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Update DNS records to keep your website with your current hosting provider

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When you add your domain to Microsoft Office 365 for professionals and small businesses, you can keep your current public-facing website that uses your domain with an outside website hosting provider instead of hosting your website with Office 365. For example, suppose that you want to use Office 365 for your email and communications, but you want to continue to host your website with your current hosting provider.

To route customers to your website after you’ve added and verified your domain in Office 365, create a DNS record in Office 365 called an A record that points to the IP address for your website, for example, 10.0.0.1.

Don’t know your IP address? Contact your current hosting provider and explain that you need your IP address to create an A record to route customers to your website. You may need to make other changes to your account to help make sure that customers can access your website correctly. Contact your current hosting provider, explain what you’re doing, and follow their guidance.

For more information about adding and using your domain with Office 365 when you want to keep your website with your current hosting provider, see Move your email to Office 365 and keep your current public-facing website.

To route traffic to your website after you add your domain to Office 365, do the following.

  1. On the Admin page, in the left pane, under Management, click Domains, and then select the domain that you’d like to edit.

  2. Click Manage DNS, click New, and then choose A (Address).

  3. On the Add a DNS record page, type the following:

    • For Host name or Alias, type @

    • For IP Address, type the IP address where your website is currently hosted, for example: 172.16.140.1

  4. Click Save.

  5. You can also create a CNAME record to help customers find your website. On the DNS manager tab, click New, and then choose CNAME (Alias).

    Note

    Creating a CNAME record is optional, but we recommend it. The CNAME record helps make sure that customers can find your website whether or not they include www with your domain name.

  6. On the Add a DNS record page, type the following:

    • For Host name or Alias, type www

    • For Points to address, type the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) for your website. For example: contoso.com

  7. Click Save.

  8. Update your domain name server records to point to Office 365. When your domain name server records have been updated to point to Office 365, the configuration of your domain is complete. Email will be routed to Office 365, but traffic to your website address will continue to go to your current hosting provider. For more information, see Verify your domain and change name servers.

See Also

Verify your domain and change name servers
Move your email to Office 365 and keep your current public-facing website
Locate your domain services or buy a new domain