How to point a domain to your server Print

To make a domain open your website, the domain has to point at your server's IP address. There are two parts to this: the domain must use the right nameservers, and those nameservers must hold a record pointing at your server.

First, check which nameservers the domain uses

This determines where you make the change, and getting it wrong is the most common reason nothing happens:

• The domain uses our nameservers — ns1.sayob.com and ns2.sayob.com — create the zone in your client area, as described below.
• The domain uses your registrar's or another provider's nameservers — make the change there. A zone created in your client area will simply be ignored, because nobody is asking our servers about that domain.
• The domain is served by your own server's control panel — edit the records there instead: see Managing DNS records in Plesk or the DNS section of your panel.

You can check which nameservers are in use with:

dig NS example.com +short

Switching a domain to our nameservers

If you want the domain served by us, set its nameservers at the registrar to:

ns1.sayob.com
ns2.sayob.com

Create the zone in your client area before changing the nameservers at the registrar. If the domain is delegated to nameservers that have no zone for it, the domain stops resolving entirely — including its mail.

Creating a DNS zone in your client area

1. Log in to your client area.
2. Open the Domains section.
3. Select Manage DNS.
4. On the DNS Manager page, click Add New Zone.
5. Enter your domain name.
6. Enter the IP address of the server hosting the website.
7. Click Add Zone.

The records you are likely to need

• A — points a domain or subdomain to an IPv4 address. This is the record that makes the site open.
• AAAA — the same for an IPv6 address.
• CNAME — makes one name an alias for another host name.
• MX — the mail server that receives email for the domain. Lower priority number means higher priority: see How to add or edit MX records.
• TXT — text values, most often SPF, DKIM and DMARC records for mail, and verification records requested by external services.
• NS — the authoritative nameservers for the zone.
• SOA — administrative information about the zone. Leave it alone unless you have a specific reason to change it.

Add a record for the bare domain and one for www, or visitors typing one of the two forms will not reach the site.

Do not forget the mail

Creating a new zone with only an A record means the domain has no MX records. If mail for the domain is handled elsewhere — an external provider, or your previous hosting — it will stop arriving as soon as the new zone takes effect. Add the MX records before switching, not after someone notices.

After the change

DNS changes are not instant: some resolvers keep the previous answer for hours. See How long does DNS propagation take? for what to expect and how to check properly.

Check the result by querying DNS directly rather than by opening the site in your browser, which caches answers of its own:

dig example.com +short

If the correct address comes back but the site does not open, the DNS side is done and the problem is on the server — usually the domain has not been added there yet.

If the domain still does not open after 24 hours, open a ticket from your client area with the domain name and the IP address it should point to.