Domain problems

Connecting a domain depends on a record at your DNS provider, which we cannot see into or change, so most problems are settled there. This page lists what you might see, on your account page or in a browser, and what to do about each. It is for whoever is connecting the choir's domain.

The steps themselves are in Use your own domain name and Bare domains, two domains and the main address.

"We cannot see the DNS records yet"

The full notice is "We cannot see the DNS records yet. DNS changes can take a while to show up: anything from a minute to a few hours."

A new or changed DNS record is not seen everywhere at once. A few minutes is usual; a few hours can happen, particularly when you replaced an older record.

If it has been more than a few hours, check the record at your DNS provider against your account page:

1. Type. It must be CNAME (or, for a bare domain at a provider that offers them, ALIAS or ANAME).
2. Name. For www.yourchoir.org, many providers want only www. If you typed the whole name where only the front part was wanted, you may have made a record for www.yourchoir.org.yourchoir.org.
3. Value. It must match the Value on your account page exactly, with no https:// in front.
4. No second record. There must be only one record for that name. Delete any older A, AAAA or CNAME record for the same name.
5. The right place. Make sure you are editing DNS where the domain's DNS is really managed. If your domain's name servers point to another company, records added at the registrar have no effect.
6. Cloudflare. If your DNS is with Cloudflare, see the orange cloud below.
7. Bare domain. Both records are needed: see the TXT record below.

Then press Check now. We look at most once every 30 seconds for a domain; pressing sooner shows what we already know.

"The security certificate for your domain is being issued"

The full notice is "Your DNS is in place. The security certificate for your domain is being issued, which usually takes a few minutes."

Your record is right and there is nothing to fix. Wait a few minutes and press Check now, or reload the page. If it still says this after an hour, get help.

Until the certificate is issued, a browser visiting your domain may show a security warning. Do not tell people about the new address until the page says "Your site is live at".

"We have not looked for the records yet"

You have connected the domain but not yet pressed Check now. Add the record, then press it.

Visitors see a plain "Choir Master CMS" page

The page is headed Choir Master CMS and reads "You have reached the default page for Choir Master CMS hosted sites. If you are a Choir Master CMS customer, please log in to your account and check your configuration, or contact us for support."

It means the domain's DNS points at us, but the domain is not connected to any site. The usual causes:

Cause	What to do
You added the DNS record but never entered the domain on your account page.	Connect it.
You connected www.yourchoir.org but are visiting yourchoir.org, or the other way round. Each form is connected separately.	Connect the other form too, or forward one to the other: see Bare domains.
The domain was disconnected, by you or because the site went back to the Free plan.	See My domain stopped working after my plan ended.
The site has been closed.	See If your site says it is paused.

Messages from the connect form

These appear in red at the top of your account page after you press Connect this domain.

Message	What it means	What to do
"Enter a domain name, such as www.yourchoir.org or yourchoir.org."	What you typed is not a domain name.	Type the name alone: no spaces, no path after it, no email address.
"That address is one of ours. Enter a domain you own."	You entered a .cmcms.org address or one of our own.	Your .cmcms.org address is already yours and needs no connecting. Enter a domain you have registered yourself.
"Your own domain is part of the Starter and Premium plans."	Your site is on the Free plan.	Move to a paid plan first.
"A site can have 2 domains. Disconnect one before connecting another."	You already have two.	Disconnect one you no longer need.
"That domain is already connected to a site."	The domain is connected to another site with us.	If it is a site of yours under another account, disconnect it there first. If you do not recognise it, get help.
"That domain could not be connected. It may already be set up with another service on Cloudflare: contact us and we will help."	The domain was refused where we register it. The message itself gives the likely reason: the domain may already be set up with another service on Cloudflare.	Remove the domain from the other service if you can, then try again. Otherwise write to us: see Getting help.
"That did not work just now. Try again in a minute."	Something failed at our end.	Wait a minute and try again. The same message can follow Make this the main address or Disconnect.

If you enter a domain that is already connected to your own site, nothing happens and no message is shown: it is already in the list.

My DNS is with Cloudflare

Cloudflare's DNS gives each record a "Proxy status" switch: an orange cloud for "Proxied", a grey one for "DNS only".

• For a name with www in front, set the record to "DNS only" (grey cloud), as your account page asks. If the domain will not connect and the cloud is orange, this is the first thing to change. Then press Check now.
• For a bare domain, add the CNAME at the root (Cloudflare flattens it for you) and the TXT record as shown on your account page.

Cloudflare can also import the records from the file your account page offers: see Download the records as a file.

A bare domain is stuck

A bare domain (yourchoir.org) needs two records.

• The second record is not shown. The page says "A second record, which proves the domain is yours, will be shown here in a moment: press "Check now"." Press it.
• Your provider will not accept a CNAME at the root. Most do not. See If your provider cannot do it.
• The TXT record is missing or wrong. Its Name begins _cf-custom-hostname. Some providers want only that part; others want the whole name. Its Value must be copied exactly, with no extra spaces or quotation marks.

My domain stopped working after my plan ended

A domain of your own is part of the Starter and Premium plans. When a site goes back to the Free plan, for whatever reason, its domains are disconnected. Visitors to your domain then see the plain default page, and your site is at its .cmcms.org address only.

To put it right:

1. Move back to a paid plan.
2. Connect the domain again from your account page. If you left the DNS record in place, it will be found quickly.

In the meantime your site, its content and its admin panel are all still there at the .cmcms.org address. See When a site goes back to Free.

A domain says it "is being disconnected"

A disconnection did not finish. Press Disconnect for that domain again. If it stays, get help.

My email stopped working after I changed DNS

The records described in this guide are for your website and do not carry email. If email at your domain stopped when you changed DNS, something else was changed at the same time. The usual causes are deleting the domain's MX records, or moving DNS to a new provider without copying every existing record across first. Put the missing records back at your DNS provider, or ask your email provider for the records it needs.

Getting help

Your account page, under Your own domain, offers a 30-minute call in which we set the domain up with you: "Stuck with the DNS settings? Book a 30-minute call and we will set it up with you." Have the sign-in for your DNS provider ready.

Or write to support@choirmastercms.com with:

• your site's .cmcms.org address;
• the domain you are trying to connect;
• the company where your domain's DNS is managed;
• the notice your account page shows.

See Get help.