DNS zone transfer failure

Jenifer Teffani 20 Reputation points
2026-09-03T12:06:59.3966667+00:00

May I know if someone here has encountered an issue where secondary DNS servers fail to pull zone updates from primary servers, logging "Zone Transfer Refused"? I found out that the zone transfer settings are restricted to specific IPs that were changed recently, but I don't know how to properly update the zone transfer ACLs to fix this.

Windows for business | Windows 365 Enterprise
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  1. Marcin Policht 105.8K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2026-09-03T12:11:21.8466667+00:00

    On the primary Windows DNS server, open DNS Manager → Forward Lookup Zones → right-click the affected zone → Properties → Zone Transfers.

    If it is set to “Only to the following servers,” add the secondary DNS server's current IP address and remove the old IP address. Click Apply/OK.

    Then force the secondary to refresh:

    dnscmd /zonerefresh <secondary-server> <zone-name>

    If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

    hth

    Marcin

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