How do I set up a parked domain?

Setting Up a Parked Domain

A parked domain (also called an alias domain) is an additional domain name that points to your primary domain's website. Visitors who enter the parked domain in their browser will see the exact same website content as your primary domain. This guide will show you how to set up and manage parked domains in your dotCanada.com cPanel account.

What is a Parked Domain?

Parked domains are useful for several purposes:

• Protecting your brand by owning multiple variations of your domain name
• Capturing traffic from different domain extensions (e.g., .com, .ca, .net)
• Redirecting traffic from an old domain to a new one
• Creating marketing campaigns with easy-to-remember domains

Unlike addon domains, parked domains don't have their own separate content - they display the same website as your primary domain.

Prerequisites

Before setting up a parked domain, you need:

• A registered domain name that you own
• The domain pointed to dotCanada.com's nameservers (ns1.dotcanada.com and ns2.dotcanada.com)
• A hosting package that allows parked domains (all dotCanada.com hosting plans include unlimited parked domains)

Setting Up a Parked Domain in cPanel

1. Log in to your cPanel account at https://{hostname}.mysecureservers.com:2087
2. In the search box at the top, type "Aliases" or "Parked Domains" or navigate to the DOMAINS section
3. Click on Aliases or Parked Domains (the exact name may vary depending on your cPanel version)
4. In the "Create a New Alias" or "Add Domain" section:
   • Enter the domain name you want to park (e.g., "yoursecondomain.com") in the "Domain" field
5. Click Add Domain
6. cPanel will set up the parked domain to point to your primary domain's content

Verifying Your Parked Domain

After setting up a parked domain:

1. Wait for DNS propagation (usually 24-48 hours)
2. Open a web browser and visit your parked domain
3. Verify that it displays the same content as your primary domain

Managing Parked Domains

To manage your existing parked domains:

1. Go to the Aliases or Parked Domains section in cPanel
2. You'll see a list of all your parked domains with options to:
   • Remove: Delete the parked domain relationship (this doesn't affect your domain registration)
   • Manage Redirection: Redirect the parked domain to a specific URL instead of showing the same content

Setting Up Redirection for a Parked Domain

If you want the parked domain to redirect visitors to a specific URL instead of displaying the same content:

1. In the Parked Domains/Aliases section of cPanel
2. Find the parked domain you want to modify
3. Click Manage Redirection
4. Select Redirect
5. Enter the destination URL (e.g., "https://yourmainsite.com/specific-page")
6. Choose the redirection type:
   • Permanent (301): Best for SEO, tells search engines the change is permanent
   • Temporary (302): Indicates a temporary redirection
7. Choose whether to redirect with or without the www prefix
8. Click Save

SSL Certificates for Parked Domains

If you want to secure your parked domain with HTTPS:

1. In cPanel, search for "SSL/TLS" or go to the SECURITY section
2. Click SSL/TLS Status
3. Find your parked domain in the list and click Install Certificate
4. For a free SSL certificate, you can use Let's Encrypt through the Let's Encrypt SSL tool in cPanel

Difference Between Parked, Addon, and Subdomains

If you need assistance with creating or managing parked domains, please contact our support team.