How to create an email address with your own domain

Did you know that you can create an email address with your own domain directly on our servers? Instead of having an e-mail address with an @mailfence.com extension, you can have your own domain name managed on our servers. These servers becoming the official e-mail servers for your domain name.

How to create an email address with your own domain?

1. Own a domain name. We do not commercialize domain names : if you don’t have one, you can acquire one with following European companies: http://www.ovh.com, http://www.1and1.com or http://www.gandi.net.

2. Own a paying subscription with Mailfence.

Implications

- The existing email address with @mailfence.com domain name can be configured as an alias if you request so. Otherwise it will be deleted and might be attributed to an other user one day. Be sure to inform your contacts of the change of address.

- All e-mails sent to any address of your domain name arrive on our servers: it’s not possible to transfer only certain selected addresses.

- If you already have an e-mail server for your domain name, be sure to follow the procedure correctly to avoid the loss of messages.

Procedure if no server is currently defined for you domain name

1. Modify (or ask the company you registered your domain name with, to modify the “MX records” (MX = Mail Exchangers) of your domain name as follows:

yourname.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = smtp1.mailfence.com.
yourname.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = smtp2.mailfence.com.

NB1: The two entries are important to guarantee a good load balance and fail over.

NB2: The “.” at the end of the line is crucial. Without them the MX records are faulty (smtp1.mailfence.com.yourname.com).

2. The propagation of the DNS needs some time (from a few hours to a few days). Consequently, you might have to wait for at least 24h before the propagation is effective.

3. If the propagation is effective, please contact us through e-mail and give us your domain name, as well as your login and chosen e-mail address. If several addresses have to be created, send us the list of addresses with their corresponding logins. Since a Mailfence account can only be linked to one e-mail address, create several accounts if necessary (There is a possibility for creation of a limited amount of aliases per account though).

Procedure if a server is currently active for your domain

1. Send us by e-mail your domain name, your login and chose e-mail address. If several addresses have to be created, send us the list of addresses with their corresponding logins. Since a Mailfence account can only be linked to one e-mail address, create several accounts if necessary.

2. Modify (or ask the company you registered your domain name with, to modify the “MX records” (MX = Mail Exchanger) of your domain name as follows:

yourname.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = smtp1.mailfence.com.
yourname.com MX preference = 10, mail exchanger = smtp2.mailfence.com.

Take note of the old value of the MX record and find its IP address so that your access to the old server stays active for a few more days.

NB1: The two entries are important to guarantee a good load balance and fail over.

NB2: The “.” at the end of the line is crucial. Without them the MX records are faulty (smtp1.mailfence.com.yourname.com).

3. The propagation of the DNS needs some time (from a few hours to a few days). In the meantime, continue to get your mail from the old server and configurate your message software so that you have access to the old server through its IP address.

Got some questions ? feel free to contact our support (support@mailfence.com).

Check blog.mailfence.com for having the most recent version of this blogpost.

Follow us on twitter/reddit and keep yourself posted at all times.

- Mailfence Team