How to Link a Domain to an IP Address

A simple, essential step to make your domain show your website.

If you’ve purchased a domain and set up hosting on a VPS or dedicated server, the next step is to connect the domain to your server’s IP address. This process is called DNS mapping — and it ensures that when someone types your domain, your server responds.

 What You Need:

To link your domain to an IP address, make sure you have:

•  A registered domain name
•  A public IP address (your VPS, dedicated server, or hosting account)
•  Access to the domain’s DNS settings (through the registrar or DNS provider)

 Step 1: Get Your IP Address

You can find your server’s IP address:

• In your VPS or dedicated server dashboard
• By running ifconfig or ip a on your server via SSH
• Or asking support if you’re not sure

Example:

IP Address: 123.123.123.123

 Step 2: Access DNS Management

Log in to the domain registrar or DNS provider where your domain is managed. If you bought your domain through AVA.hosting, DNS management is available directly in your client panel.

Find the section called:

• DNS Management
• Zone Editor
• Name Server Records
• DNS Settings

Step 3: Add an A Record

Now you need to create an A record, which tells DNS:
“this domain = this IP address.”

Here’s how:

Explanation:

• @ = root domain (example.com)
• www = www.example.com
• TTL (Time to Live) can be 3600 seconds (1 hour) or left at default

Optional:
If you want to use subdomains (like blog.example.com), add separate A records for each.

Step 4: Wait for DNS Propagation

DNS changes can take a few minutes to 24–48 hours to fully propagate worldwide.

You can check your domain status using:

• nslookup yourdomain.com in terminal
• dig yourdomain.com (for advanced users)

Step 5: Make Sure the Server Is Ready

On your server (especially if using Apache or Nginx), you must ensure the server responds to the domain. This is called virtual host configuration.

Example (Nginx):

server {
    listen 80;
    server_name example.com www.example.com;

    root /var/www/example;
    index index.html;
}

Once configured, restart your web server:

sudo systemctl restart nginx

 Final Checks

• Does your domain open in the browser?
• Do both example.com and www.example.com work?
• Do you have an SSL certificate installed (optional but recommended)?

If yes — congratulations! Your domain is now successfully linked to your server.