Cloudflare is a content delivery network (CDN) that can help increase your website’s loading speed by storing copies of your website on their servers distributed across the globe while also providing DDoS protection for your domain.
If you want to start using Cloudflare with your domain, follow the steps below:
It is recommended to have only one CDN enabled at a time - If you're currently using a different CDN, such as Hostinger CDN, make sure to disable it before activating Cloudflare 💡
Create an account on Cloudflare.com
Click on Add site and enter your domain name to add it to Cloudflare:
Select a plan: There is a free option available - it covers all basic needs for the majority of websites
Review the DNS records: Cloudflare will automatically import as much of your current configuration as possible and indicate if any issue is encountered. It will also provide you with the option to add more records at this point (you can also add them later). Make sure the A record for your root domain is added and pointing to your account’s IP. Proceed to the next step once you have confirmed all the required records are correct
A pair of custom nameservers will be generated for your domain. Copy the values and change the nameservers at your domain’s DNS Zone
After you specify new DNS records, propagation will start, which can take up to 24 hours to fully complete.
Once your DNS zone is created at Cloudflare, manually add any DNS records that were missed during the automatic import. Such records might include:
The A records for each of your subdomains pointing to your account’s IP
MX records for sending and receiving email
DKIM records for improved email deliverability
That's it! Now your domain is using Cloudflare CDN. Remember that from now on, you must add and edit any records manually at Cloudflare in case of changes or updates.