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A custom www address can connect your NicNames domain to an existing GitHub Pages website through a CNAME record. This guide covers the NicNames DNS fields, the order of setup, and the checks that confirm your site and HTTPS work. Use it when NicNames Free Name-Servers are authoritative for your domain.
1. Check the prerequisites
Have an existing GitHub Pages site, repository admin access and access to your domain’s DNS. This walkthrough connects www.example.com; example.com is a reserved example. It does not configure the bare domain or move your email.
In NicNames, open Domains → ClassicDNS, select Settings for your domain and check Name-Servers. With Free Name-Servers, look for DNS Records → Manage. If you use Custom Name-Servers, make the change at that DNS provider. Our domain-lookup guide explains the nameserver section. Do not switch nameservers just to follow this guide.
2. Prepare GitHub before pointing DNS
GitHub recommends verifying domain ownership first. In your personal account’s Settings → Pages, use Add a domain and follow GitHub’s unique TXT-record instructions, then Verify. Organization sites use the organization’s settings. Keep the verification TXT record afterward. The NicNames TXT-record guide explains the DNS editor, but Google’s token is not interchangeable with GitHub’s.
Next, open your site’s repository Settings → Pages. Set Custom domain to your actual www address and click Save before adding the CNAME. Avoid wildcard records for this connection.
3. Add the CNAME in NicNames
Open DNS Records → Manage and review existing records before changing anything. A CNAME cannot coexist with an A or AAAA record at the same name. If www already serves a website, record the old values and plan the replacement; do not simply add another conflicting entry. Preserve unrelated mail and verification records.
Choose + Add record, then select CNAME in the type menu. Fill the row as follows:
- Name: www
- TTL: retain the displayed value unless you have a specific reason to change it; the editor’s default is 14400 seconds.
- Host alias / Value: your actual GitHub username or organization followed by .github.io.
Use only the hostname as the target, without https://, a repository name or a path. Review the complete DNS table and click Save. Adding this www record alone does not make example.com redirect to www.example.com; the bare domain needs its own supported configuration.
4. Check DNS, the page and HTTPS
Check the www CNAME with a DNS lookup and confirm its target matches your GitHub account. GitHub says DNS changes may take up to 24 hours. Visit your actual www address and check that the intended page appears.
In repository Settings → Pages, review the DNS and certificate status. Once available, select Enforce HTTPS and test the HTTPS address. Certificate provisioning can take time. If page assets fail under HTTPS, check for HTTP image, script or stylesheet URLs that cause mixed content.
If the wrong site appears, check the authoritative provider, the www record and GitHub’s Custom domain value before changing more records. For NicNames DNS help, contact support with the affected hostname and the result you expected; keep passwords and private account credentials out of the request.
