There are multiple reasons for a domain name not working and the cause will depend on the error message you are seeing on your browser when trying to access your website.
Most domain name errors, especially for new domain registrations are caused by nameserver and DNS problems which should be very easy to resolve.
Below we will show you the most common reasons for a domain name not working for new and existing domains.
New domain registrations:
- The domain name may not yet be fully active. Although most domain registrations are completed and active within minutes, it all depends on how long this takes for the registry to register the domain. Check that your domain name is currently active and fully registered.
- Incorrect nameservers. Most registrars will use parked nameservers when a domain name is registered. You will need to change these to point the domain to your hosting account.
- The domain name may not have fully propagated throughout the internet. Even when you change your nameservers to point to your hosting server, this is not instant and takes some time to propagate throughout the internet and around the world. This process is usually quite quick, however, it can take 24-48 hours on very rate occasions.
For existing domain names:
- Incorrect nameservers. As above, in order for your domain name to work with your hosting account, it needs to be pointed to the server. Double-check the nameservers are correct.
- Again, as shown above, it may be down to the domain name not yet being fully propagated. You can use a free tool such as DNSChecker.org to get the status of your propagation.
- Website configuration issues. When transferring a website from one host to another this can cause issues meaning the website will not load properly or at all. Sometimes you may even see things such as 500 Internal Server errors or database errors. This is quite common and can usually be solved by renaming the .htaccess file in the cPanel File Manager or double-checking the database details associated with the website files and cPanel.
For propagation issues, please note there is nothing we can do to speed things up as we have no control over this.
by Hostziza support team
