When you host your web application on Amazon Web Services (AWS) and use an Elastic Load Balancer (ELB) for load distribution and high availability, you’ll likely want to connect your custom domain to your ELB. This guide will walk you through the process of pointing a domain registered with GoDaddy to an AWS Elastic Load Balancer. This ensures that when users enter your domain in their web browsers, they are directed to your AWS resources.

Prerequisites:

• An AWS Elastic Load Balancer (ELB) set up and functioning with your EC2 instances or other resources.
• A domain registered with GoDaddy for which you have access to DNS settings.

Step 1: Log in to Your GoDaddy Account

Go to the GoDaddy website and log in to your account using your credentials. You should land on your GoDaddy account dashboard.

Step 2: Access Domain Management

From your GoDaddy account dashboard, navigate to the Domain Management section. This is where you’ll find a list of all the domains you’ve registered with GoDaddy.

Step 3: Select the Domain to Update

Locate the domain name that you want to point to your AWS Elastic Load Balancer. Click on the domain name to access its settings.

Step 4: Update DNS Records

In the domain settings page, you’ll find an option to manage DNS records. This could be labeled as “DNS Management,” “DNS Settings,” or something similar. Click on it to access your domain’s DNS records.

Step 5: Edit A Record or CNAME Record

To point your domain to your AWS Elastic Load Balancer, you’ll need to edit either an A (Address) record or a CNAME (Canonical Name) record. The choice depends on whether you want to configure your root domain (e.g., example.com) or a subdomain (e.g., www.example.com):

For Root Domain (A Record):

1. Find the existing A record associated with your root domain. This record is usually represented by an “@” symbol.
2. Edit the A record and replace the existing IP address with the IP address of your AWS Elastic Load Balancer.
3. Save the changes.

For Subdomains (CNAME Record):

1. If you’re working with a subdomain (e.g., www.example.com), create or edit a CNAME record.
2. Create a new CNAME record (if it doesn’t exist) or edit the existing one.
3. In the “Name” or “Alias” field, enter the subdomain (e.g., www).
4. In the “Points to” or “Value” field, enter the DNS name of your AWS Elastic Load Balancer. You can find this DNS name in the AWS Management Console under the details of your load balancer.
5. Save the changes.

Step 6: DNS Propagation

DNS changes can take some time to propagate throughout the internet. It typically takes a few minutes to a few hours for the changes to take effect globally. During this propagation period, users visiting your domain may still be directed to the old location.

Step 7: Test Your Configuration

After DNS propagation is complete, it’s crucial to test your configuration to ensure it correctly points to your AWS Elastic Load Balancer. You can do this by:

1. Open a web browser.
2. Enter your custom domain (e.g., www.example.com).
3. Verify that the browser directs traffic to your AWS resources served by the Elastic Load Balancer.

Congratulations! You’ve successfully pointed your GoDaddy domain to an AWS Elastic Load Balancer, allowing users to access your web application using your custom domain. Keep in mind that AWS Elastic Load Balancers may have dynamically assigned IP addresses, so using the DNS name associated with the load balancer is a best practice, as it eliminates the need to update DNS records if the IP address changes. AWS handles the DNS resolution for the load balancer’s DNS name automatically.