Point a subdomain to a website, a VPS or a bot

To point a subdomain to a website or a server, create a DNS record in the subdomain's zone: an A record to a VPS's IPv4 address, or a CNAME to the address given by a website host such as GitHub Pages, Netlify or Vercel. With a free aclclouds.online subdomain, you create these records from the DNS dashboard, without buying a domain name.

• A subdomain is an address, not hosting: it points to an existing service.
• To a VPS: an A record to its IPv4, and AAAA for IPv6.
• To GitHub Pages, Netlify or Vercel: a CNAME, never on the root of the subdomain.
• The ACLClouds subdomain is free, with no credit card and 50 records.

What a subdomain is

A subdomain is a name placed in front of an existing domain: in myproject.aclclouds.online, myproject is the subdomain. It is an address, not hosting space: you do not upload files to it. It points to a machine or a service that already hosts your website, your API or your server.

• The subdomain provides the name; the website, VPS or bot provides the content.
• You can create more names under it, such as api.myproject.aclclouds.online.
• For what each record type does, read the DNS records guide.

To a VPS: A record

Find the VPS's public IPv4 address in the panel, then create an A record on the name you want with that address. Add an AAAA record if the VPS has an IPv6 address. On the VPS, then configure the web server (Nginx, Caddy or Apache) to answer for that name, and request an HTTPS certificate, for example with Let's Encrypt.

• A: the name to an IPv4 address. AAAA: the name to an IPv6 address.
• Open ports 80 and 443 in the VPS firewall.
• The server-side settings are covered in the guide to configuring DNS for a VPS.

To a website: CNAME record

For a site published on GitHub Pages, Netlify, Vercel or Cloudflare Pages, first add the custom name in that host's settings, then create a CNAME to the address it gives you. A CNAME cannot coexist with another record on the same name, and it is not allowed on the root of the subdomain: put it on a name such as www.myproject.aclclouds.online.

• The website host usually issues the HTTPS certificate once the name is verified.
• Some hosts ask for a TXT verification record: add it exactly as given.
• On the root, use an A record if the host provides an IP address.

To a bot or a game

A Discord bot does not need a name to connect to Discord. A name becomes useful when the bot serves a dashboard, an API or a webhook: assign it a public port in the Startup tab, then create an A record to the IP address shown. You still have to include the port in the URL, because an A record does not carry a port.

• The bot listens on the PORT variable, at address 0.0.0.0.
• For a Minecraft server, an SRV record saves players from typing the port: follow the A and SRV guide for Minecraft.

Check propagation

A change usually shows up within a few minutes. Test with dig myproject.aclclouds.online A or nslookup, then open the address in the browser. If the name returns the right IP but the site does not load, the problem is on the server: a closed port, a web server not configured for that name or a missing certificate.

• A short TTL (300 seconds) speeds up fixes while you test.
• The accepted TTL ranges from 60 seconds to 1 day.
• A CNAME and another record on the same name are rejected.

Why choose ACLClouds for this name

The ACLClouds free subdomain is reserved without a credit card, with a verified email. It supports 7 record types (A, AAAA, CNAME, TXT, MX, SRV and CAA), up to 50 per subdomain, with presets for a VPS or a Minecraft server. The name stays yours as long as your account exists, with no inactivity rule.

• Personal and commercial use allowed.
• One free subdomain per account, and packs of 10 or 50 extra names if needed.
• Subdomains included with your ACLClouds servers do not count toward this quota.