Pages DNS check fails with InvalidDNSError for hardno.ai although DNS is correct; no certificate issued

[YobieBenjamin]

🏷️ Discussion Type

Bug

💬 Feature/Topic Area

Pages

Body

What I'm trying to do: serve the GitHub Pages site of YobieBenjamin/hardno.ai (built with Actions) at the custom domain hardno.ai over HTTPS.

What happens instead: since 28 October 2026, 04:46 UTC, the Pages DNS check reports "Both hardno.ai and its alternate name are improperly configured. Domain's DNS record could not be retrieved (InvalidDNSError)". The Pages health check shows dns_resolves: false and caa_error: Dnsruby::ServFail, and no HTTPS certificate has ever been requested (the Pages API has no https_certificate). "Check again" still fails on 29 October. The site itself is served correctly over http at http://hardno.ai/.

The DNS is correct:

• All four authoritative nameservers (ns.ui-global-dns.de, .com, .org and .biz) answer A with 185.199.108.153, 185.199.109.153, 185.199.110.153 and 185.199.111.153; AAAA with 2606:50c0:8000::153 to 2606:50c0:8003::153; www.hardno.ai as a CNAME to yobiebenjamin.github.io; and CAA 0 issue "letsencrypt.org". Checked over both UDP and TCP, with and without recursion desired.
• The .ai registry's delegation matches the zone's NS records. No DNSSEC (no DS record at the registry, no DNSKEY in the zone).
• Google, Cloudflare, Quad9 and OpenDNS all resolve the domain correctly.

This looks like the same health-check failure as #208857 (correct DNS, dns_resolves: false, a Dnsruby error, no certificate). Could someone at GitHub re-run the DNS check from your side and issue the certificate for hardno.ai and www.hardno.ai? Thank you.

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[sanjayadanushka712]

This looks very similar to [Discussion #208857](https://github.com/orgs/community/discussions/208857) and [Discussion #210580](https://github.com/orgs/community/discussions/210580), where GitHub Pages DNS validation reported InvalidDNSError and CAA resolver errors despite successful checks through public DNS resolvers.

Since you've already verified the authoritative nameservers, CAA record, and DNSSEC status, I would focus on identifying exactly which DNS query is failing in GitHub's validation process rather than repeatedly changing records. GitHub's [official troubleshooting guide](https://docs.github.com/en/pages/configuring-a-custom-domain-for-your-github-pages-site/troubleshooting-custom-domains-and-github-pages) confirms that CAA configuration can affect HTTPS certificate issuance.

Could GitHub investigate the DNS validation logs for hardno.ai and www.hardno.ai, particularly the reported Dnsruby::ServFail, and confirm whether the failure originates in DNS resolution or the Pages validation infrastructure? If the DNS configuration is accepted, a fresh validation and certificate request may be needed. Similar reports suggest this may not be an isolated case.