The DNS Wizard is the place in the Texo client area to check a domain's public DNS, add the records a provider asked for, move mail, point the website, or switch nameservers. It writes the Texo zone only — it does not change Cloudflare or another host's DNS.
Email and the website are independent. A domain can keep mail on Google or Zoho and the website on Squarespace or Shopify. Changing one does not move the other.
Open the wizard
- Log in to the Texo client area
- Go to Domains (My Domains)
- Click DNS Wizard next to the domain
You can also open Tools, then DNS Wizard, then pick the domain at the top.
You can prepare records here as soon as the domain has a zone on Texo (a DNS file on our servers). Those records only go live on the internet after the domain uses ns1.texo.co.za and ns2.texo.co.za — after a transfer, or when you switch nameservers. Live email and the live website stay as they are until then. If nameservers still point somewhere else, finish the zone first, then switch nameservers when you are ready.
What you see first
The top of the page is a health check of public DNS — what the internet sees right now:
- Nameservers — who answers for the domain, and whether that is Texo
- MX — where mailboxes live (Texo, Microsoft 365, Google, Zoho, Proton, Fastmail, Mimecast, iCloud, Titan, Cloudflare Email, or other)
- SPF & DMARC — whether those two mail-trust records exist and look healthy
If SPF or DMARC is missing and the zone is on Texo, use Click to Fix. That writes a safe baseline (a simple allow-list for Texo mail, and a DMARC policy of none). It does not invent provider tokens and it does not move your mail.
A Zoho SPF record that already includes zoho.eu, zoho.com, zohomail.eu, or zohomail.com (or another Zoho regional include) is healthy. The wizard does not ask you to replace include:zoho.eu with include:zohomail.com.
The domain picker sits on the left of the tab bar. The wizard has four tabs. The tabs switch straight away. Each tab’s content loads on its own, with three bouncing balls while it arrives. Status shows nameservers, MX, and SPF & DMARC. Actions is where you pick what to do. Cloudflare is where you activate Cloudflare. Once the domain is on Texo’s Cloudflare account, that tab also turns on development mode, bot fight mode, and the other zone tools. DNS Editor lists the zone from Cloudflare when the domain is already on Texo’s Cloudflare account. If the domain is not using Texo’s nameservers, DNS cannot be edited. Otherwise it lists the Texo zone. You can add ordinary A, AAAA, CNAME, TXT, and MX records in the Add DNS record card under the list. You can leave Host empty for the domain itself. Click a value to change it, or delete a record. The list is grouped as A, then MX, then CNAME, then TXT, then any other records. A long value, such as DKIM, opens in a wide box so the whole record is visible. The address for the domain itself, and www, cannot be deleted. An MX record shows its priority on that same line. Only the address is the link, so the word Value stays plain text. Certificate checks, calendar discovery, webdisk, whm, cpcalendars, and cpcontacts are not listed. The zone header is left as it is. Activate Cloudflare is one click, free, and we’ll take care of it all for you. If the domain is already on Texo’s nameservers, it imports that zone. If DNS is hosted elsewhere, a confirmation names those nameservers, then the live records there are imported into Cloudflare. The old copy stored at Texo is not used.
On the Actions tab, pick a task:
Verify domain ownership
Use this when Google, Bing, Microsoft 365, or another site asks you to add a DNS record to prove you own the domain. Mailboxes stay where they are. To let a bulk sender (Postmark, Mailchimp, …) send as you, use Authorise a sending service instead. To move mailboxes, use Point email.
Open I need to verify my domain at…
- Verify domain ownership — one code so Google, Bing, Microsoft 365, Meta, Apple, Zoho, Stripe, Pinterest, Atlassian, Yandex, Proton, LinkedIn, Shopify, or Other know you own the domain
Ownership
Paste exactly what the provider showed you. Most want an apex TXT (host @). Bing is a CNAME: paste the long host code; the value is always verify.bing.com. Stripe and Shopify also ask for a host name, not only the value.
google-site-verification= value, then Create DNS.The same idea applies to Microsoft 365 (MS=ms…), Bing (CNAME to verify.bing.com), Facebook, Apple, Zoho, Pinterest, Atlassian, Yandex, Proton and LinkedIn. Shopify usually uses host shopify_verification. Use Other when the provider is not listed — paste Type, Host, and Value exactly as they showed.
Authorise a sending service
Open Authorise a sending service when Postmark, Mailcoach, Mailchimp, SendGrid, Amazon SES, Resend, Brevo, HubSpot, or another bulk sender asks for DKIM / bounce records. This does not move mailboxes.
Postmark usually needs a DKIM TXT (host like 20260806093038pm._domainkey) and a bounce CNAME pm-bounces → pm.mtasv.net. Mailcoach has no DNS of its own — paste the records from the mailer behind it (often Postmark or Amazon SES).
Sending services — how to paste
Each chip opens only the empty rows that provider normally lists. Leave unused rows blank. Use + Add another record if they showed more. Copy DKIM host names from the provider — do not invent them.
If they gave you a spreadsheet, paste it into Or paste a spreadsheet (Type, Name, Value) and click Fill rows from paste. One record per line. Commas or tabs both work. A header row Type,Name,Value is fine. Amazon SES usually looks like three CNAME rows whose name ends in _domainkey. The same paste box is on Verify when the provider needs more than one record, on Point email DKIM, and on Connect website → Other.
