.

Do not raise limits or delete records blindly to make an unexplained import pass. Check which records are genuinely needed and whether the intended account/plan supports them.

For replacement recovery, use the snapshot restore workflow. For a failed import, your hosting team should retain the zone, original request time and redacted error while checking the actual additions. Remove credentials and unrelated account-verification values from any shared sample.

Check the imported records

Your hosting team should compare the intended zone, staged preview and original result with the records now present. A module allowance preflight can refuse the planned import before writes; a later provider refusal can follow earlier additions. Preserve the original export and review the actual partial result before another attempt. Use a harmless reduced example when needed rather than uploading the full zone or unrelated verification values.

See the PD Cloudflare DNS Blesta guide for related tasks, or explore the module.