Help center/Publishing & domains

Connect a custom domain

The DNS records to add, what each status means, and fixes.

You can show your site on a domain you own, like www.example.com, instead of its drome.site address. Setup takes a few DNS records at the company where you manage your domain. Drome checks them for you and tells you when the domain is live.

Before you start#

You need a plan or a published site. The Custom domain tab in your site settings only appears when the site has an active plan or has been published. See Plans and pricing.
You need a domain you own. Buy one from any domain registrar if you don't have one yet.
You need access to its DNS settings. DNS settings are usually at the company where you bought the domain (your registrar). If you moved your domain's DNS to another service, such as Cloudflare, make the changes there instead.
Your site is served on a subdomain. Drome connects a subdomain such as www.example.com. The bare root domain (example.com) can't point at Drome directly, so you redirect it to the subdomain. See Redirect your root domain.

Add your domain#

In the editor, open the site menu at the top left and choose Settings.
Select Custom domain.
Under Add domain, enter your domain in Domain name, like example.com. Don't include www, https://, or a path.
Check Subdomain. It defaults to www. You can use another subdomain, like blog or shop.
Select Add domain.

You'll see "Domain added. Add the DNS records below to finish setup." The domain appears under Connected domains with its setup steps open.

Domains with a two-part ending, like example.co.uk, can't be added at the moment. You'll see "Please enter your apex domain like example.com (choose the subdomain separately)".

Add the DNS records#

DNS records tell the internet where your domain points. Each record Drome shows has three parts:

Field	What it means
Type	The kind of record. Drome uses TXT and CNAME. Choose the same type at your provider.
Name	Where the record lives. Some providers call this Host, Hostname, or Record name.
Value	What the record contains. Some providers call this Target, Points to, Data, or Content.

Use the copy buttons next to each name and value so nothing gets mistyped.

To find your DNS settings, sign in to your registrar, open your domain, and look for a page called DNS, DNS settings, DNS management, or Advanced DNS. Add each record there as a new record.

Check how your provider handles names. Many providers add your domain to the end of the name automatically. If yours does, enter only the part before your domain. For example, for _drome-challenge.www.example.com, enter _drome-challenge.www. If the name already ends in a dot, leave the dot off too. If your provider shows the full name next to the field as you type, use that to check.

Add the records in the order the steps appear. Each step unlocks the next.

Confirm you own this domain. Add the TXT record shown. Its name starts with _drome-challenge. and its value starts with drome-verify=. Drome shows a short version of the name to use if your provider adds your domain automatically, and the time the record must appear by. You have 72 hours. When Drome finds it, the step changes to Ownership confirmed.
SSL validation. Once ownership is confirmed, Drome shows one or more CNAME records. These let Drome issue the HTTPS certificate for your domain. Add each one. After the certificate is issued, the step changes to HTTPS certificate issued. Keep these records in place so the certificate can renew automatically.
Point your subdomain to Drome. After the certificate is issued, Drome shows a final CNAME record. Its name is your subdomain, like www, and its value is the target shown. This is the record that serves your site. Keep it in place.

You don't need to press anything after adding records. Drome checks your DNS automatically, and the page updates on its own while setup is in progress. Changes usually appear within minutes but can take up to 48 hours. To check right away, select Check now.

If your provider already has a record for the same name, like an existing www record, edit or remove it. A name can only point to one place.

Redirect your root domain#

Your site loads on the subdomain you connected, like www.example.com. Visitors who type example.com won't reach it unless you redirect the root domain.

Set up the redirect at your domain provider, not in Drome. Look for a setting called Forwarding, Redirect, or URL redirect, and send example.com to www.example.com. Drome shows the exact redirect for your domain at the bottom of the last setup step.

What each status means#

Each connected domain shows a status next to its name.

Status	What it means	What to do
Confirm ownership	Drome is waiting for your TXT ownership record.	Add the TXT record from step 1.
Preparing	Ownership is confirmed. Drome is getting your certificate request ready.	Wait. The SSL validation records appear next.
Waiting for DNS	Drome is waiting for your SSL validation records, or for your subdomain to point to Drome.	Add any records you haven't added yet, then wait.
Issuing certificate	Your DNS is set up. Drome is finishing the HTTPS setup.	Wait.
Live	Your site loads on this domain over HTTPS.	Nothing. Keep all the records in place.
Needs attention	Setup stopped. The domain shows a message explaining why.	See Troubleshooting, then select Retry.
Removing	Drome is removing the domain.	Wait. It disappears when removal finishes.

Troubleshooting#

Message	What to do
Please enter a valid apex domain like example.com	Enter your domain with its ending, like `example.com`.
Please enter your apex domain like example.com (choose the subdomain separately)	Enter the domain without the subdomain, like `example.com` rather than `www.example.com`, and put `www` in Subdomain. Domains with two-part endings, like example.co.uk, aren't supported yet.
Invalid subdomain. Use letters, numbers, and hyphens (e.g. www, blog, app).	Use a single word made of letters, numbers, and hyphens. It can't start or end with a hyphen.
Apex/root cannot be used with CNAME. Use a subdomain like www.	Enter a subdomain such as `www` instead of `@`, then redirect your root domain.
Domain www.example.com is already connected to another site	Another Drome site has proven ownership of this domain. If it's one of your sites, remove the domain there first.
Domain www.example.com is still being removed. Try again in a few minutes.	Wait for the earlier removal to finish, then add the domain again.
Ownership record not found yet. DNS changes can take a while to appear; we'll keep checking.	Check the TXT record's name and value match exactly. See the note on names in Add the DNS records. Then wait.
The ownership record wasn't found within 72 hours. Verify again to get a new record.	Select Retry. Drome creates a new TXT value. Replace the old value at your provider with the new one.
Not verified yet. Check DNS and try again.	Check every record you've added against the ones shown, then wait or select Check now.
Certificate issued. Update DNS and verify again when ready.	Add the final CNAME record that points your subdomain to Drome.
DNS and certificate look good. Finishing setup, which can take a few minutes.	Nothing. The status changes to Live on its own.
Setup hit a problem on our side. Retry, or remove the domain and add it again.	Select Retry. If that doesn't work, remove the domain and add it again.

If your records look right but the status doesn't move:

Look for typos and extra text. A name that ends up as www.example.com.example.com means your provider added the domain a second time. Enter only the host part.
Turn off proxying. Some providers, such as Cloudflare, can proxy a record. Drome needs to see a plain CNAME, so set these records to DNS only.
Remove conflicting records. An old A or CNAME record on the same name stops yours from working.
Give it time. DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to reach everywhere.

Remove a domain#

Open Settings, then Custom domain.
Under Connected domains, select the domain to open it.
Select Remove.
Drome asks you to confirm: your site stops loading on that domain right away. Select Remove domain.

The domain shows Removing while Drome cleans up, which can take a few minutes. After it disappears, you can delete its DNS records at your provider.

Still need help? Email support@drome.site and we’ll get back to you.