Connect a Subdomain with CNAME

A subdomain is the simplest way to put short links on your own name. It works with every DNS provider, needs no addresses to maintain, and the certificate is issued and renewed for you. If you want links on the bare domain instead, such as brand.com with no prefix, read Connect an Apex Domain by IP: a bare domain cannot use a CNAME record and takes a different path.

Choose the hostname first

Pick a short prefix on a domain you already own: go.brand.com, link.brand.com, l.brand.com. Two constraints are worth knowing before you type it in. The hostname must not already serve something else, because a CNAME cannot coexist with other records on the same name. And a hostname can belong to only one account across the whole platform, so a name released from another account becomes available again twenty-four hours after it is disabled.

Step 1. Add the domain in the dashboard

1. Open Domains and select Connect domain.
2. Enter the hostname, for example go.brand.com.
3. Choose the purpose: Short links.
4. Save. The status becomes Pending DNS and the panel shows three records.

Step 2. Create the three DNS records

TXT     _cf-custom-hostname.go.brand.com    the verification token from your dashboard
CNAME   go.brand.com                        cname.linkprofit.com
CNAME   _acme-challenge.go.brand.com        the delegation target from your dashboard

Each record has a job. The TXT record proves you control the name, so nobody else can claim it. The first CNAME sends visitor traffic to the platform edge. The second CNAME delegates certificate validation, which means every future renewal happens automatically and you never have to touch DNS for this hostname again. Copy the values from your own dashboard rather than from this page: the token and the delegation target are generated per hostname.

Step 3. Verify and wait for the certificate

Press Check in the panel after saving the records. A background check also runs every minute, so the domain activates on its own even if you close the tab. The status moves through four states:

• Pending DNS — we cannot see your records yet. Give the provider a few minutes and check again.
• Pending certificate — records found, the certificate is being issued. This normally completes within ten minutes.
• Active — the domain serves links. The panel shows the activation date and we send you an email.
• Error — the reason is shown in place, along with what to change. The troubleshooting section below covers the common causes.

Cloudflare

Cloudflare proxies traffic by default, and a proxied record breaks certificate validation. Turning the proxy off is the step people miss.

1. Sign in at dash.cloudflare.com and select the domain.
2. Open DNS, then Records, in the left sidebar.
3. Select Add record. Choose type CNAME, enter go in the Name field — Cloudflare appends the domain for you — and put cname.linkprofit.com in the Target field.
4. Click the orange cloud in the Proxy status column so that it turns grey and reads DNS only. This is required: with the proxy on, the certificate is never issued and links do not resolve.
5. Leave TTL on Auto and select Save.
6. Select Add record again, choose TXT, enter _cf-custom-hostname.go as the Name and paste the verification token as the Content, then save.
7. Add the third record as CNAME with the Name _acme-challenge.go and the delegation target from your dashboard, again with the proxy set to DNS only.

GoDaddy

1. Sign in and open My Products, or the Domain Portfolio if your account uses it.
2. Find the domain and select DNS, then Manage DNS.
3. Select Add New Record.
4. Choose type CNAME, enter go under Name, cname.linkprofit.com under Value, leave TTL at 1 hour, and select Save.
5. Add a second record with type TXT, Name _cf-custom-hostname.go, and the verification token as the Value.
6. Add a third record with type CNAME, Name _acme-challenge.go, and the delegation target as the Value.

GoDaddy does not support CNAME flattening, so if you later want links on the bare domain you will need the IP address method.

Namecheap

1. Sign in and open Domain List, then select Manage next to the domain.
2. Open the Advanced DNS tab. The domain must be using Namecheap BasicDNS or PremiumDNS; if it points at another provider's nameservers, make the records there instead.
3. Select Add New Record, choose CNAME Record, enter go under Host and cname.linkprofit.com under Value, leave TTL on Automatic.
4. Confirm the row with the green checkmark on the right. Rows are not saved until you do.
5. Add a TXT Record with Host _cf-custom-hostname.go and the token as the Value.
6. Add a second CNAME Record with Host _acme-challenge.go and the delegation target as the Value.
7. If a parking or URL redirect record already exists for the same host, delete it first.

Amazon Route 53

1. Sign in to the AWS console and open Route 53, then Hosted zones.
2. Select the hosted zone for your domain.
3. Select Create record.
4. Enter go in Record name, choose CNAME as the record type, put cname.linkprofit.com in Value, set TTL to 300, keep the routing policy as Simple routing, and select Create records.
5. Create a second record with the name _cf-custom-hostname.go, type TXT, and the token in Value wrapped in double quotes. Route 53 requires the quotes.
6. Create a third record with the name _acme-challenge.go, type CNAME, and the delegation target in Value.

Route 53 alias records only point at resources inside AWS, so they cannot be used here, and a bare domain on Route 53 needs the IP address method.

Troubleshooting

Stuck on Pending DNS. Most often the record name was entered twice, producing go.brand.com.brand.com. Most panels append the domain to whatever you type, so enter only the prefix. Changes can also take up to an hour to propagate on long TTLs.

Stuck on Pending certificate. Check that the record is not proxied — on Cloudflare the cloud icon must be grey. Then check for CAA records on the domain: if they exist and do not authorise our certificate authorities, issuance is refused silently. Either remove the CAA records or add entries for the authorities named in the dashboard.

Record rejected by the provider. A CNAME cannot share a name with any other record. If an A, AAAA or TXT record already exists for the same host, remove it first.

The hostname is already taken. Each hostname belongs to one account platform-wide. If you previously connected it elsewhere, disable it there and try again after twenty-four hours.

Links resolve but the old site is showing. Your browser or an intermediate resolver is still holding the previous answer. Test with a fresh private window, or query the record directly, before assuming the connection failed.