Use this article to diagnose and fix the most common Website Studio custom domain errors — 404 pages, SSL warnings, and DNS failures — and to know when an issue clears on its own versus when to contact support. The most overlooked fix is disabling a DNS proxy that blocks CNAME validation.
⏳ When to Wait vs. When to Contact Support
After you connect a custom domain to your Website Studio site, you may see errors such as 404 Page Not Found, Your connection is not private, This site can't be reached, or DNS not resolving. In most cases the setup did not fail — DNS changes or SSL certificates are still processing.
Wait in these situations:
- Wait up to 48 hours while DNS is propagating or an SSL certificate is being issued — these delays are usually temporary.
- If you see no progress at all (no status change, no error message) after 24 hours, contact support instead of continuing to wait.
Contact support immediately if any of these apply:
- Your domain is stuck on Pending verification with no error message and no progress for more than 48 hours. This is a known issue where the verification system may fail silently without displaying an error in the UI. Contact support with your domain name — the backend must be checked manually.
- You see a Domain already registered error.
- Your domain does not appear in your account after purchase.
- A previously working site suddenly shows a Your connection is not private warning. This indicates an expired SSL certificate. The auto-renewal system has a known issue where certificates are not always reissued automatically before they expire, so the secure connection breaks. As a workaround, contact support with your domain name so the certificate can be renewed manually — do not wait for it to self-resolve.
🌐 How a Website Studio Domain Connection Works
Understanding the connection chain helps you spot which step is failing. When someone visits your domain, this happens in order:
- The visitor enters your domain.
- Your DNS provider resolves the domain.
- The CNAME record points to Website Studio hosting.
- The DNS Validation & Publishing Status moves through Pending → Validating → Connected.
- Website Studio serves your site.
- The SSL certificate secures the connection.
If any step is incomplete or misconfigured, your site shows an error. The status indicator tells you where the chain stopped.
🧩 Cause 1 — DNS Has Not Fully Propagated
The most common reason for domain errors is DNS propagation delay. After you add your CNAME record, the update must spread across global DNS servers. Expect:
- At least 2 hours in most cases.
- Up to 24–48 hours on slower networks.
During this window, different visitors may see different results — the old site, a DNS error, or a 404 — while others already see the new site. This is expected and usually clears on its own.
One important exception: if you have already waited a full day or more and still see errors, the problem is more likely a DNS proxy conflict (see Cause 2) than propagation. A proxy will not clear with time, so move to the next section instead of waiting longer.
📊 What Each DNS Validation & Publishing Status Means
Inside Website Studio, your domain displays one of these statuses. The legacy red DNS Failed label is no longer shown during normal propagation.
- Pending — DNS records have been submitted and are waiting to propagate. Expected during the first 2+ hours.
- Propagating / Validating — the system is actively checking your DNS records.
- Connected — your domain is verified and live.
🔌 Cause 2 — Your DNS Proxy Is Enabled
If your CNAME record is correct but the domain still fails to connect after a day or more, a DNS proxy is the likely cause. Some DNS providers (for example, Cloudflare) route your record through their own proxy by default — often shown as a proxied toggle or an orange cloud icon. A proxied record hides your real CNAME target, so Website Studio cannot validate it and the connection stays stuck.
To fix it:
- Open your DNS provider's DNS management panel (for example, Cloudflare, Route 53, or GoDaddy) and find the CNAME record for your Website Studio domain.
- Look for a DNS proxy, orange cloud, or CDN toggle on that record. This setting routes traffic through the provider's network and hides your real CNAME target.
- Switch the proxied setting off so the record is set to DNS only (unproxied), then wait about 5 minutes for the change to propagate. If you cannot locate this setting, contact your DNS provider's support.
- Save the record.
- Return to Website Studio and reverify DNS for the domain.
- If errors remain from earlier attempts, clear your browser cache (or open the site in a private window) and reload.
Once the proxy is off and DNS is reverified, the status moves to Connected and your site loads normally.
🔤 www Subdomains: Use a CNAME, Not an A Record
For www subdomains, add a CNAME record (not an A record) to your DNS provider, and delete any existing A record for www. If you see SSL errors only on www, confirm your DNS provider has not reverted the record to A record format.
🎯 You now know how to tell a temporary delay from a real misconfiguration: wait for propagation and SSL within 48 hours, disable a DNS proxy if your CNAME won't validate, and contact support with your domain name for silent pending states or expired SSL certificates.