Domains
The Domains tab is where you point custom hostnames at your project, validate DNS, and manage SSL certificates. Open it from the project's tab strip in the Console.
Add a domain
Click Add Domain, type the hostname (app.example.com), and save. Depfloy registers the domain on the project and shows you the DNS records you need to add at your registrar.
DNS records
For the domain to resolve to your project, you need to add A records at your DNS provider that point at your server's public IP. The Domains tab shows the exact records — IP address, host, and TTL — ready to copy.
For an apex domain (example.com), use the A record directly. For a subdomain (www.example.com, app.example.com), some providers prefer a CNAME pointing at the apex; the A record approach also works fine.
Validation status
After you save DNS records, the Domains tab polls in the background to detect when DNS propagates. The status column updates from Pending to Connected without you needing to refresh — usually within minutes of the DNS change, though some providers take longer.
If validation never succeeds, double-check:
- The exact host (do you need
www?) - The exact IP (your server's current public IP, not an old one)
- That you haven't accidentally created the record on a different domain
SSL certificates
Once a domain is validated, Depfloy can issue a free Let's Encrypt certificate for it. Tick Enable SSL on the domain row, and Depfloy requests the certificate and installs it on your server. The first issuance takes a minute or so; afterwards your domain serves over HTTPS automatically.
Let's Encrypt certificates are valid for 90 days. Depfloy renews them automatically about 30 days before they expire. If automatic renewal fails for some reason, the Domains tab shows the affected certificate and offers a Renew now action.
If you ever need to start over with a certificate, click Renew to re-issue from scratch.
Redirects
You can redirect one domain to another from this tab — useful for canonicalising www to non-www or vice versa. Pick a source domain, pick a target, save. The redirect is configured in nginx and applies immediately.
Remove a domain
Click Remove on a domain row to remove it. Depfloy updates nginx to drop the domain. If you had SSL on the domain, the certificate is also revoked.
Removing your project's primary domain is allowed, but it leaves the project without a primary hostname — visitors hitting the server's IP get an error. Add a new primary first if you're rotating.
API
For programmatic access — registering domains during automated provisioning, for example — see Domains API.