# DNS-AID

> Lets organizations publish and discover AI agents through standard DNS records — a naming convention over SVCB/TXT/TLSA records, signed with DNSSEC, with no new record types or servers.

_The Agent Protocol Atlas · /protocols/dns-aid · [JSON](/api/protocols/dns-aid) · [all The Agent Protocol Atlas](/protocols)_

- **name:** DNS-AID
- **full_name:** DNS-based Agent Identification and Discovery
- **layer:** discovery
- **creator:** IETF draft (draft-mozleywilliams-dnsop-dnsaid), community reference implementation
- **status:** draft (IETF Internet-Draft)
- **year:** 2025
- **one_liner:** Lets organizations publish and discover AI agents through standard DNS records — a naming convention over SVCB/TXT/TLSA records, signed with DNSSEC, with no new record types or servers.
- **spec_url:** https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/draft-mozleywilliams-dnsop-dnsaid/
- **snippet:**

```
_agent._tcp.example.com  IN SVCB ...   → DNS-SD discovery of an org's agent index (DNSSEC-signed)
```
- **abbreviation:** DNS-AID
- **also_known_as:** DNS for AI Discovery, DNS-based Agent Identification and Discovery, BANDAID (IETF work)
- **canonical_spec_url:** https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/draft-mozleywilliams-dnsop-dnsaid-02
- **entity_uri:** https://dns-aid.org/
- **taxonomy_layer:** discovery
- **sub_layer:** dns-agent-discovery
- **protocol_type:** declaration
- **central_problem:** Lets organizations publish and discover AI agents through the existing DNS system instead of centralized registries — using a well-known namespace over standard records, secured by DNSSEC/DANE.
- **maintainer:** IETF (draft-mozleywilliams-dnsop-dnsaid) + dns-aid community reference implementation
- **governance_body:** IETF (dnsop work; Internet-Draft)
- **license:** IETF Trust (Internet-Draft terms)
- **maturity_tag:** experimental
- **current_spec_version:** draft-mozleywilliams-dnsop-dnsaid-02
- **spec_date:** — (verify-against-primary-at-build)
- **launch_date:** 2025
- **last_verified:** 2026-06-15
- **transport:** DNS (SVCB, TXT, TLSA records; DNS-SD labels; DNSSEC/DANE for trust)
- **core_mechanism:** DNS-AID is a naming convention layered on existing DNS records (SVCB for connectivity/metadata per RFC 9460, TXT, optional TLSA) using DNS-SD labels and a well-known entry point into an organization's agent index; all discovery records MUST be DNSSEC-signed, with DANE/TLSA for end-to-end trust. No new record types, servers, or protocols are introduced.
- **discovery_endpoint:** Well-known DNS-SD label into an organization's agent index (DNSSEC-signed)
- **settlement_type:** —
- **adoption_metric:** — (verify-against-primary-at-build)
- **notable_adopters:** {"value":"DNS-AID community reference implementation (dns-aid/dns-aid-core)","source":"https://github.com/dns-aid/dns-aid-core"}
- **relationships:** {"predicate":"complements","target":"agents-txt","note":"DNS-AID discovers agents at the DNS layer; agents.txt/llms.txt declare them at the HTTP/file layer — complementary discovery surfaces."}
- **ideal_use_case:** An organization that wants its AI agents discoverable and verifiable through DNS, reusing existing DNSSEC trust.
- **when_to_use:** When you want agent discovery and trust anchored in DNS infrastructure you already operate, without new servers.
- **when_not_to_use:** When a simple HTTP file (llms.txt/agents.txt) or an in-band Agent Card (A2A) is sufficient and you don't need DNS-level trust.
- **code_example:** ; DNS zone (DNSSEC-signed)
_agents._tcp.example.com.  IN PTR  acme-agent._agents._tcp.example.com.
acme-agent._agents._tcp.example.com.  IN SVCB 1 agent.example.com. ( alpn="h2" )
- **source:** IETF Internet-Draft (naming convention over SVCB/TXT/TLSA per RFC 9460/4033, DNS-SD, DNSSEC/DANE-signed): https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/draft-mozleywilliams-dnsop-dnsaid-02 ; project site https://dns-aid.org/ ; reference impl https://github.com/dns-aid/dns-aid-core . Listed for addition in research §2.
- **agent_readiness_link:** agent-readiness/discoverability
- **layer_legacy:** content