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Domain Setup Guide - GrabWP Tenancy

Overview

After creating a website in WordPress admin, you need to:

  1. Configure your hosting to serve the domain
  2. Set up DNS to point the domain to your server

Domain Requirements

Your domain must:

  • Be a valid domain name (like example.com or sub.example.com)
  • Not be an IP address
  • Not be localhost or a test domain
  • Not be longer than 253 characters
  • Have at least two parts (domain.com)
  • Use only letters, numbers, and hyphens
  • Not start or end with a hyphen

Hosting Setup

Basic Steps

  1. Log into your hosting control panel
  2. Add your domain
  3. Point it to your main WordPress directory
  4. Save the configuration

Common Hosting Options

For Subdomains (like site1.yourdomain.com)

  1. Find "Parked Domains" or "Domain Aliases"
  2. Add your subdomain
  3. Point to main WordPress directory

For Custom Domains (like newsite.com)

  1. Find "Addon Domains" section
  2. Add your domain
  3. Set document root to main WordPress directory
  4. Don't create new directories

Common Control Panels

cPanel

  1. Go to Domains section
  2. Choose "Parked Domains" for subdomains
  3. Choose "Addon Domains" for custom domains
  4. Point to public_html/your-wordpress

Plesk

  1. Go to Websites & Domains
  2. Click Add Domain
  3. Set document root to WordPress folder

DirectAdmin

  1. Go to Domain Management
  2. Add New Domain
  3. Set path to WordPress directory

DNS Setup

For Subdomains

  1. Access DNS Management

    • Log into domain registrar
    • Or use hosting DNS manager
    • Or use DNS provider (like Cloudflare)

  2. Add A Record

    • Name: your subdomain (like 'site1')
    • Type: A
    • Value: Your server's IP
    • TTL: 300 or default

For Custom Domains

  1. Get Nameservers

    • From hosting welcome email
    • Or hosting control panel
    • Or contact support

  2. Update Nameservers

    • Log into domain registrar
    • Find nameserver settings
    • Enter hosting nameservers
    • Save changes

DNS Propagation

  • Changes can take 5-30 minutes
  • Sometimes up to 24 hours
  • Use online DNS checkers to verify

Testing Your Setup

  1. Check DNS

    • Use online DNS checker
    • Or command: nslookup yourdomain.com
    • Should show your server IP

  2. Check Website

    • Visit your domain
    • Should see WordPress
    • Not your hosting page
    • Not an error page

  3. Test WordPress

    • Try logging in
    • Upload a test image
    • Create a test post

Common Issues

Website Not Loading

  • Check DNS settings
  • Verify hosting setup
  • Wait for DNS changes
  • Check domain spelling

Shows Wrong Website

  • Check document root setting
  • Clear browser cache
  • Try incognito mode
  • Verify domain in hosting

Getting Errors

  • Verify wp-config.php setup
  • Check hosting configuration
  • Verify domain settings
  • Contact hosting support

Need Help?

If you're stuck:

  1. Check error messages
  2. Contact hosting support
  3. Verify all settings
  4. Try DNS checker tools