Domain Configuration

Applies to: All

Overview

Visitors reach your site through a domain — the web address people type (like www.yourcompany.com). FlexSite offers two related places to manage domains: project Domains (publication wizard) and per-environment Domain Settings. This page explains when to use each.

Key concepts

  • Domain — a name you rent from a registrar (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Google Domains, etc.).
  • DNS — a control panel at your registrar that tells the internet where your domain should point. FlexSite’s wizard shows the exact records to copy.
  • HTTPS / SSL — the padlock in the browser; FlexSite issues a free certificate after DNS is correct.
  • Primary domain — the main address you want Google and bookmarks to use when you have both example.com and www.example.com.
  • Hostname — a specific address such as staging.example.com for a non-production copy.

Prerequisites

  • ACTIVE paid plan — TRIAL accounts usually cannot attach custom domains.
  • Environment status ready (not still provisioning).
  • Access to your registrar’s DNS page, or a colleague in IT who can paste records for you.

Steps — production domain (most common)

  1. Open Domains in the project sidebar.
  2. Start Add domain or the publication wizard.
  3. Enter the address visitors should use.
  4. Copy each DNS record from FlexSite into your registrar. Changes can take up to 48 hours worldwide — this is normal.
  5. Return to FlexSite until status shows ACTIVE with HTTPS enabled.
  6. Set primary domain if you added more than one hostname.

Steps — environment-specific hostname

Use this when only one copy of the site (e.g. staging) should answer at staging.yourbrand.com:

  1. Open Environments, select the environment, then Domain Settings.
  2. Click Add domain and follow verification steps.
  3. Wait for ACTIVE status before sharing the link.

Atom projects

Atom uses Domains on the project sidebar (not per-environment Domain Settings). The same ACTIVE plan rule applies.

Troubleshooting

  • Double-check you edited DNS at the registrar where you bought the domain, not an old hosting provider.
  • Remove duplicate or conflicting records the wizard flags.
  • If status stays pending after 48 hours, ask IT to confirm the records match exactly (including hostnames and TTL).

See also Publication Process for the full go-live checklist.