Point Namecheap DNS to Flywheel

Flywheel provides each site with an IP address to which domains can be pointed. This is useful if you own, for example, thisfinedomain.com, and would like it to resolve to a Flywheel site.

If you’re brand new to the world of domain names, some of the terminology may seem a little confusing. If you ever feel stuck, feel free to reference our Glossary of DNS terms.

Step 1: Add the domain to your Flywheel site

1. From the site’s Overview tab, go to the Domains section and click the + Add Domain button to add the domain you’d like to point to Flywheel.
   
2. Next, fill out the domain information as described below.
   
   1. Domain: Enter the URL (without a prefix). Example: mywebsite.com
   2. Primary domain: Check the box if you want this to be your primary domain (if this will be your site’s main URL).
   3. www: By default, the www version of the domain will be added, but you can uncheck the box to skip this step if needed. Example: www.mywebsite.com.

   Then click Next.

   Note

   In the background, our system will automatically update all appropriate URL references in the database to this new primary domain.
3. Click to copy your new DNS records to your clipboard. We recommend keeping this tab open so you can easily copy them from here and paste them into Namecheap’s DNS editor (instructions below).
   
   You will need to copy all the records you see in the table. For example:
   • A record (This is your Flywheel site’s IP address)
   • CNAME record (The CNAME record is only required if you’re adding the “www” version of your domain. If you’re not, the CNAME isn’t required and won’t be displayed in the list.)
   • TXT record

Step 2: Log in to Namecheap and access the DNS editor

In a separate tab, log in to the Namecheap dashboard. Then refer to Namecheap’s DNS Documentation to learn how to access and use their DNS editor.

Step 3: Add an A record

You may see additional records on the Advanced DNS page, especially if your domain was pointed to a different host previously. For now, we’re just going to be concerned with the A record, since it’s the record responsible for pointing your domain to your website.

Be careful about modifying or deleting any other records – especially MX records, which are responsible for email. Also, it never hurts to take a screenshot before you start making changes.

1. Locate the Host Records section.
2. Click the Add New Record button.
3. Choose A Record for the Type.
4. Enter @ for Host. Note: The @ symbol serves as a placeholder for the root level domain. In this case, it stands for thisfinedomain.com.
5. Enter your site’s IP address for Value. In this example, the IP is 151.101.66.159.
6. Usually, there’s no need to adjust TTL, which stands for Time To Live. For more information on TTL, check out this help doc.
7. Click the green checkmark to save the A record.

Note: Namecheap removes their placeholder host records when you add your own, so you see fewer host records after saving, don’t worry!

Unless you have a subdomain setup, for example shop.thisfinedomain.com, you should only need one A record value. At the very least, make sure that you have one A record with @ set as the host which is pointing to your Flywheel IP address.

For more information, visit Namecheap’s help article on A records.

Step 4: Configure CNAME record for www

If you added the www version of your domain earlier, you’ll want to set up a CNAME record as well. A CNAME (aka canonical name) points a subdomain to another domain name.

For example, with a CNAME in place, visitors entering www.thisfinedomain.com in their browser will be re-routed to thisfinedomain.com. Without a CNAME record, visitors will instead reach an error page.

1. In the Host Records section, click the Add New Record button.
2. Choose CNAME Record for the Type.
3. Enter www for the Host.
4. Enter your root domain name for the Value. In this example, we’re using thisfinedomain.com.
5. Click the green checkmark to save the CNAME record.

For more information, visit Namecheap’s help article on adding CNAME records.

Step 5: Add a TXT record

The TXT (or Text) record is used to verify that you own and control your domain, and prevents unauthorized use of your domain.

Add the following information:

• Type: TXT record
• Host: Paste the host/label text string from your Flywheel DNS details.
• Value: Paste the destination/target text string from your Flywheel DNS details.
• TTL: Automatic

For more information, visit Namecheap’s help article on adding TXT records.

Step 6: Confirm your changes using Flywheel’s DNS checker

After a short propagation window, your site should be connected to Flywheel! You can use our built-in DNS checker to confirm your settings.

1. Go to your site’s Overview tab on the Flywheel dashboard.
2. Click Refresh Status in the Domains section.

Once your site is pointed to Flywheel, the status will switch to ✅ Connected and the domain registrar will be displayed as well.

Need help?

If you have any questions our Happiness Engineers are here to help!