If you’ve had your email hosting for your company set up for a long time or you’re right in the middle of a change, in that case it’s normal to not know for sure what company is hosting your email at the moment or if your domain name is configured correctly for the host it should be on.
Especially if you never use web-mail and you do all your email from your own favorite apps or email program, how would know for sure. In this help article we’re going to show you how to look at some different parts of your domain name DNS Record. Getting a fresh look at the TXT and CNAME and MX parts of your domain’s DNS Record can really help. These details tell a lot about how your email hosting runs and if it’s set up the way your host expects.
Here at SaneBox we’d hate to have you bogged down with any tedious issues like these! And our support stays on top of any and all know-how for everything email related. So we’d be happy to help out. Even if you haven’t tried SaneBox yet or aren’t ready to right now, we’d still be happy to help any way we can.
So how can I look to see if DNS Records for my domain are set right for 365?
That’s not too hard! If you need extra help, our SaneBox chat and email based support team would be happy to see what we can do. Please give our team a chance to tell you about what our many SaneBox features can do for you, or even feel free to just ask any questions you have about your plans to change your email host.
Visit our SaneBoox Help Center today!
- Here’s how to look at a domain name’s DNS record (for the MX and other parts) on a domain at GoDaddy. You can look without making any changes: https://www.godaddy.com/help/checking-and-managing-my-mx-records-7590
- Now take a screen-shot to show us: Here’s how to take a screen-shot of the MX Reocrd and TXT Record and CNAME record parts of your domain name’s DNS Record, so you can show it to your helpers: https://www.sanebox.com/help/117-how-to-capture-a-screen-shot-to-send-to-our-support-team
NOTES: Some companys decide to have an extra pre-filter for “Email Security” to help prevent Phishing and Malware threats and other risks. In this case a company like ProofPoint or AppRiver or Mimecast may show on your DNS Record instead of the details for your email host. (The settings for your email hosting company would be put in the dashboard for the Email Security account instead of your domain’s DNS Record.) Anyhow, whatever you do see our support team would be happy to help you decipher it!
Here’s what a typical DNS Record set for Microsoft 365 email looks like:
Now what’s the easiest way to change my @whatever.com domain’s settings for email hositng to Microsoft 365?
If you use GoDAddy or 1&1 as the registrar where you purchased your domain name, then Microsoft has an automatic configuration process where Microsoft systems (called “Domain Connect”) do the DNS Record re-configuration for you when you’re switching from your old host to email from Microsoft 365 (or if you’re setting up a new @whatever.com on 365.)
That way you know from the start that the DNS Records are correct for your domain, as you change from your old host and decide to move to Microsoft 365.
- Here’s a direct link to Microsoft 365’s Domain Connect tools:
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/get-help-with-domains/domain-connect?view=o365-worldwide
Helpful Notes
- When any DNS record changes start to take effect, the Internet and all mail servers all over the world begin to send the new email traffic to the new host and not the old email host you’re changing away from. The old email hosting accounts are still there with the old host until you cancel that service, and each end-user’s email account still holds all the email history and folder contents up until the DNS Record change-over. But no new email will go in or out from the old hosting accounts once your new DNS Record finishes proliferating around all the DNS servers around the world (in anywhere from 3 hours to 1 to 2 days as a rule.)
- Since there may be a period where there are 2 live email accounts for the same exact email address (for each user at the two different email hosting accounts), the end-users can get easily confused about whcih email host their email app is talking to at the moment. The transition to using the new host can be frustrating. So some email hosting account administrators like to change the password for the old email user account for each staffer at the old host, to help each user understand if they are looking at the old inactive email account with their old emails or if their email app is talking to the same email address but at the new host.
- Then of course, one of the standard email host migration steps is to copy all the old email to the new email account on the same email adress for each user’s account at the new host - during the night and usually right before you change-over the DNS.
- Yes! Usually all that is best done over the weekend, (starting late Friday night), and completed in the middle of the night or during the lowest email traffic periods. (Please consult with your host’s help desk or your I.T. consultant or your new host for any needed help with logistics and planning and a ToDo check-list for doing your email hosting “migration”.)
EXTRA TIPS
- For small businesses, we’d usually suggest using DNS Record settings at your existing domain registrar to set up for your Microsoft 365 email hosting. Purchasing the domain directly from Microsoft 365 (when you’re purchasing Microsoft 365 subscriptions direct from Microsoft) can create some extra complications. So it’s important to do what’s best to have the most options to make your web site setup options as flexible as possible. Not giving Microsoft systems the responsibility of being the “Authoritative” DNS servers for your Domain Name of @whatever.com (just because they do the email part of things) may be your best choice in almost every case.
- The choice to have Microsoft “Domain Connect” auto-configure your existing DNS Record where you purchased and keep your domain name registered is a good way to set up correctly for Microsoft 365 email hosting, while leaving your domain name DNS Reocrd to be served by your registrar’s DNS Servers where they’ll also keep your web site DNS running correctly too…
- So yes, you can keep the domain name’s DNS Servers run by your domain registrar like GoDaddy and just let Microsoft auto-configure the MX (Mail Exchanger) and other key email related parts of your DNS Record right there where they can stay in your GoDaddy account.
- As your business grows you may want to use a DNS Services specialist for your domain name. You could then keep it registered still at GoDaddy, but for better site responsiveness and security you could choose to have a DNS specialist like CloudFlare OR OpenDNS or even Quad9 to do that DNS Services part of your email and web site infrastructure for your firm. This sort of choice is a huge upgrade that can be great for your company and customers…
Resource Links
Now if you’re just now planning the steps for your email hosting change or migration to Microsoft 365 and you haven’t gotten started yet, here’s additional info on that auto-configuration option for either GoDaddy or 1&1 hosts and several other popular email hosts too. This help page also covers how to do manual DNS Record entry changes: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/setup/add-domain?view=o365-worldwide
A more general Microsoft help page: Be careful with the sometimes less versatile option of letting Microsoft take over as being the DNS Servers for your domain name. You don’t have to do that: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/get-help-with-domains/change-nameservers-at-any-domain-registrar?view=o365-worldwide
And here’s an example of trouble for some if they buy their domain name direct from Microsoft 365 for email setup and then later try to go on and set up their web site: (Office 365 is now called Microsoft 365): https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/t5/office-365/office-365-and-godaddy-hosting/m-p/133442
BlueHost’s help on DNS Record management steps related to setting up for your email host: https://my.bluehost.com/hosting/help/dns-management-add-edit-or-delete-dns-entries
DNS Records: definitions of the different type of entires you can make in a DNS Record: Learn what an “CNAME” or “TXT” or “MX” is: https://my.bluehost.com/hosting/help/508
More details on GoDaddy DNS Record configuration for 365: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/dns/create-dns-records-at-godaddy?view=o365-worldwide