Configure your domain name for hosted Discourse

Documentation Hosted Customers
1

So you’ve selected a hosted Discourse plan. Lucky you!

The very first step is to point your domain name forum.example.com to our hosting.

  • You will need to edit the DNS records for your domain name, example.com.

  • In most cases, the DNS is controlled from the same place where you originally purchased the example.com domain from.

  • Log into your name registrar and find your DNS control panel.

  • In the DNS control panel, CNAME forum to point at <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com. The exact name you’ll need is specific to your forum, and you should have received it in your welcome e-mail. If not, contact us and we’ll be happy to help you out.

  • Go to the admin dashboard of your Discourse site and click on the Change Domain Name button. In the popup that appears, enter your new domain name forum.example.com and save. If the button is not visible, you are probably on a plan where you can’t change names automatically. If so, please contact us.

  • Wait for the change to process and we’ll take care of the rest.

:bell: if you wish to have your site at the root or apex domain (that is, at example.com instead of forum.example.com), you may need to switch DNS providers first.

:exclamation: www.example.com is not the same as example.com.

www.example.com is a subdomain, and you should follow this guide for configuration. example.com is the root/apex domain, and you should follow this guide.

This page provides a list of detailed instructions for many of the major Domain Name providers. Select your provider from the list below to get detailed instructions for how to CNAME your domain.

If you cannot find your provider or are still having trouble configuring your CNAME records, contact us at team@discourse.org.

GoDaddy.com

  1. Log in to your account at dns.godaddy.com.
  2. Select your domain to access the Domain Settings page.
  3. Under Additional Settings, select Manage DNS.
  4. Select Add under the records table.
  5. Under Type, select CNAME.
  6. Enter the details for your CNAME record:
    • Host: Enter the subdomain name for the alias assignment. For example, if you chose www.example.com as your host address, type www
    • Points to: Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com
    • TTL: Select how long the server should cache the information.
  7. Click Save.

DynECT Managed DNS

  1. Log in to your account at https://manage.dynect.net/.
  2. Click on Manage Domain.
  3. Click Add New Node.
  4. Enter the the address for your Discourse service and click OK. For example, if you chose www.example.com as the address, you should enter www.example.com.
  5. Click Add New Record and then choose CNAME from the drop-down menu.
  6. Set your TTL (Time To Live) if desired and then add the full path to Discourse’s server. Example: if you chose www.example.com you should enter www.example.com.<something>.hosted-by-discourse.com.
  7. Click Publish Now.

IX Web Hosting

  1. Log in to your account at IX Web Hosting.
  2. Click Manage below the Hosting Account section.
  3. On the left side, click the domain you’d like to use with Discourse.
  4. Next to DNS Configuration, click EDIT.
  5. Click Add DNS CNAME Record.
  6. Under Name, enter only the part of your website address that you designated for your Discourse Service. For example, if you picked www.example.com as your address, just enter www as the entry under Name.
  7. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com under Data.
  8. Click Submit.

1and1

  1. Log in to your account at https://admin.1and1.com
  2. If it’s not already selected, click the Administration tab.
  3. Click Domains. The Domain Overview page appears.
  4. From the New drop-down menu, select Create Subdomain. (If you’ve already created a subdomain for your website’s address, skip to step six.)
  5. Enter the prefix of the address for your Discourse service, and click OK. Example: if you chose www.example.com you should enter www.
  6. Check the box next to the subdomain.
  7. From the DNS menu, select Edit DNS Settings.
  8. Click the radio button next to CNAME.
  9. Next to Alias, enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com
  10. Click OK.

EveryDNS.net

  1. Log in to your account at EveryDNS.net.
  2. On the left side, click the domain you’d like to use with Discourse.
  3. Since EveryDNS.net is your hosting service, and not your domain registrar, be sure that your domain points to EveryDNS.net’s nameservers. This will allow your CNAME record configuration to take effect.
  4. Below Add a Record:, you can create your CNAME record.
  5. Next to Fully Qualified Domain Name, enter only the part of your website address that you designated for your Discourse service. For example, if you picked www.example.com as your website’s address, just enter www as the entry next to Fully Qualified Domain Name.
  6. Select CNAME as the Record Type.
  7. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com as the Record Value.
  8. Click Add Record.

