Awesome! Pieces of the puzzle are coming together … I’ve been in the general vecinity; thanks for the pointers! I can see - given the number of iterations that I’ve been through - the combination of factors in my case.
So, my remaining puzzle is the initial zonefile (the one created during install for the box, holding the NS records)? Any insights on that one?
PS - Warranties? What’s that? Sounds like an intriguing concept … 