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# Full DNS vs CNAME — which should I pick?

When you connect a domain to WebEgg, you choose how it’s connected. Two options, both work, one is noticeably faster. Here’s the short version: **pick Full DNS unless your registrar won’t let you change nameservers.**

## The short answer

| Question | Full DNS | Just CNAME |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Setup time | ~5 min | ~1 min |
| SSL certificate | Instant, auto-renewed | Same, sometimes slower to provision (~5–30 min) |
| Image loading speed | ~30% faster (WebP/AVIF at the edge) | Fast (we still compress on upload) |
| DDoS protection | Included | Included (via Cloudflare Pages edge) |
| Works with Wix-locked domains | No | Yes |
| Reversible | Yes — switch nameservers back anytime | Yes — delete the CNAME anytime |

If you don’t recognize what nameservers are or you’re worried about touching them, the safe answer is **Just CNAME** — your site will be fast either way.

## What’s actually different under the hood

**CNAME mode** keeps your domain’s DNS at your existing registrar (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Wix, etc.). You add one record there that says “send `www.yourdomain.com` traffic to WebEgg.” That’s it. Your registrar still manages everything else — email records, any other subdomains, your DNSSEC settings if you have them.

**Full DNS mode** moves your domain’s entire DNS to Cloudflare (managed by us). The registrar still owns your domain — you keep paying them for renewals — but they no longer answer DNS questions about it. Cloudflare does. That handoff is what unlocks the optimizations.

## Will my email break?

No. This is the most-asked question and the answer is “no, we handle it specifically.”

Here’s what happens during a Full DNS upgrade, step by step:

1. Before you change anything, we scan your **current** DNS to find every email-related record — `MX`, `SPF`, `DKIM`, `DMARC`, plus any subdomains like `mail.yourdomain.com` or `smtp.yourdomain.com`.

1. We copy each one into our Cloudflare account, exactly as you had them.

1. *Then* you change your nameservers at your registrar.

1. When DNS propagates (5–30 min), the new nameservers start answering — with the same email records you had before.

From Gmail’s / Outlook’s / your customers’ perspective, nothing changes. Email keeps flowing to the same provider. We never touch your inbox — we just move where your *routing instructions* are stored.

**If you don’t use email on this domain at all** (you only use Gmail at `yourname@gmail.com` for example), there’s nothing to migrate. The pre-scan will show no MX records and we skip that step.

## What if I have a custom email setup like Mailchimp or SendGrid?

Same answer — the pre-scan picks up **SPF** records (which list services allowed to send email as you), and the DKIM TXT records that those services give you to authenticate outgoing mail. We auto-detect the standard selectors for these providers:

- Google Workspace — `google._domainkey`

- Microsoft 365 / Outlook — `selector1._domainkey`, `selector2._domainkey`

- Mailchimp — `k1._domainkey`

- Resend — `resend._domainkey`

- Mailgun, SendGrid, Amazon SES, Zoho, Fastmail — their standard selectors

If your provider uses an unusual selector, the upgrade flow will **warn** you that we couldn’t auto-detect DKIM. You can either copy the record manually into the new zone, or just use CNAME mode instead.

## How do I actually pick?

When you click **Connect a custom domain** on your dashboard, you’ll see two cards side by side. Click the one you want. The Full DNS card kicks off the pre-scan + zone creation; the CNAME card just shows you the record to add at your registrar. You can also switch later — existing customers see an “Advanced settings” link on each domain row in the dashboard with an “Upgrade to Full DNS” button.

## What if I change my mind?

To go from **Full DNS → CNAME**: change your nameservers back to your registrar’s defaults (they usually have a “Use registrar nameservers” button), then add the CNAME record we give you on the dashboard. Takes ~10 minutes total.

To go from **CNAME → Full DNS**: use the “Advanced settings” link on your domain row in the dashboard. We’ll guide you the same way as a new setup. Your CNAME stays active the entire time, so there’s no downtime — the nameserver change just happens in parallel.

## Per-registrar setup walkthroughs

The dashboard’s Full DNS flow includes step-by-step instructions for the 8 most common registrars (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Squarespace, Hostinger, Wix, Cloudflare, name.com, Other). You’ll see them automatically after you click *Set up Full DNS*.

## Still stuck?

Email [support@webegg.ai](mailto:support@webegg.ai) with your domain name and a screenshot of your registrar’s DNS panel. We’ll respond same day.

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