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Connect Existing Domain

Connecting a domain you own is two jobs in two places: you add it in Tanqory, then you point it here from the provider where it is registered. This walks both, and explains why the domain does nothing until the second one is done.

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If you already own a domain from another provider, you can connect it to your store instead of buying a new one. The domain stays registered with your current provider, and you point it at your store by updating its DNS records. Tanqory issues an SSL certificate for it automatically. This article walks through connecting the domain from the Domains page and what you do afterwards at your provider.

You will find this at Settings, in the Domains area, and you will also make a change at your domain provider.

Before you begin

  • Your role includes Domain settings.
  • You own the domain and can sign in to the provider where it is registered.
  • You can edit that domain's DNS records at your provider.
  • Open Settings > Domains in the admin sidebar. Select the action to connect an existing domain.

Connect your domain

  1. Open the dialog. On the Domains page, select Connect existing domain. The Add external domain dialog opens.

    Before you type anything, it tells you what you are agreeing to: you must own the domain, you will need to update DNS records at your provider, and an SSL certificate will be issued for you. Add External Domain goes through the dialog field by field.

  2. Enter the domain and add it. Type the domain into Domain name, then select Add domain.

    This step does less than it looks like it does. It tells Tanqory to expect the domain and to start watching for it. It does not move any traffic, and your store will not load on the address yet.

  3. Point the domain at your store, at your provider. This is the step that actually connects anything, and it does not happen in Tanqory.

    Sign in wherever the domain is registered, find its DNS settings, and enter the records Tanqory asks for. Every provider lays this out differently, but they all have somewhere to add a record. DNS Records for Your Domain covers which records and what each one is for.

  4. Wait for it to take effect, then check. DNS changes spread across the internet rather than switching over at once, so minutes to hours is normal and occasionally longer.

    Once it has taken, the domain shows as connected on the Domains page and your store loads on the address. The SSL certificate is issued at that point, without you buying or uploading anything, which is what lets the address load securely.

Note: Steps 2 and 3 are separate, in that order, and neither works on its own. A domain added in Tanqory but never pointed at it will sit on the Domains page indefinitely without ever serving your store. If a domain you added seems to do nothing, this is almost always why.

Once the domain is working

The domain being connected is not the same as customers using it. Two things usually follow.

Decide which address customers see. A newly connected domain does not become the primary on its own. Until you set it, your store still hands out the Tanqory subdomain it came with. Set Your Primary Domain covers the switch.

Point your email at the same domain too. Order and account emails are sent separately from the storefront, and they keep using the default sender until you set that up. It is the change that stops your emails being filtered as spam, and it is worth doing while you are already in your provider's DNS panel.

Verify the result

  • The domain you connected appears on the Domains page.
  • After your DNS records are in place, your store loads on the domain.
  • An SSL certificate is issued for the domain automatically, so the domain can load securely.

Best practices

  • Connect a domain you actually control. You need access to its DNS at the provider to finish the setup, so connecting a domain you cannot edit will not work.
  • Enter the domain cleanly. Type just the domain, as the field's example shows, with no extra characters.
  • Keep the domain at your provider in good standing. You still manage and renew the domain where it is registered, so keep it paid and active there.
  • Make the DNS change carefully. The domain only loads your store once its DNS records point at Tanqory.

Common mistakes

  • Trying to connect a domain you do not own, which you cannot complete because it needs DNS access at the provider.
  • Skipping the DNS update, which leaves the domain pointing somewhere other than your store.
  • Entering the domain with a typo, so the domain you connect is not the one you meant.

Next steps

Still stuck?

More in Domains

  • Buy a Domain

    Registering a domain through Tanqory, from the search to the point where you pick one. Covers what the results show you, why the same name costs very different amounts on different endings, and what to weigh before you commit to a yearly bill.

  • Changing Your Store's Web Address

    Your store comes with a free Tanqory subdomain, and its name cannot be changed. This explains what that address is, what its page shows you, and how to put your store on an address of your own instead.

  • Transfer a Domain to Tanqory

    Move a domain's registration from another registrar to Tanqory using its authorization code. The transfer typically takes 5 to 7 days and extends the registration.

  • Buy a Domain Checkout

    The Domain checkout page in full: the auto-renew switch and registration period, the registrant details a domain registration legally requires, what the order summary already includes, and what happens once you hand off to Stripe.

All 14 articles in Domains

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