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Edit DNS records at Amazon Route 53

Where to find DNS records in Amazon Route 53, what the fields are called, and how to connect a subdomain to yaya.

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Before you start

  • Any plan. Connecting a domain you own is free on Free, Launch and Grow.
  • An AWS login that can edit Route 53, and a published yaya site.
  • The DNS steps from Website > Domain in yaya. Keep that page open.

Route 53 records only take effect when the domain's name servers are the four name servers of your hosted zone. Check this first.

Sign in and find the DNS page

  1. Sign in to the AWS Management Console and open the Route 53 console.
  2. Choose Hosted zones in the navigation pane.
  3. Choose the name of the hosted zone for your domain.

The list shows each record in the zone.

What the screen calls the fields

  • Record name: the subdomain. Leave the record name empty for the root.
  • Record type: A, CNAME, TXT and so on.
  • Value (or Route traffic to): where the record points.
  • TTL (seconds): for a name already in use, AWS suggests 300 seconds first.

A trailing dot is optional in a CNAME value.

Add the CNAME record for a subdomain or www

  1. Copy the CNAME target from yaya.
  2. Choose Create record in the hosted zone.
  3. Choose Simple routing if the form asks for a routing policy.
  4. Type www (or your subdomain) in Record name.
  5. Choose CNAME as the Record type.
  6. Paste the target in Value.
  7. Choose Create records.

The bare domain

Route 53 does not allow a CNAME on a name that matches the hosted zone.

Route 53 has an Alias record. It points to AWS resources, such as a CloudFront distribution, or to another record in the same zone. The AWS pages list no outside target such as yaya. Choose one of these:

  • Connect www.example.com in yaya. Then send the bare domain to www with a web redirect from another service. The Route 53 pages describe DNS records only. They do not describe web redirects.
  • Move DNS to yaya. Change the name servers at your registrar. See Move your DNS to yaya.

Add the TXT ownership record

  1. Choose Create record.
  2. Type _cf-custom-hostname.www in Record name. Use your own host after the dot. For the bare domain, type _cf-custom-hostname.
  3. Choose TXT as the Record type.
  4. Paste the value from yaya in Value. Put it in quotation marks, as AWS shows for TXT text.
  5. Choose Create records.

Delete or replace a conflicting record

A CNAME cannot share a name with another record. To change a record, select its row and edit it in the Edit record pane, then choose Save changes.

To remove a record, select it and choose Delete. You cannot delete NS or SOA records.

Leave MX and TXT mail records as they are. See Keep your email working.

Check the result in yaya

  1. Open Website > Domain.
  2. Click Check again.

AWS says changes usually reach all Route 53 name servers within 60 seconds. Other networks can take longer. yaya sets up HTTPS on its own. There is no deploy step.

Fix common problems

Route 53 will not save my CNAME. The record name matches the hosted zone. Use www or another subdomain.

My records do not seem to work. The domain uses other name servers. Make the registrar list the name servers of this hosted zone.

The card stays on "Waiting on DNS". See Fix a domain that won't verify.

Provider's own guide: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/Route53/latest/DeveloperGuide/resource-record-sets-creating.html

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Still stuck? Email support@yaya.page.

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