Custom domain at RU-CENTER

A guide for those whose domain records (DNS) are managed at RU-CENTER. The general order of connecting is in Custom domain; here is only what differs in the RU-CENTER panel. Always take the records and their values from the connection wizard: it shows exactly what your address needs, with copy buttons.

Where to edit records at RU-CENTER#

How to tell your domain’s DNS is at RU-CENTER: on the first step the wizard names the provider by the domain’s DNS servers (NS). At RU-CENTER they look like ns3-l2.nic.ru, ns4-cloud.nic.ru. If the wizard named another provider, add the records there — even if you bought the domain at RU-CENTER.

Sign in to your RU-CENTER account.
Go to: Account → Services (Услуги) → DNS hosting (DNS-хостинг) → your domain → “Resource records” (Ресурсные записи).
A new record is created with the «Добавить новую запись» (Add new record) button.
Changes are saved with the «Выгрузить зону» (Upload zone) button.

In the record name (usually “Name” or “Host”) field you usually type only the left part (www). The panel’s documentation does not say for sure — so look at the record after saving: if it turned into www.example.com.example.com, delete it and enter the full name with a dot at the end (www.example.com.).

The root of the domain (example.com itself, without a subdomain) is written as @, an empty field or the full name depending on the panel — check the hint next to the field.

Copy the value with the button in the wizard, exactly as shown. If after saving the panel appended your domain to it (….example.com), add a dot at the end of the value.

Ownership record#

The ownership record proves that the address is being connected by its owner — without it the domain is not reserved for your account. Often there is no separate record: for a subdomain the CNAME record itself (its value starts with the request code) or the certificate record can be the proof — the wizard shows which way applies to you. When it shows a separate ownership record, it is a TXT:

_cenaly-verify.www   TXT   cenaly-verify=<code from the wizard>

Create a record of type TXT.
Name — as in the wizard (_cenaly-verify + your subdomain); the naming rule is above.
Paste the value without quotes — the editor adds them.
Press “Upload zone” — the record does not work before that.

Once the domain works, the ownership TXT can be deleted: it is only checked before activation. More — Custom domain → ownership record.

Delete old A, AAAA records and forwarding (if any) on this same name — a CNAME cannot live with other records on the same name. Do not touch records of other names (root, mail, MX).
Create a record of type CNAME.
Name: the left part of the address, for example www (the rule is in the section above).
Value: the address from the wizard, via the “Copy” button.
TTL — the default or 300–3600 seconds.
Press “Upload zone”.

Right after saving go back to the wizard — it checks the record at the provider’s DNS servers itself and tells you if the name got an extra domain or the value points elsewhere.

Root domain without www#

RU-CENTER’s documentation does not say clearly whether it supports an ALIAS/ANAME record for the root of the domain. If the list of record types has ALIAS or ANAME, connect the root with it; if not, make www the main address and set up forwarding of the root, see Root domain and www. The wizard suggests the option on the first step.

Forwarding the root to www is available at RU-CENTER.

Certificate record#

The secure connection (HTTPS) turns on by itself: the certificate is issued and renewed for free. For this the wizard sometimes asks for one more record — the certificate authority needs it:

_acme-challenge.www of type CNAME — to an address like ….cm.yandexcloud.net (Russian side);
_cf-challenge of type TXT — for the root of the domain (international side).

They are created like the other records: name by the rule above, value via the button in the wizard. If the name _acme-challenge already has records of a previous service (another hosting with a Let’s Encrypt certificate), delete them — otherwise the certificate is not issued. Do not delete these records after connecting: the certificate is renewed through them.

How long to wait#

RU-CENTER’s documentation does not say how fast it publishes changes — usually minutes. The wizard checks the record right at the provider’s DNS servers, so it tells “the record is still spreading” from “the record is wrong” and in the first case shows an approximate waiting time. You can close the window — the connection continues on its own, and we will write when the site works.

If you changed an existing record, the old value may stay in caches for as long as its TTL was (often 1 hour, sometimes a day). This is not an error — the wizard shows “all correct, waiting”.

If a site already opens at the address#

If another site works at this address now, after changing the record visitors will start getting the new one. Before replacing the record at RU-CENTER, prepare the move: If the domain already has a site. Do not want to touch the old site — connect a separate subdomain, for example menu.example.com or shop.example.com.

Email on the domain#

The domain’s email lives in MX, TXT (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) records and sometimes in a separate mail subdomain. Connecting the site does not touch them — do not delete or change them at RU-CENTER. Only delete records on the name you are connecting, and only if the wizard pointed at them. More — Custom domain and email.

If the wizard shows an error#

Every wizard message leads to its own section of the errors page. The most common ones at RU-CENTER:

RECORD_NAME_DOUBLED — the name was saved with the domain twice
CNAME_CONFLICT_A — an old A record is left on the same name
TRAFFIC_TARGET_MISMATCH — the record points elsewhere
PROPAGATING — all correct, the record is still spreading

How to disconnect and what to delete#

Disconnect the domain in the wizard (“Disconnect domain”), then delete at RU-CENTER the records it lists: the site record (CNAME or ALIAS) and, if any, the ownership and certificate records. Leave email and other records alone. While the site record points to us, the address stays reserved for your account — this protects it from being taken over by another account. The wizard checks the removal with the “Check removal” button. More — Disconnecting a custom domain.

RU-CENTER specifics#

Changes take effect only after the “Upload zone” (Выгрузить зону) button — without it the records stay a draft.
The editor works in zone-file terms: in the help examples full names are written with a dot at the end (archive.domaintest.ru.).
Records can be edited only with the “DNS hosting” / “DNS premium” service; without it a domain on RU-CENTER NS cannot be edited.
TXT is entered without quotes — the editor adds them; strings longer than 255 characters must be split.
Forwarding the root is a separate “Domain redirect” service (301/302).

Sources#

This guide is based on RU-CENTER’s documentation, checked 2026-11-06. Panels change — if a button or field is labelled differently for you, follow the meaning of the step, and the wizard will tell you if the record came out wrong.