In this article, you will learn:

• What conditions you must meet to change domains
• How to change the WebSite domain
• Common issues
• Frequently asked questions

Before renaming the WebSite service, make sure that:

• If the new domain is registered with WEDOS, you have it in your customer account or you are its authorized user.
• The new domain or subdomain is neither the name or alias of another WEDOS service. The exception is WebSite Free in combination with the Mailhosting service.

Changing the WebSite domain allows an automatic DNS setup, which in the case of WebSite Profi and Premium also modifies the MX records for email routing. If you use your own email service provider, the domain will overwrite their records during the automatic DNS setup!

WebSite can operate under any domain (domain.tld) or subdomain (sub.domain.tld). To change it, follow these steps:

1. Log into the customer administration panel.
2. In the navigation bar, select Hosting services WebSite.
3. Select the service you want to rename.
4. In the WebSite service domain change section, fill in the new domain name. Also check whether you want to automatically update DNS or not.
5. Confirm by clicking the Change domain button.

After the change, please wait 60-90 minutes for updating the DNS settings and issuing the Let’s Encrypt HTTPS certificate.

The most common issues with changing the WebSite domain are:

• Existing Hosting Service for the Domain
• Domain in a Different Customer Account
• The New Domain Displays the Old Web
• Email Stopped Working

Issue: There is an error: There is already a web hosting order for the same domain.

Cause: The system does not usually allow the presence of two or more services with the same name (domain). If you want to apply a domain you’re already using with one service to another service, you must first remove it from the original service.

Solution: Rename the original service, or remove the alias. If the offending service is in another customer’s account, but you own the domain, contact us and request us to remove that hosting service’s name or alias.

Issue: There is an error: The domain is in a different customer account.

Cause: For security reasons, the domain and the corresponding WebSite service must be on the same customer account, or the user must be authorized.

Solution: Ask the domain owner to either set you as an authorized user, or move the domain to your account at least until the domain change is finished.

Issue: After changing the domain, an error message or the old website is displayed at the new address.

Cause: After changing the domain, the system (usually) changes our DNS settings and activates the Let’s Encrypt certificate. This can take up to 90 minutes.

If the domain does not use our DNS, the system cannot make the change and you must direct the domain to the WebSite manually with your DNS provider.

Displaying an old website can also be caused by the browser cache.

Solution: After changing the domain, wait at least 90 minutes. If the problem persists, check whose DNS your domain is using and, if necessary, set up the correct A and MX records manually with your provider. Clear your browser cache.

Issue: Email stopped working after changing the WebSite domain.

Cause: Automatic DNS record update overwrote the MX type records on our mail servers.

Solution: Manually rewrite the MX records back to the correct host.

Question: What should I rename my WebSite to if I don’t want to use it anymore but the service name is blocking me?
Reply: We usually recommend subdomains, such as delete, oldweb and the like, for example delete.domain.tld, where domain.tld is the name of your domain.