--- title: "What Is An SPF Record Checker, And How Does It Validate SPF Records? | DuoCircle" description: "Join the thousands of organizations that use DuoCircle Find out how affordable it is for your organization today and be pleasantly surprised.Interested in" image: "https://www.duocircle.com/images/og-default.png" canonical: "https://www.duocircle.com/content/spf-record-checker/" --- Content # What Is An SPF Record Checker, And How Does It Validate SPF Records? Join the thousands of organizations that use DuoCircle Find out how affordable it is for your organization today and be pleasantly surprised.Interested in [ Talk to an Expert → ](/contact/) [ See what we make ](/products/) ## What Is An SPF Record Checker, And How Does It Validate SPF Records? How SPF record can protect a user and their clients from spoofing, phishing and spam. [Fix Your SPF Errors Now](/email/spf-record-check) ###### [EMAIL SECURITY SERVICES](/) ###### [PLANS AND PRICING](/email/spf-record-check#pricingarea) ###### [SPF RECORDS](/email/spf-record-check) The use of SPF (Sender Policy Framework) dates back to 2000 and has evolved over the years into a relatively reliable technical standard. _It is an email-authentication method to protect senders and receivers from becoming victims of spam, spoofing, and phishing_. ![spf record checker](https://media.mailhop.org/duocircle/images/2020/10/spf-record-check-autospf.png) ### What Is An SPF Record And How Does It Work? An [SPF record](/email/spf-record-check) is a simple text record listing all authorized hostnames and IP addresses permitted to send an email on behalf of an organization’s domain. An _SPF acts as an authenticator of those emails by ensuring they were sent by an authorized mail server, thus, preventing spam and forgery_. 1. An **SPF record** is created in the DNS (Domain Name System), defining specific parameters that determine which email servers are authorized to send an email on behalf of the domain name. 2. The inbound mail server verifies the email sender by matching it with the domain’s policies defined in the SPF record. 3. Based on the result of verification, it decides whether to accept, reject or flag the email. ### What Is An SPF Record Checker? An [SPF Record Checker](https://autospf.com/blog/spf-record-checker-why-you-need-it/) is a diagnostic tool that checks and verifies various aspects of an SPF record to _ensure its accuracy and reliable performance_. It first looks for an **SPF TXT Record** in the DNS database of a queried domain name. If an SPF record is found, it displays the contents and also lists errors, if any. Many SPF record checkers are available, such as Mimecast [DMARC Analyzer](https://www.dmarcanalyzer.com/spf/checker/), [MXToolbox](https://mxtoolbox.com/), and [Kitterman](https://www.kitterman.com/spf/validate.html), to check if the domain name satisfies the necessary parameters using the latest SPF standard specification i.e., [RFC 7208](http://www.open-spf.org/Specifications/). ### How Does An SPF Record Checker Validate SPF Records? There are several characteristics an SPF checker verifies concerning an SPF record to validate it, as listed below: - **Presence Of The SPF Record:** The SPF checker will first check if an [SPF TXT record](/resources/how-to-create-an-spf-txt-record) is published and return an error if it is not found. - **Multiple SPF Records:** There must only be one SPF record present. If multiple records exist, it will warn against it. - **SPF Syntax:** A check is executed to see if the **SPF record syntax** is used correctly. - **Maximum Lookups:** One can perform only up to ten DNS lookups. The “include”, “a”, “mx”, “ptr”, and “exists” mechanisms and the “redirect” modifier count against this limit. However, the “all,” “ip4,” and “ip6” mechanisms and the “exp” modifier do not count. - **Use of a PTR mechanism:** _PTR is deprecated due to its unreliability_. There must be an A record instead. - **+All tag:** This tag allows anyone to send emails on behalf of a domain name and hence is not recommended. The SPF record checker will return a warning if the +All tag is used. - **Use of record termination:** _The +All tag is also a record terminator_. An alternative to use would be the ‘redirect’ modifier. If any other terminators are found, the checker will again return a warning. - **Characters after ‘All’:** The SPF record checker will notify if there are any characters after the ‘All’ tag. There should be none. - **‘SPF’ type DNS:** Usually, the SPF record will be of ‘TXT’ type file. Instead, if it is of the ‘SPF’ type, the checker will return an error as the ‘SPF’ type record is obsolete. - **Maximum void lookups:** Void lookups should not be more than two. - **MX resource records:** The _SPF record checker_ reports if the SPF record contains any MX (Mail Exchange) mechanism. - **Null values:** The SPF checker looks for null values that may result in email delivery problems unless they are there on purpose to avoid sending emails from the particular domain. [![spf record](https://www.duocircle.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/spf-record-checker.jpeg)](/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/spf-record-checker.jpeg) ### What Does The SPF Record Checker Check About The SPF Record Syntax? _The SPF TXT record must abide by a rigid syntax rule for its proper functioning_. The [SPF record](/email/spf-record-check) checker thoroughly checks and ensures that the record strictly satisfies each condition in the syntax rule. A typical SPF record looks like this: `SPF_version ip_address1 ip_address2 include:third_party_domain.com all_tag` The following are the constituents of the syntax that the **SPF record checker** verifies in such a record. 1. The first part defines the SPF version, the most current one being spf1 and written as v=spf1. 2. The **SPF version** is followed by one or more IP addresses authorized to send emails on behalf of the organization’s domain name. Example: v=spf1 ip4:123.456.78.200 ip6:af6e:48fe:e45b:ce43:4d5e:00e4:e0da:e4a3 1. An ‘include:’ tag can be used to define any third-party domain authorized for sending email on behalf of the domain name, such as `v=spf1 ip4:123.456.78.200 ip6:af6e:48fe:e45b:ce43:4d5e:00e4:e0da:e4a3 include:third_party_domain.com.` 2. The last part of the record is the ‘all’ tag, which a user can use in three different ways. 1. **\-all:** It represents ‘Fail’ and means that only the domain’s mail servers (and those in the ‘a’ and ‘include’ sections) are allowed to send emails for the domain. All others are prohibited. 2. **\~all:** This form of the tag is generally the recommended option and means a ‘Softfail,’ i.e., only the domain’s mail servers (and those in the ‘a’ and ‘include’ sections) are allowed to send emails for the domain. However, _if a server is not listed, the email will be flagged as spam and not rejected_. The email will need to be opened with caution. 3. **+all:** This condition allows all servers to send emails on behalf of the domain and must not be used as it is the least secure mode. A complete [SPF record example](/content/spf-record-checker/spf-record-example) would thus typically look as: `v=spf1 ip4:123.456.78.200 ip6:af6e:48fe:e45b:ce43:4d5e:00e4:e0da:e4a3 include:_spf.google.com ~all` ### Final Words _An SPF record checker is an indispensable tool that can save valuable time checking SPF records for a domain_ and help set it up accurately. The **SPF record checker** tool can help users determine if a suspicious email from a particular domain is spam or not. Using an SPF checker, system administrators can validate an organization’s existing [SPF record](/email/spf-record-check), ensuring critical business emails are delivered to their customers’ inboxes without fail. ##### Join the thousands of organizations that use DuoCircle --- Find out how affordable it is for your organization today and be pleasantly surprised. [Auto SPF - Sign Up FREE](/email/spf-record-check)Interested in our Partner Program for MSPs and VARs? Visit Our [MSP Partner Program](/msp-partner-program). ## Ready to talk? Same-day response from someone technical. We tell you yes or no quickly. If yes, we get to work. 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