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What is an SRV record?

An SRV record is an advanced type of record which allows you to specify services that you have on your domain. Use an SRV record if a certain application or piece of software requires it.

For example, you might want to specify that you have FTP access on your domain. You could use a CNAME to create a subdomain, but this would only tell people the address of the server. An SRV record will tell people the following information in addition to the address:

The Service Name (e.g. _ftp)
The Protocol (e.g. _tcp)
The Port Number that this service is on (e.g. 21)
The Priority (An arbitrary number which tells people which record to pick if you have several SRV records with the same Name and Protocol)
The Weight (Another arbitrary number which tells people which records should be used more often if you have several SRV records with the same Name and Protocol)