Google Apps using external webhosting server DNS CNAME ‘A Record’ configuration
Since last week, we have been doing configuration of my domain’s (icnpro.com) DNS, which was solely hosted by GoDaddy and all services provided by Google Apps. Before the needed configuration, there’s only Google Apps as the domain service provider, including such as email, calendar, docs, pages, et al. But then, we purchased ourselves a web hosting package, so that we need to configure the DNS CNAME and A Record to point the www request and ftp request of the domain (icnpro.com) to the webhosting servers.
This may help a few forks going down the same path, as I was, very hard to find answers on the net, even in Google App’s Google group, they could answer all of my questions. And then as for support, GoDaddy gave me a very useful advice, which is use webhosting dns server and delete GoDaddy DNS server, by doing this, all the configuration was going to be on the other server’s DNS configuration panel, which is NONE OF THEIR BUSINESS ANYMORE. 
Worst of worst is, once I changed all DNSes to Webhosting servers, I can’t login to my business email account anymore, how well the support is that? If I can’t login to my account, I can’t send them emails anymore, because all the configuration and email accounts are store in the business emails.
Therefore, bring up my own technical mind, and did this:
Google Apps originally gives you three (3) A Record host IP address, which were suppose to be their server addresses, turns out NOT, they have a “@” sign in the “A Host” name, which means all request of a domain (icnpro.com) goes to this IP address. and they why no matter how we changed the CNAME, www and ftp all goes to Google server. We we have done is delete all three A Record IP address, and then add two new ones.
First line, First field, “@”, second field “whatever your webhosting server IP address”.
Second line, First field, “www”, second field “whatever your webhosting server IP address is”.
After that, add CNAME record:
“www”, points to: “icnpro.com”
“ftp”, points to: “ftp.yourftpserverdomain.com”
“mysql”, points to: “mysql-1.yourmysqlserverdomain.com”
et al.
Explanation:
The first “A Record” points all your requests to (icnpro.com) from Internet to your webhosting server.
But then in CNAME, you have subdomains such as www, ftp, mysql, email, calendar which go to different servers. Keep Google Services unchanged, and use whatever your web hosting provide you to enter into CNAME.
Wait for more than 5 hours in some cases, DNS updates need take up to 48 hours.
Tags: A Record, CNAME, DNS, DNS advanced configuration, GoDaddy, Google Apps, icn technologies, ICNT, ICNTech, icntechnologies
12 June, 2008 at 2:02 pm
hi
thx 4 ur suggestion…i have same problem and i am looking for it all over the net..
my problem is same as of urs but i need ur help.
i was using google apps for my domain but now i thought of making a site for my domain .
now i used 110mb.com free hosting. i changed dns(ns record) to what they wanted and site was ok
ankurchauhan.net
now when i went to mail.ankurchauhan.net then it displays 110mb.com page which was earlier giving me google apps email login page.
moreover i could not receive any mails to my domain.(but i could send mail but not receive them)
so i removed the dns configuration back to initial( deleted all ns records) but still i get same thing.
i looked ns records for my site through web and found that my domain server were still ns1.110mb.com
i want to use my email domain most importantly.
i have done every setting what it was before but now
i see that my site is not showing anything …… not even 110mb.com page and still i cant receive mail but i can send them.
so i followed ur advice. i made A record as you mention and Cname record. i hade a cname record earlier mail.ankuechauhan.net pointing to ghs.google.com
now i see ankurchauhan.net displaying the site…
but still i could not get email for my domain..
i dont understang why my domain server are ns1.110mb.com though i have no ns record in my dns setting
pls help
ankur chauhan
12 June, 2008 at 3:01 pm
Ankur, are you still using Godaddy’s DNSes? or you have changed to your own one on 110mb.com?? I haven’t tried to change everything to my webhosting company dns, but I think it’s gonna be very hard, because you have to manually input every single entry from google apps in your hosting’s dns, which is very confusing. Now, what I did was still use Godaddy dns, only configure the A-record section. remove google ones on A-record, and change them according to my article. And then you only need to change a little in C-NAME for your www, ftp, etc. But don’t change anything in MX setting, because that’s your mail exchange servers, which is supposedly Google Mail addresses. Call me once you need any more help. Cheers, Lei
12 June, 2008 at 10:12 pm
lei thx for ur hep
can u pls give me ur email so that i can explian u everything with screen shot
bye