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Connecting your own domain

If you already own a domain, connect it in the site's Domain section with Own domain, at no extra fee. The DNS Setup window shows every record to add at your domain's DNS provider at once – ownership, SSL certificate and routing – and tells you live, record by record, what is in place and what needs fixing.

Connecting is available for a running site whose renewal is not cancelled, when no other domain setup is in progress (during a trial, when you go live).

The steps

  1. Own domain – enter the domain. The name is enough (e.g. mycompany.com); a full web address works too, and we drop the "www." prefix. Choose whether the address with or without www is the primary one.
  2. The DNS Setup window opens with every record you add, once, all together:
    • Prove ownership – a TXT record that proves the domain is yours;
    • SSL certificate – two CNAME records for the HTTPS certificate; keep them afterwards too, renewal needs them;
    • Route traffic – the primary address's record is required (a CNAME for www, an A record for the bare domain); the other address redirects to it only if you add its record too.
  3. The Name column shows the short name (e.g. www, or @ for the root domain) – that is what most providers expect. If your provider asks for the full name, we show that too.
  4. As soon as the ownership and SSL records are in place, the system continues by itself and issues the certificate. It keeps watching in the background even if you close the window; Check now checks right away. You have 7 days to add the records; the window shows the time left.

When everything is done you get a notice: the site is served on your own domain, and the previous address redirects to it. Until then the site works and is editable on its temporary address. DNS changes can take up to a few hours.

What the window shows

  • At the top, the progress ("… / … required records in place"). Finished steps fold to one line, and Do this next marks the next one.
  • For each record: In place, Not found yet or Needs fixing. If something is off, we say why and what to do:
    • your provider appended the domain to the name (e.g. www.mycompany.com.mycompany.com was created),
    • the name already has a record, with a different value,
    • Cloudflare's proxy is on – switch it to "DNS only",
    • an old A or AAAA record is in the way – these are listed under Records to delete,
    • the domain's CAA record does not allow the certificate to be issued.
  • From the nameservers we recognise where the domain's DNS is run (for example Cloudflare, GoDaddy, Namecheap, IONOS, Hostinger, DotRoll, Websupport, Tárhely.Eu) and show the matching steps; for some providers a direct link opens their DNS panel. If the guess is wrong, choose another with Not this provider?.
  • Your existing mail (MX) and other records are not affected; only the listed ones are added or deleted.

If someone else runs your DNS

Copy for your IT admin puts a ready message on the clipboard: what is still to add, what to delete and what is already in place. Send it by e-mail or chat to whoever runs the domain's DNS.

Badges on the card and the page

  • DNS setup required – records are still missing; DNS setup opens the window.
  • Issuing SSL certificate – ownership is proven and the certificate is on its way; nothing to do. Meanwhile View DNS records shows the records.
  • DNS issue – a record that was fine has disappeared. We check the records every 6 hours; Check DNS health shows right away what is missing.

You keep managing a connected domain's DNS at your own provider; Demona's DNS settings page is only available for domains bought through Demona.