Domains
Domains lets an application answer on a name you already own. The application keeps its generated address throughout, so nothing is unreachable while you set the name up.
Before you start
You need to control the name's DNS. You do not need to move the domain's registration to us, and you never give us your DNS provider credentials.
A name is attached to one application. If you want the same site on
www and the bare domain, attach both names to the same application and choose one as its
primary address.
Attach a name
- Open Hosting → Domains.
- Choose Change site address.
- Pick the application the name belongs to, and enter the domain name you own —
only the name, without
https://, a port or a path. - Read the records the page now shows and publish them at your DNS provider.
- Choose Check the record to prove you own the name.
- Once ownership is verified, choose Check routing.
The name is queued for publication when both checks pass. It becomes available after the change applies and its HTTPS certificate is ready. Until then the generated address continues to serve the application, and the page keeps the generated address one click away.
The records you publish
Two things are proved, in order:
- Ownership — a recorded value proves the name is yours. Publishing routing alone is not ownership, so this step cannot be skipped.
- Routing — the published addresses match the target and answer on HTTP port 80. After this passes, Hosting applies the route and requests its HTTPS certificate.
What your provider needs depends on the name:
| Name shape | What to publish |
|---|---|
A subdomain such as shop.example.com | A CNAME to the target the page shows |
A root domain such as example.com | Your provider's ALIAS, ANAME or CNAME-flattening feature |
| A root domain at a provider with no flattening | The A and AAAA records the page shows |
If you use the A/AAAA records, note that those addresses can change; the CNAME form
is preferred wherever your provider supports it. Publish only the records shown for your
cluster.
Publish the records, wait for your provider's DNS to settle, then check again. A claim that is not verified expires; the page tells you the date, after which the name is released and its owner may claim it again.
Choose the primary address
When more than one name is attached to an application, one is the primary address — the address visitors are sent to. Verified names that are not primary stay as aliases, so existing links keep working.
Choose Use this address on the name you want visitors to land on. The application's content is not rewritten: the application is told which address it serves, and the other verified names lead there.
Remove a name
Choose Remove on the name. The generated address takes over, other verified aliases stay available, and the name stays reserved until nothing answers for it — that wait is deliberate, because handing a name to somebody else while it still serves your site would put their traffic on your application.
Next
- Give the application an administrator login you know: Applications.
- If a name is not routing after you publish it: Support.