Setting Your DNS

Your DNS settings are what directs people entering your domain name to the Webvanta servers. (Your DNS is typically provided by your domain registrar, though it may also be provided by a separate DNS provider.)

Using a CNAME and Forwarding

The preferred way to set up your DNS is to use a CNAME for www.domainname.com and domain forwarding for the base domain (domainname.com). These are the two steps:

  1. Create a CNAME for "www" with the value mysite.webvanta.com where mysite is replaced by your subdomain. This will direct any request for www.mysite.com to your Webvanta site.
  2. Set up domain forwarding for the base domain (mysite.com) to www.mysite.com. This ensures that your site will come up if someone enters your domain name without the "www", and without depending on any fixed IP address.

The second item is not strictly a DNS feature, but it is offered by most DNS providers:

  • GoDaddy does not charge for this service, and calls it Forwarding.
  • Network Solutions charges $12.99/year for this service, and calls it Web Forwarding.

See Setting Up Your DNS with GoDaddy for blow-by-blow specifics on setting your DNS there.

If You MUST Have a Numeric IP Address

If your DNS is hosted somewhere that cannot provide the forwarding service for the base domain, you can use this numeric IP address:

54.191.143.131

Note that you will get slightly faster access by using the CNAME, so we recommend that you always use a CNAME for www, pointing to mysite.webvanta.com, even if you use the numeric IP address for the base domain.

DNS Delays

Once you make the change, it will take anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours for everyone to see the new site, since DNS information is cached at many locations throughout the web infrastructure, and also by each computer and browser. Usually the changes show up within an hour or two.

Using an ANAME Record

If you use DNS Made Easy for your DNS hosting, you can use a special record type they provide called an ANAME. An ANAME acts like a CNAME but can be used for the base domain.

If you are using DNS Made Easy, just set up an ANAME record for the base domain with the value of mysite.webvanta.com, and CNAME for www with the value of mysite.webvanta.com.

For SSL Customers

If you have a custom SSL certificate set up with Webvanta, then you must use www1.webvanta.com as the CNAME value, instead of your-subdomain.webvanta.com. This routes requests for your site to a different load balancer, which has the custom SSL certificates installed.