# RP record

An RP (responsible person) record gives a contact mailbox for a name, written like the SOA contact (first dot is the @), plus an optional name whose TXT record has more details. It's rarely used today.

- Record type: RP
- Type number: 17
- Used for: Information
- How common: Rare
- Defined in: RFC 1183

## Format

```
<name> <ttl> IN RP <mailbox> <txt name>
```

| Field | What it means | Accepted values |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mailbox | The contact's email, with the @ written as a dot. `.` for none. | `admin.example.com.` |
| TXT name | A name whose TXT record has more details. `.` for none. | A host name or `.`. |

## Examples

### A contact for one server

```
server1 3600 IN RP admin.example.com. contact.example.com.
```

admin@example.com is responsible; contact.example.com has a TXT record with a phone number.

## TTL

Any.

## Common mistakes

- Writing the mailbox with an @.

## At your DNS host

- Rarely offered in dashboards.

## Questions

### Is RP the same as WHOIS contact data?

No. WHOIS and RDAP contacts come from the registrar. RP is an optional record you publish yourself.

## Related

- [SOA record](https://lemon.domains/dns-records/soa.md)
- [HINFO record](https://lemon.domains/dns-records/hinfo.md)
- [LOC record](https://lemon.domains/dns-records/loc.md)

Interactive version with a record checker and live lookup: https://lemon.domains/dns-records/rp