Yahoo! Small Business

  1. Log in to your account at smallbusiness.yahoo.com.
  2. Click Domain Control Panel below the domain you’d like to use with Discourse.
  3. Click Manage Advanced DNS Settings.
  4. Click Add Record.
  5. In the Source field, enter the part of the address you chose for your website using Discourse. For example, if you chose www.example.com, enter www in the Source field.
  6. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com in the Destination field.
  7. Click Submit.

No-IP

  1. Log in to your account at No-IP.
  2. On the left side, click Host/Redirects.
  3. Click Manage underneath Host/Redirects.
  4. Click Add for a new entry, or click Modify and skip to step six for an existing entry.
  5. Enter the part of the address that you picked for Discourse as the host name, and select your domain name. For example, if you entered www.example.com as your address, enter www as the host name.
  6. Select DNS alias CNAME at the host type.
  7. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com as the Target Host and click Modify.

DNS Park

  1. Log in to your account at DNS Park.
  2. On the left side, click DNS Hosting.
  3. Click the domain you’d like to use with Discourse.
  4. Since DNS Park is your hosting service, and not your domain registrar, be sure that your domain points to DNS Park’s nameservers. This will allow your CNAME record configuration to take effect.
  5. Click Alias Records.
  6. Under Host Name, enter only the part of your website address that you designated for Discourse. If you picked www.example.com as your website’s address, enter www.
  7. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com under Destination Name.
  8. Click Add Alias.

eNom

  1. Log in to your account at www.enom.com.
  2. From the drop-down menu at the Domains tab, select My Domain. You’ll be directed to the Manage Domains page.
  3. Click the domain that you’d like to use with Discourse.
  4. Click Host Settings.
  5. To add a CNAME record, click NEW ROW. If you’ve already created a CNAME record for the address, simply edit the existing CNAME record.
  6. Enter the part of the address that you want to use with Discourse. For example, if you entered www.example.com as your address, enter www
  7. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com for the host name.
  8. Click Save.

Network Solutions

  1. Log in to your account at www.networksolutions.com.
  2. In the left navigation bar, open the nsWebAddress (Domains) menu by clicking the + icon.
  3. Click Manage Domain Names.
  4. On the Domain Details page for the domain you’re using with Discourse, select the Designated DNS radio button to the right of Change domain to point to. (If you’ve already configured advanced DNS settings, click Edit next to Advanced DNS Settings.)
  5. Click the Apply Changes button.
  6. Under the Advanced DNS Manager heading, click Manage Advanced DNS Records.
  7. Under the Host Aliases (CNAME Records) heading, click Add/Edit.
  8. In the Alias box, enter your custom URL prefix (such as www).
  9. Select the radio button to the left of the Other Host box.
  10. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com in the Other Host box.
  11. Click Continue.
  12. Review your changes and click Save Changes to create the CNAME record.

MyDomain.com

  1. Log in to your account at MyDomain.com.
  2. Click on the My Services tab.
  3. Under Manage My Services, click on Manage Services.
  4. Go to Domain Overview.
  5. Click on Domain Administration.
  6. Select the domain you’re using with Discourse.
  7. Click the DNS tab, and select DNS Records.
  8. Click Add New DNS record.
  9. From the drop-down menu, select CNAME, and click Next.
  10. Enter your custom URL prefix (such as www), and then enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com
  11. Click Finish.

Domain Direct

  1. Go to domaindirect.com.
  2. Click my account, and log in to your domain.
  3. On the Domain tab, click Advanced Settings.
  4. Click Edit Zone File. Note: Do not delete the A record for *.domain.com and domain.com, or you will have problems later.
  5. Under CNAME, create an entry for the part of the address that you want to use with Discourse. For example, if you are using www.example.com as your address, enter www.
  6. Point this CNAME record to <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com

gandi.net

  1. Log in to your account at gandi.net.
  2. Click the Administration tab, and then click the control panel link.
  3. Click the domain you want to manage, and go to Technical Settings.
  4. Click Manage DNS zone file.
  5. Click Add an entry, and for each field, do the following:
    1. Name: Enter your custom URL prefix (such as www).
    2. Type: Select CNAME.
    3. Value: Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com., making sure to include a trailing dot (.) at the end of the value.
    4. Click Submit.