Other opens a TXT row, then a CNAME. Zoho Mail’s DKIM is a TXT value (v=DKIM1; k=rsa; p=…), not a CNAME. Leave the type on TXT when you paste that value.
em… CNAME, not as a second apex SPF. Use + Add another record if they listed more. Do not invent host names.What Create DNS will and will not do
- CNAME and ordinary TXT are published exactly as pasted
- If they listed SPF, paste it into SPF (if required). It is merged with the existing SPF record
- A second
_dmarcis skipped if one already exists - Apex MX is never changed from this task — mailboxes stay put. A sending service may add bounce MX on a subdomain such as
send(Resend). That does not move mailboxes - CNAME is not allowed on
@(that would break the zone)
If you type host @, it is stored as the real domain name in cPanel.
Existing records
Ownership records appear under Verify. Sender records (DKIM, bounce CNAMEs) appear under Authorise a sending service.
- Click the value to edit it, then Save
- Click ×, then Remove, to delete
Mailbox DKIM (v=DKIM1), SPF and DMARC are not edited from this list. Use Point email or Click to Fix for those.
Point email
Open I want to point my email to… when mailboxes should live at Texo, Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Zoho Mail, Proton Mail, Fastmail, Mimecast, iCloud Mail, Titan, or Cloudflare Email. This does change MX and SPF, and it adds a basic DMARC if none exists. Changing email does not move the website.
Amazon SES, Mailchimp, SendGrid, Postmark, Mailcoach and Resend are not on this list — they send mail as you; they do not host the mailbox. Use Authorise a sending service for those.
Pick a host. A short preview lists the records that will change. Click the same chip again if you want to cancel. If nameservers are not Texo yet, the preview is Keep email on… or Prepare email on… — records are written in Texo's zone and go live when nameservers switch.
If that host is already current, the button re-applies the same records — useful after a messy zone. Changing MX asks you to confirm.
When you point email to Texo, mail is this account's cPanel IP (the same IP already on cpanel / webmail), never the website's A record. Optional extras: DKIM rows copied from the provider's admin, and Microsoft 365 Autodiscover / Skype-for-Business CNAMEs if you need them. Zoho, Proton, Fastmail, Titan, and iCloud DKIM starts as a TXT record. Zoho keeps the regional MX already on the domain (Europe, India, Australia, Japan, or Canada). A domain with no Zoho MX yet uses mx.zoho.com.
Connect a website
Open Connect this domain to… to point website DNS only. Mail stays where it is.
- Texo — A record to this account's hosting IP,
wwwCNAME to the domain - Shopify — Shopify's A / CNAME pair
- Squarespace — Squarespace verify + site targets
- Wix — pointing (recommended) keeps Texo mail. Switching to Wix nameservers moves all DNS to Wix, so mail has to be rebuilt there
- Webflow, Framer, Carrd — known defaults. Confirm against the values that builder showed you
- Other — paste A / CNAME from any other host. Stays available even if the website is already custom (not locked like Shopify / Wix when those are already the live host)
When the domain already uses Texo nameservers, the current web host is shown as a badge and cannot be selected again. When nameservers are still elsewhere (a transfer in), the live website chip is selectable — that copies the live apex A and www into the Texo zone so the site keeps working after the switch.
Update nameservers
Nameservers tell the internet which company answers DNS for the domain. If the domain is registered with Texo, this task can change them at the registrar.
- Texo — one click to
ns1.texo.co.zaandns2.texo.co.za - Custom — paste another host's nameservers
Do not switch to Texo nameservers until the domain already has a DNS zone at Texo. The wizard, and the nameserver form on the domain page, both refuse that change when there is no zone. Park the domain or create a DNS-only zone first, then switch. A registered .za domain with Texo nameservers and no zone stops resolving.
The wizard only shows the editing forms when the DNS zone is on a hosting account under your login. A zone that merely lives on Texo’s nameservers, on someone else’s account, stays read-only.
When the domain is on Texo’s Cloudflare account, the wizard lists its records with an Orange and a Gray switch. Orange sends that hostname through Cloudflare. Gray is DNS only. You can switch A, AAAA, and CNAME records either way. Mail, webmail, cPanel, and the other hosting-login names stay gray.
If the registrar will not accept an automated change, the wizard opens a support ticket instead.
A registered .za domain cannot have empty nameservers at ZACR. That is normal — you replace them, you do not blank them.
Dead domains
A dead domain has no public nameservers, so the internet cannot find who answers for it. That is not the same as "parked" or "expired" — the domain simply does not resolve.
The wizard then walks two steps:
- Create a Texo zone — park on an existing cPanel account, create a cPanel account (resellers), or order hosting
- Set Texo nameservers — so the new zone is what the world uses
Until step 2 finishes, DNS records you create on Texo are ready but not live.
FAQ
I created DNS records but they do not work yet. The domain must be using Texo's nameservers for the DNS records to be live. After that, the internet can take a few minutes to a few hours to catch up.
Can I add Mailchimp, Amazon SES, or Resend without moving email? Yes. Use Authorise a sending service, not Point email. Point email is only for moving mailboxes. Amazon SES wants three DKIM CNAMEs; Resend uses a bounce host on send, not the domain apex.
I pasted the wrong token. Under Existing records, click the value, edit it and Save, or click × then Remove.
Will this change Cloudflare? No. The wizard writes the Texo cPanel zone only. If the domain uses Cloudflare nameservers, add the same records in Cloudflare instead.
Wix nameservers? Mail will break unless you copy MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC into Wix. Pointing (A/CNAME) is safer if you want Texo mail.
The domain is transferring in and nameservers are not Texo yet. You can still write email and website records in Texo's zone now. They go live when nameservers switch. Live mail and the live website stay as they are until then.
Stuck? Submit a support ticket.