Connecting a domain you already own

Connect a domain you already own so customers can reach your Cedros website at your business address. You can keep the domain registered with its current company and keep using your existing email provider.

This guide covers connecting the website address, adding its DNS records, and checking that the site opens securely. You do not need to transfer the domain to Cedros to connect it.

Before you change anything

Have these ready:

• Access to the correct Cedros site's admin, with permission to manage site settings.
• Access to the company that currently manages the domain's DNS records. This may be different from the company where you bought the domain.
• The exact address you want visitors to use, such as example.com or www.example.com.
• A copy or export of your existing DNS records, including the current website destination and email records.
• A working Cedros site to send visitors to. Check its published pages before changing the address.

Your registrar manages domain registration and renewal. Your DNS provider manages the records that direct website and email traffic. Check the nameservers listed at your registrar to identify where DNS is managed; editing records at a company that no longer hosts your DNS will not connect the site.

If another person manages your domain, ask them to make the record changes using the values shown by Cedros. They do not need your Cedros password, and you do not need theirs.

Keep your website and email working

Changing a website record can start sending visitors to Cedros before every check is finished. Keep the old website available during the change, and choose a time when you can test the new site and correct problems. Do not cancel the old hosting service immediately.

Connecting the website does not require moving your email. Keep existing MX records, mail-related A or CNAME records, SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and other verification records unless you are deliberately changing those services. Check whether an existing mail record depends on the website's current hostname or IP before replacing it.

You can normally connect the site by updating records at your existing DNS provider. Changing nameservers moves responsibility for the whole DNS zone and needs a separate migration of its records; it is not a routine step in this walkthrough.

Open the domain settings for your site

Open your site's admin, then go to Settings → Site → Domains. If you started in the Cedros customer portal, open the intended site's admin first.

Follow the path that matches the controls you see:

What appears on the Domains tab	Follow this path
Managed by Cedros Domains and Your domains	Add the domain through Cedros Domains.
Domain name, Server target, and Manual DNS instructions	Set the domain and server target.

If the page is unavailable or read-only, ask an authorized administrator to manage the connection. See Why can’t I see or edit a feature?.

Add the domain through Cedros Domains

1. Under Your domains, select Add domain. If the add-domain form is already open, continue there.
2. Choose Connect a domain I own.
3. Enter the domain in Existing domain, without a page path such as /contact. For the usual example.com setup, Cedros also configures www.example.com; use the records returned for both addresses.
4. For manual setup at your current DNS provider, leave Automate DNS with Cloudflare unused and select Connect domain.
5. Read the returned setup status and the records shown in Manual DNS fallback. Use those exact values in the next section.

A message saying the connection started means Cedros accepted the request; it does not mean every visitor can already reach the domain. Keep the existing site address available while setup is pending.

Cloudflare automation is optional and can also apply configured mail records. If you already use another email provider, review that setup before authorizing automation. For that path, follow Connecting Cloudflare to manage your DNS. Manual setup lets you make the website-only changes described here.

Set the domain and server target

Use this path when the Domains tab shows the editable Domain card.

These settings save automatically. Prepare the destination and coordinate the change with whoever runs the server before editing. Changing Domain name also changes the site’s main address, which Cedros uses for generated links and sign-in connections.

1. Enter the intended hostname in Domain name, such as example.com. Do not include a page path.
2. Set Server target to the public IP address or routing hostname supplied by whoever hosts this Cedros installation. If the site uses a load balancer or reverse proxy, use the destination they specify.
3. Allow the automatic save to complete and resolve any displayed error. Do not assume a typed value was saved if Cedros reports a failure.
4. Expand Manual DNS instructions and find Website record. This is the record to add at your DNS provider.

The server target is the destination behind your website address. Do not point the domain back at itself, guess an IP address, or copy a target from another customer's setup. If no website record appears, confirm that both the domain and a valid, different server target are present.

Your hosting administrator must also connect the hostname to your Cedros server and enable HTTPS. Ask them to confirm both before changing the website DNS records.

Add the website records at your DNS provider

Open the DNS settings for your domain at its current DNS provider. Compare the existing records with the website records Cedros displays before making changes.

Copy each field carefully:

• Type: Use the displayed type. An A record points to an IPv4 address, an AAAA record to an IPv6 address, and a CNAME record to another hostname.
• Name or Host: Use the name for the address you are connecting. Providers commonly use @ for the root domain and www for www.example.com. Some forms expect a full hostname; others add the domain automatically. Check the final name so it does not become www.example.com.example.com.
• Value, Content, or Target: Copy the destination shown by Cedros. Do not add https:// or a path.
• TTL: Use the value shown when the provider supports it. TTL controls how long a DNS answer can be cached; it is not a promise that the website will be ready after that many seconds.