  6. You should be back to the list of entries. Click **Submit Changes**

eurodns.com

  1. Log in to your account at eurodns.com.
  2. Click My Domains in the My Domains menu on the left side of the page. A table listing your domains should appear.
  3. Click the DNS column on the row of the domain you wish to change. The DNS records for your domain should now be displayed.
  4. From the Add… drop-down menu of the HOST NAME table, choose Host Alias, and click the Add button next to it.
  5. In the Alias: field, add the name you chose for your service Discourse. For example, if you chose www.example.com as your address, enter www.
  6. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com in the Host Name field.
  7. Click the Save Settings button.

Register.com

  1. Log in to your account at register.com.
  2. Under the My Accounts tab, click the domain that you’re using with Discourse.
  3. Scroll down to the Advanced Technical Settings heading, and click Edit Domain Aliases Records.
  4. In the box to the left of your domain name, enter your URL prefix (such as www).
  5. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com in the points to box.
  6. Click Continue.
  7. Review your changes, and click Continue to create the CNAME record.

myhosting.com

  1. Go to http://myhosting.com.
  2. Click on the Account link at the top of the page.
  3. Log in with your Domain Name and Password.
  4. Click on the Domain Name tab.
  5. Click DNS Management in the left-hand pane.
  6. Click the Manage DNS button.
  7. Add an ALIAS (CNAME) RECORD by doing the following in the ZONE SERVER area:

NameCheap

source: NameCheap’s CNAME article

  1. Log in to your account at http://www.namecheap.com/myaccount/login-only.aspx
  2. Select Domain List from the left side menu and click the Manage button next to your domain
  3. Navigate to the Advanced DNS tab
  4. Click the Add New Record button
  5. Select CNAME Record from the Type drop-down menu
  6. Enter your short hostname (e.g. discuss in the case of discuss.example.com) into the Host field and <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com into the Value column
  7. Click Save All Changes

Google Domains

  1. Log in to your account at domains.google.com.
  2. Click the domain that you’re using with Discourse.
  3. Click on the Advanced tab, and scroll to Custom resource records section.
  4. In the box to the left of your domain name, enter your URL prefix (such as www).
  5. Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com in the points to box.
  6. Click Add.

iwantmyname.com

  1. Log in to your account at Sign In | iwantmyname
  2. Go to your Domains section.
  3. Find the “Nameservers” section and click “Manage DNS records”
  4. In the “Hostname” box, enter your URL prefix (such as www).
  5. Make the “Type” a CNAME
  6. In the “Value” box Enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com
  7. Click Add and Save DNS Settings.

Squarespace

source: Squarespace’s Custom DNS record article

  1. Log in to your account at https://account.squarespace.com/
  2. From your Home Menu, click Settings, and then click Domains
  3. Under Squarespace Domains, click the domain name you’d like to configure the record for, then click Advanced Settings
  4. Scroll down to Custom Records
  5. In the Record field of a blank row, select CNAME from the drop-down
  6. In the Host field, enter your URL prefix (such as www)
  7. In the Data field, enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com
  8. Click Add to save the record

(this page was adapted from Fastly with permission.)

CloudFlare.com

  1. Login to your Cloudflare account
  2. Select your domain
  3. Select the DNS settings tab
  4. Select the Add Record button
  5. In the Type field, choose CNAME
  6. In the Name field, enter your new subdomain name (such as www)
  7. In the Target field, enter <something>.hosted-by-discourse.com
  8. In the TTL field, select Auto
  9. Under Proxy Status, select the Cloudflare cloud icon (orange) to deactivate the Cloudflare CDN. The cloud icon must be gray. The sites hosted by Discourse already use their own CDN. If left active, the CloudFlare CDN will interfere with the correct functioning of the site.
  10. Select the Save button

Last Reviewed by @SaraDev on 2022-05-24T21:00:00Z

Last edited by @JammyDodger 2024-05-26T07:47:28Z

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