The default connection protocol for PageCloud sites using a custom domain is HTTP, however there may be situations where a secured web connection using SSL (HTTPS) is required. Your default domain name - sitename.pagecloud.com - already fully supports HTTPS, however if you'd like to set this up for your custom domain you'll need to do some additional configuring and this guide will show you how to do that. Note, as part of the following solution you'll need to set up an account (which can be free!) with CloudFlare.com.
This guide will cover 2 parts.
Part 1: Setting up a CloudFlare account and making sure your custom domain is routed properly through it to your PageCloud site.
Part 2: Configuring your SSL Secure Connection
Part 1: Setting up a CloudFlare account and making sure your custom domain is routed properly through it to your PageCloud site.
First, go to https://cloudflare.com and begin by setting up an account.
Next, enter your custom domain and click "Scan DNS Records". For this example, we will be using the custom domain 'pagecloudtest.com'
Once that's done, hit Continue Setup
You will then get to a screen where you'll want to verify that your records are setup properly. CloudFlare automatically loads all of your current DNS records (those that are setup with your domain registrar). You can then adjust those settings to make sure your settings include the following two records as per the example below:
It's important to make sure that you have a CNAME record with the following information:
Name: yourcustomdomain.com (example, pagecloudtest.com)
Value: proxy2.pagecloud.com
And another CNAME record with the following:
Name: www
Value: proxy2.pagecloud.com
Make sure you click the little cloud icon beside the CNAME records so that the domain is properly routed through the CloudFlare network.
Hit Continue and you'll be brought into the CloudFlare Plan selection screen. SSL can be obtained even on their Free service but depending on what you require, there are a few other plans available. We will focus on the free plan for this purpose. You can select 'Free Website' and hit Continue.
The next step will let you know who your domain is registered with and inform you that you'll need to hop into your registrar's settings in order to change the nameservers over so you can manage your domain through CloudFlare. We recommend consulting with your domain registrar if you require any help changing your nameservers over to the ones that CloudFlare provides for you. It will indicate the current nameservers you have set up and what you'll need to change them to.
Once those have been set up, you should receive an email from CloudFlare (after it's had time to process your request) to let you know that your domain has been successfully added. Now you are able to manage your DNS through CloudFlare's service. You should see a screen like the following once it's been set up, instead of a pending screen if it's still waiting for the nameservers to be detected.
The last step in setting up your domain to properly point to your PageCloud address will involve setting up a redirect.
Click on the 'Page Rules' tab at the top and press 'Create Page Rule'
In the next screen, you will need to type in your custom domain followed by /* in the 'If the URL matches' field. It should look like the following:
Then, click on ' + Add a Setting' and select ' Forwarding URL from the drop down' .
Change the Status Code to '301 Redirect' and then enter the destination URL as follows: https://www.yourdomain.com/$1 , replacing yourdomain.com with your actual domain.
Now hit 'Save and Deploy'
Congratulations! Your custom domain name is now setup to be pointing to your new PageCloud site. These settings can often take about 2 hours to propagate, but in rare cases, can sometimes take up to 48 hours.
If you have not already added the custom domain within your PageCloud Dashboard, you can do so now.
In your PageCloud dashboard, click on the PageCloud site you want to connect to your custom domain to which will bring you into your Site Dashboard
Click on the 'Custom Domain' tab
Now enter the name of your custom domain within the 'I already have a domain' field and then click Connect
Congratulations! You have now told PageCloud to watch for incoming traffic for your domain and route it to your PageCloud site.
Part 2: Configuring your SSL Secure Connection
By default, CloudFlare typically sets your SSL up to 'Full' meaning there will be a secure connection between your visitor and CloudFlare, as well as CloudFlare and the webserver. If you'd like to change this though, you can hop into your Crypto tab to adjust it there.
With this setup, you will now notice that when visiting your domain via the HTTPS:// protocol, it will indicate that it is secured. If you would like though, you can force CloudFlare to automatically direct your visitors to the secure version of your site by adding a rule in the Page Rules tab. Simply hit Add new rule and put in your custom domain as per the example below with an asterisk (*) before and a forward slash and asterisk (*) after , then switch Always use HTTPS to ON and hit Add Rule
It will typically take a few minutes for this to kick in but then you should notice a fully functioning secure site anytime your visitors access it.
For more advanced settings within the paid CloudFlare accounts, we would encourage you to reach out to CloudFlare's support team for some assistance in getting those setup.
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