DNS records for your panel's domain, explained simply

DNS is the address book of the internet. When someone types your panel's domain, DNS tells their browser which server to go to. A handful of record types do all the work: nameservers decide who manages your records, A and CNAME records point your domain and subdomains somewhere, MX records route your email, and TXT records prove things about your domain to other services.

You don't need to be technical to get this right. On PanelHubs, most of the setup happens automatically once you point your domain. This guide explains each piece so you know what you are changing and why.

Nameservers: who is in charge of your domain

When you buy a domain from a registrar, the registrar also tells the world which nameservers hold its records. Nameservers are like the office that keeps your address book. Change them, and you change who manages every record for that domain.

The simplest way to connect a domain to PanelHubs is to point it to PanelHubs' nameservers at your registrar. After that, your panel goes live automatically within minutes of the DNS change, and HTTPS (SSL) is issued automatically. Your domain also sits behind Cloudflare protection, which helps against DDoS attacks and keeps the server IP hidden.

The good news for people who already use their domain for other things: when you connect a domain, existing records are copied in. That means your email and other services have a much better chance of carrying on as before.

A records: pointing a name to a server

An A record links a name, such as yourpanel.com, to an IP address, the numeric address of a server. It is the most direct way to say "this domain lives here".

If you prefer not to change nameservers, for example because a web designer or another service manages your DNS, PanelHubs also supports connecting with an A record instead. You add the record at your current DNS provider and leave everything else where it is. Nameservers are usually the easier path, but an A record is a valid alternative.

CNAME records: one name pointing to another

A CNAME record says "this name is an alias for that name". Instead of pointing to an IP address, it points to another domain. They are common for subdomains, such as help.yourpanel.com pointing to a help desk tool, or shop.yourpanel.com pointing to an online store you run elsewhere.

The PanelHubs DNS records page lets you manage subdomain records, so you can keep these extra services running alongside your panel.

MX records: keeping your business email working

MX records tell the world where to deliver email for your domain. If you have an address like support@yourpanel.com with a provider such as Google Workspace, Zoho Mail or your host's mail service, MX records are what make it work.

This is the record type people most often break by accident. Change nameservers without bringing your MX records along, and email stops arriving. Because existing records are copied in when you connect a domain to PanelHubs, this is less likely, but it is still worth checking. A simple routine:

1. Before you change anything, take a screenshot or note of your current DNS records, especially MX and TXT.
2. Connect your domain.
3. Open the DNS records page and confirm your MX records are there and match your note.
4. Send a test email to your business address from a personal account and check it arrives.

If you plan to send notifications from your own address, PanelHubs has an SMTP module so customer emails come from your domain. That works best when your email records are set up properly.

TXT records: proving things about your domain

TXT records hold short pieces of text that other services read. They are used for:

• Verification. Google Search Console, email providers and some payment gateways ask you to add a TXT record to prove you own the domain.
• Email trust. Records such as SPF and DKIM, usually stored as TXT, help receiving servers decide your emails are genuine and not spam.

You can add and manage TXT records on the PanelHubs DNS records page whenever a service asks for one.

Propagation: why changes are not always instant

When you change DNS, the update has to spread to servers around the world, which keep cached copies for a while. This is called propagation. Many changes show up within minutes, but some take a few hours, and in rare cases up to a day or two, depending on your registrar and how long old records were set to be cached.

A few tips:

• Make DNS changes at a quiet time for your customers, not during your busiest evening.
• If the panel works on your phone's mobile data but not on your home Wi-Fi, that is usually caching, not a fault. Give it time.
• Keep your free yourname.panelhubs.online address handy. It works the whole time, so you can still reach your panel while your own domain settles.

If you later want to move your panel to a different domain, PanelHubs can do that on request, keeping all customers and data, and the old domain keeps working for 7 days. Choosing well the first time still saves effort, so see our guide on choosing a domain name.

Getting started

DNS sounds technical, but on PanelHubs you point your domain once and the rest, including HTTPS and Cloudflare protection, is handled for you. If you want a panel on your own domain, you can create it here.