Replace an old website record for the same name when it conflicts with the new destination. Check both A and AAAA records: an old IPv6 destination can send some visitors to the previous server even after the IPv4 destination is correct. Do not delete unrelated records or the whole DNS zone to resolve a website conflict.

If the interface offers Copy all records, the result can include email records. Apply only the records needed for the services you are connecting. For field-by-field instructions and examples for GoDaddy, Namecheap, and Squarespace, see Setting up a domain with another DNS provider.

Root domains and CNAME records

If Cedros shows a CNAME for the root domain and your provider rejects it, check whether that provider supports an equivalent such as ALIAS, ANAME, or CNAME flattening. Use its documented setup with the destination supplied by Cedros, or ask your host and DNS provider for a supported alternative.

Cloudflare supports root-domain CNAMEs through CNAME flattening. Do not convert a hostname target into an arbitrary A record or remove mail records to force a CNAME to save.

The root address and www are separate

Connecting example.com does not, by itself, establish that www.example.com works. Each address you intend to use needs suitable DNS, hosting, and HTTPS configuration.

For a managed example.com domain, Cedros configures www.example.com as an alternate address. Once active, managed alternate addresses redirect to the site’s primary domain. Both addresses still need working DNS and HTTPS. For an independently hosted site, ask your host to configure the redirects you want; a DNS CNAME alone is not an HTTP redirect. See Choosing or changing your primary domain.

Check DNS, routing, and HTTPS

Return to the Domains tab after saving the records at your provider.

For Cedros Domains, select Test DNS in the connection progress view, or Check setup on a domain that needs attention. Read the individual DNS, routing, and TLS results where shown. DNS checked confirms that a check ran; inspect the resulting status to see whether setup succeeded.

For the Domain card, expand Manual DNS instructions and select Check website DNS. A successful result shows Website DNS verified. This checks the website records against the server target; email and HTTPS remain separate checks.

DNS changes can appear at different times for different visitors because earlier answers remain cached. See your provider's guidance on caching and TTL, such as Cloudflare's TTL reference. Avoid repeatedly changing correct records while waiting.

Then check the actual visitor experience:

1. Open the exact domain using https:// in a private browser window.
2. Confirm that it shows the intended Cedros site, not the previous website, a parking page, or another site.
3. Open an important published page, such as Contact or your booking page. On a managed site, a newly connected alternate domain can redirect to your existing primary address until you make the new domain primary. Confirm that the page and destination are correct.
4. Test any additional address you configured, including www, and confirm its intended destination or redirect.
5. Confirm that your existing email still sends and receives if this domain is used for mail.

Do not launch with a certificate warning or tell visitors to bypass it. On a managed domain, review its TLS status and any setup message. On an independently hosted installation, ask the server operator to check the certificate and hostname configuration.

When a domain in Your domains becomes Active, Make primary is available if it is not already primary. Cedros checks HTTPS readiness before switching; in the usual example.com setup, both example.com and www.example.com must be ready. Follow Choosing or changing your primary domain, then repeat the visitor checks.

If the domain is not connecting

The record is missing or has the wrong value. Confirm you edited the active DNS provider, the correct domain, and the exact record name. Compare the expected value with the observed value shown by Cedros. Check for duplicated domain suffixes and conflicting old website records.

The website works, but DNS verification still needs attention. A proxy or CNAME flattening can change the public answer a checker sees. Cloudflare's proxy-status documentation explains the difference between returning the origin address and Cloudflare's proxy addresses. Ask your host to confirm the intended setup before changing proxy settings.

The domain reaches a server but shows the wrong site or a certificate error. Have the host check routing and HTTPS for that exact hostname. Changing unrelated DNS records will not repair a server that is serving the wrong site.

An email warning appears during setup. Keep the current working mail records. A missing Cedros mail value is not an instruction to replace your existing email provider. Finish a planned mail migration separately.

The previous website still appears. Check the saved website destination and any old AAAA record, then allow cached DNS answers to expire. Test from another network if available. Keep both sites available until you are satisfied that visitors reach the new one.

For a step-by-step diagnosis, use Fixing a domain that isn’t connecting. For certificate warnings, see Fixing HTTPS and certificate problems.

If you need help, send the domain, DNS provider, intended site, exact status or error, time of the change, and the website record types and values you entered. Include whether the problem affects DNS, the page that loads, HTTPS, or email. Do not send registrar passwords or API tokens. See Getting help and reporting a problem.

Once the domain opens the correct site securely, continue with Your website launch checklist before announcing the address.