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Use Cloudflare with DNSimple

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To use Cloudflare for a domain registered at DNSimple, add the domain to Cloudflare, then change its name servers in DNSimple to the two Cloudflare assigns. Cloudflare then answers DNS for the domain, and DNSimple stays the registrar. If the domain uses DNSSEC, disable it and wait for the disable to finish before you change the name servers.

Before starting

  • Copy your DNS records to Cloudflare. When you add the domain, Cloudflare scans for existing records. Compare them with the Record Editor in DNSimple, and add anything Cloudflare missed, such as email records, before you switch.
  • Disable DNSSEC. If DNSSEC is on for the domain at DNSimple, disable it first, and wait until the tab shows DNSSEC is disabled. This usually takes 24 to 48 hours. Resolvers can keep the old DS record cached until its TTL expires, and changing name servers before then can make the domain unreachable. You can turn on DNSSEC at Cloudflare after the switch, as in Use Cloudflare DNSSEC with DNSimple.

Change the name servers to Cloudflare

To point the domain to Cloudflare
  1. In Cloudflare, add the domain, and copy the two name servers Cloudflare assigns to it.
  2. In DNSimple, change the name servers for the domain to those two name servers. Copy them exactly.
  3. Wait for Cloudflare to show the domain as active. This can take up to 24 hours.

If the domain is registered somewhere else, change the name servers at that registrar instead.

After the switch, DNSimple no longer answers DNS for the domain, so changes in the DNSimple Record Editor have no effect. Manage records in Cloudflare.

Keep DNS at DNSimple and use Cloudflare for some host names

Cloudflare can also proxy individual host names while DNSimple keeps answering DNS for the domain. Cloudflare calls this a CNAME (partial) setup, and it requires a Cloudflare Business or Enterprise plan. Leave the name servers pointed at DNSimple, and add the records Cloudflare shows in the DNSimple Record Editor:

  • The verification TXT record. Keep it for as long as you use the partial setup.
  • A CNAME record for each host name Cloudflare proxies, pointing to the cdn.cloudflare.net target Cloudflare shows for it. Delete any existing A, AAAA, or CNAME records for that host name first.

See Cloudflare’s zone setup options.

Remove the Cloudflare one-click service

DNSimple retired the Cloudflare one-click service in December 2021, and it is no longer offered. If the service is still applied to a domain, you can remove it.

Warning

Removing the service also removes the records it created. Add any records you still need in the Record Editor before you remove it.

To remove the Cloudflare service
  1. From the list, click the domain.
  2. Click the tab on the left side.
  3. In the card, click .
  4. Under , click the menu at the end of the Cloudflare row, then select .

Have more questions?

If you have additional questions or need any assistance using Cloudflare with DNSimple, contact support, and we will be happy to help. You can also read more about DNSimple integrations.