Domain and DNS

For your site to open on your domain, the domain must point to the hosting. You do this by adding two DNS records at your domain registrar, the company you bought the domain from.

What DNS is

DNS is like the internet's address book: it tells the browser which server holds the site for a domain. An A record links the domain to the server's IP address. You need two records: one for the bare domain (@) and one for www.

The DNS box in your account

On the Overview tab, under Your sites, each site has a DNS box. It shows:

• the live status of the domain;
• whether SSL is on or off;
• the two records you need to add: A @ and A www, each with the IP address and a Copy button.

The IP address comes automatically from the hosting system. Always use the one shown in your DNS box. The same instructions are also in your welcome email.

Point your domain

1. Open host.appalbania.com/account and go to Your sites.
2. In another tab, sign in to your domain registrar and open DNS management for the domain.
3. Create a record of type A with the name @. For the value, paste the IP you copied with Copy on the A @ row.
4. Create a second A record with the name www and paste the IP from the A www row.
5. If old A records for @ or www point somewhere else, delete or change them.
6. Save the changes at the registrar and return to your account to check the status.

What the status means

Status	Meaning	What to do
Domain points here	The records are correct and the domain opens the site on the hosting	Install SSL
Domain not pointed yet	The domain still points elsewhere or the change has not spread yet	Check the records and wait
Behind Cloudflare proxy	The domain goes through Cloudflare, so the server IP is hidden	See the Cloudflare section below

Next step: SSL

When the status shows the domain points here, open the panel and go to SSL → Let's Encrypt to install the free certificate. After that, the HTTPS field on Overview becomes Enabled. Let's Encrypt only works once the domain already points to the site. See SSL.

If you use Cloudflare

Cloudflare is a service that sits between visitors and the server (a proxy). If your domain goes through Cloudflare:

1. In Cloudflare, add the A records for @ and www with the IP from your DNS box.
2. In the panel, open Configurations → Nginx.
3. In the Config Manager, turn on My site is behind Cloudflare proxy, so the logs record real visitor IPs.
4. For the certificate, you can use SSL → Cloudflare Origin CA.

Domains in the panel

In the panel, Settings → General has the Site Domains section with a DOMAIN / TYPE / REDIRECT TO table:

• Primary — the site's main domain.
• Redirect — a domain that redirects to the main one, for example www.domain.com redirects to domain.com. Visitors reach the same site with or without www.

Add another domain

1. In the panel, open Settings → General.
2. Under Site Domains, click Add New Domain.
3. Enter the domain and save.
4. At that domain's registrar, add the A records with the same IP.

For a step-by-step guide for different registrars, read how to connect your domain.

Need help? Open a ticket at support and include your domain and registrar.