Skip to main content
Plainrouter collects Signals through a subdomain you control, such as collect.example.com. Connecting this collection domain requires one CNAME record. The change applies only to the collection subdomain. It does not move your website, email, or root domain to Plainrouter.

​
Website address or collection domain?

Signals setup asks for your Website address, such as www.example.com, to authorize the site that sends events. The form supplies https://; enter the exact host rather than a page URL. example.com and www.example.com are different website hosts. The collection domain, such as collect.example.com, receives those events. Add DNS records for the collection domain shown in Plainrouter. Do not replace the DNS records that serve your website.

​
Choose your collection hostname

After saving the website address, Install shows Choose your collection hostname. Plainrouter suggests t on the website’s registrable domain. You can keep that label or choose another before provisioning; the domain suffix stays fixed. Use one label containing 1–63 letters, numbers, or interior hyphens. The form lowercases letters. Dots, underscores, spaces, and leading or trailing hyphens are invalid. Enter collect, not collect.example.com or https://collect.example.com. Click Use t or the button matching your edited label. If the hostname is already allocated, Plainrouter can choose a suffixed label. Use the final Name and Target shown after provisioning for DNS; do not assume the proposal became the stored hostname unchanged. Once provisioned, the hostname cannot be renamed in this field. This label choice applies to managed-hostname setup (Path A). Same-origin forwarding uses its existing installation flow.

​
How the CNAME works

Add the CNAME exactly as shown in Plainrouter. The name and value displayed in your setup are specific to your collection domain.
You do not need to create a Cloudflare Worker Route or configure application routing. Plainrouter provisions the collection hostname when you confirm it. DNS, HTTPS, and collector configuration must be ready before the hostname becomes active.

​
Before you begin

You need:
  • Access to the DNS provider that manages your website domain.
  • Permission to add a CNAME record.
  • A collection subdomain that is not already used by another service.
You can identify the active DNS provider by checking where your domain’s nameservers are managed. This may be different from the company where you registered the domain.

​
Add the CNAME record

1

Open the DNS configuration

In Plainrouter, open Signals and continue setup.After confirming the hostname on Install, 1. Create the CNAME record displays the exact Type, Name, and Target. If the record is still being prepared, refresh the screen after provisioning; do not invent a target.
2

Add the CNAME record

In your DNS provider, create the CNAME using the collection domain as its name and the Plainrouter target as its value.Enter only the hostname in the value field. Do not include https://, a path, or a trailing slash.
3

Save and validate

Save the CNAME and return to Plainrouter.DNS propagation and HTTPS validation can take several minutes. Keep the CNAME in place and return to Install to check progress. DNS visibility alone does not prove that the collection hostname is active.

​
Match your provider’s fields

DNS providers use different labels for the same fields: Some providers automatically append your root domain to the Name field. If entering collect.example.com produces collect.example.com.example.com, enter only the host portion, such as collect.
Use the copy buttons beside the CNAME name and value in Plainrouter. This avoids typing mistakes.

​
Continue setup

Plainrouter validates ownership and HTTPS automatically after the CNAME points to Plainrouter. Keep the setup screen open, or return later through Signals. When the collection hostname is active, 2. Add the browser snippet provides the generated code. Keep the CNAME in place after setup completes.

​
Troubleshoot validation

​
The hostname field rejects my input

Enter only one DNS label, such as collect, and keep the fixed website-domain suffix. If the domain is wrong, check the website address before confirming provisioning. An already provisioned hostname cannot be changed by editing the label or pointing a different DNS name at the same target.

​
Hostname provisioning fails before DNS instructions appear

Correct any field-validation error first. For a temporary provisioning error, retry the confirmation on Install. If Plainrouter says the hostname is not configured on this installation, contact support with the displayed error and workspace name. No DNS change can supply a missing installation configuration; never include the workspace secret in the report.

​
The CNAME does not validate

  • Remove any existing A, AAAA, or CNAME record using the same collection hostname. A hostname cannot point to multiple services at once.
  • Confirm the CNAME value contains only the target hostname shown in Plainrouter.
  • Check that you edited the DNS zone used by your domain’s active nameservers.
  • If your DNS provider adds the root domain automatically, make sure the record name is not duplicated.

​
HTTPS validation fails

HTTPS becomes available after the collection hostname points to Plainrouter and Cloudflare completes automatic validation. If Plainrouter reports a CAA conflict, review the CAA records on your domain and allow the certificate authority named in the validation error. If you do not manage those restrictions, ask your DNS administrator to update them.

​
Setup is still pending

DNS updates can take longer than the provider’s dashboard suggests. Leave the CNAME in place and retry after several minutes. Changing the value repeatedly restarts the validation process.

​
Cloudflare removed the collection hostname

If Plainrouter reports Cloudflare removed this collection hostname, choose Re-provision hostname and complete the managed-hostname setup again. Plainrouter stops retrying the removed hostname, and installation cannot verify green while that state remains. Re-provisioning creates a new current hostname record and preserves the removed record as history. Check the DNS instructions shown for the replacement, then wait for HTTPS validation and repeat the installation check. This recovery applies to managed-hostname installations.

​
Next step

After the collection domain becomes active, install the Signals pixel and wait for the first qualifying arrival.