Custom domain on Amazon Route 53
In Route 53, records belong to the domain’s public hosted zone. The console appends the zone name to whatever you type in the record-name field, and TXT values must be quoted.
The records you’ll create
Your exact names and values are generated on the server’s Deployments tab → Custom domain card. They follow this shape:
| Type | Name | Value | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| CNAME | mcp.acme.com | connect.mcp-dns.com | Routes traffic to MCPCloud |
| TXT | _cf-custom-hostname.mcp.acme.com | ce2337e3-…-c789c237d377 | Proves you own the domain |
Setup on Amazon Route 53
- Open the Route 53 console, go to Hosted zones, and select the domain’s public zone.
- Create record: Record name is the subdomain only (e.g. `mcp`), type CNAME, Value is the CNAME target from your MCPCloud domain card. A TTL of 300 is fine.
- Create record: Record name is the ownership labels (e.g. `_cf-custom-hostname.mcp`), type TXT, Value is the token from the card wrapped in double quotes (the console adds them if you forget).
- Save, then hit Recheck in MCPCloud. Route 53 changes are typically live within a minute.
Verify and go live
Back on the Custom domain card, hit Recheck. The status walks from Verifying DNS to Issuing certificate to Active — usually within minutes of the records propagating. Once Active, your server answers at https://mcp.acme.com/mcp and the certificate renews automatically.
Troubleshooting
The TXT record exists but ownership verification fails.
Check the value is a single double-quoted string with no stray characters — `"token"` — and that you edited the PUBLIC hosted zone, not a private one attached to a VPC.
dig shows old or missing records.
Confirm the domain’s registrar points at the same four NS servers listed in this hosted zone — a second stale zone for the same domain is a common trap.
Calls through the custom domain get a 403 (often “browser_signature_banned” or a challenge page) while the platform URL works.
Your DNS zone’s WAF or bot-protection rules apply to the custom hostname, and MCP clients send unusual or minimal user agents. Exempt the hostname (or the path) from bot fight / managed challenge rules in your zone, or point clients at the platform URL until you do. The 403 comes from your zone, not from MCPCloud.
Other DNS providers