How to Point a Domain to Your Hosting

There are two ways to connect a domain to your hosting. You can change the domain's nameservers to your host's nameservers, or you can keep your current DNS provider and add an A record that points at your hosting server's IP address. Either way, the change can take from a few hours up to 24 to 48 hours to reach everyone.

Below are the steps for each method, how to choose between them, and what to check if your site doesn't appear.

Before you start

Gather three things:

1. Your registrar login. This is the company where the domain is registered. If you're not sure, search your inbox for the domain's registration or renewal invoice.
2. Your host's nameservers, if you're using method 1. Hosts send these in the welcome email when your account is set up. They usually look like ns1.example.com and ns2.example.com.
3. Your hosting server's IP address, if you're using method 2. This is also in your welcome email or your hosting control panel. If you can't find it, ask your host.

If the domain is already registered with the same company as your hosting, much of this may already be done. New domains registered with ResellerBytes use our nameservers by default, unless you entered your own at checkout.

Method 1: Change the nameservers

Nameservers tell the internet which company answers questions about your domain's DNS. When you point the nameservers at your host, your host manages every DNS record for the domain, including the records for your website and email.

1. Log in to the account where your domain is registered.
2. Open the domain and find the nameserver setting. Registrars label it differently: "Nameservers", "DNS servers" or "Manage nameservers".
3. Choose the option to use custom nameservers.
4. Delete the existing entries and enter your host's nameservers exactly as they appear in your welcome email. Most hosts give you two. Add every one they list.
5. Save the change.

That's all you change at the registrar. From now on, you add or edit DNS records at your host, not at the registrar.

If your domain is registered with ResellerBytes, you'll find it under Domains in the client area. Our domain management page explains the settings available there.

Watch out for email. If your email is hosted somewhere other than your web host (for example, a separate email service), changing nameservers moves all DNS to your new host. Before you switch, copy your existing MX records and any TXT records (such as SPF) so you can recreate them at the new host. Otherwise, email can stop arriving.

Method 2: Add or edit an A record

An A record maps a domain name to an IPv4 address. Use this method when you want to keep DNS where it is, for example because a DNS provider handles other services for the domain, or because only the website is moving.

1. Log in to wherever your domain's DNS is managed now. That might be your registrar, a DNS provider or a previous host.
2. Open the DNS records (sometimes called the "zone" or "DNS zone editor").
3. Find the A record for the root domain. It's usually shown as "@" or as the bare domain, yourdomain.com.
4. Change its value to your hosting server's IP address. If there's no A record, add one with host "@" and that IP as the value.
5. Handle the www version. Either add an A record for "www" with the same IP, or add a CNAME record for "www" that points to yourdomain.com.
6. Save the changes.

If you see an AAAA record (an IPv6 address) for the root domain or www and your new host hasn't given you an IPv6 address, remove it. Otherwise, some visitors may still reach the old server.

Leave the MX records alone unless you're also moving email.

Nameservers or A record: which should you use?

Use nameservers when:

• you want your host to manage all DNS for the domain
• your email will be hosted with the same company as your website
• you'd rather have one place to change things

Use an A record when:

• your DNS is managed by a provider you want to keep
• email or other services run elsewhere and you don't want to touch their records
• you're moving only the website

For most people setting up a site and email with one host, changing the nameservers is the simpler choice. Our getting started guide walks through that path from the first login.

What is DNS propagation?

When you change nameservers or DNS records, the change doesn't reach everyone at once. Internet providers and devices keep a cached copy of DNS answers for a set time, called the TTL (time to live). Until that copy expires, they keep sending visitors to the old address.

In practice:

• A records with a short TTL often update within an hour or two.
• Nameserver changes usually take a few hours, and can take up to 24 to 48 hours.
• During that window, some visitors may see the new site while others still see the old one.

Planning a move? Lower the TTL on your existing records to a short value, such as 300 seconds, a day before you switch. When you make the change, it then spreads faster.

How to check that it's working

1. Look up the domain's records. Use any public DNS lookup tool to check the domain's nameservers and A record. Lookup tools that query servers in several countries show how far a change has spread.
2. Clear your own cache. Your browser and computer may hold the old answer. Try a private browsing window, another device or a mobile connection.
3. Visit the site over https://. If the page loads but shows a certificate warning, the SSL certificate may not have been issued yet. Certificates are normally issued after the domain points to the new host, so give it a little time.

If it still isn't working

• More than 48 hours have passed. Check that the nameservers at your registrar match your host's exactly, with no typos or leftover old entries.
• The domain shows a registrar parking page. The nameservers are probably still set to the registrar's defaults.
• The domain recently expired or is suspended. Renew it, or check your inbox for a contact-verification email from the registrar.
• Email stopped working after the change. Your MX records didn't come across. Add them at the new DNS provider.

If you're moving a domain itself to a new registrar rather than just pointing it, that's a different process. See domain transfers.

Next step

Stuck on a step? If your domain or hosting is with ResellerBytes, open a support ticket with your domain name and what you see, and we'll help you finish. More how-tos are on the ResellerBytes blog.