How to use Gmail with your Domain Name

Gmail offers free email hosting with your domain name through google apps. Learn how to have [e-mail] as your email address without paying additional email hosting fees.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A domain name
• Google Apps account
• Your log in information for your domain registrant

1. 
    
   Sign up for Google Apps

   First, click the gmail app link (see link in resource section below). Select administrator and enter your domain name.

2. 
    
   Enter info

   Enter your personal information as requested, and any organization info you may have.

3. 
    
   Create admin account

   You will then be taken to a screen where you will setup your first mailbox for your administrator, e.g. [e-mail]. Enter your preferred user name and password.

4. 
    
   Domain dashboard

   After creating the admin account, you are taken to your domain dashboard. This is the main control panel where the administrator can add new users, e.g. [e-mail], [e-mail]. You can add more users now, but before anyone can use their new email, you must verify ownership of your domain name, and update your MX records.

5. 
    
   Verify Domain

   There are a couple methods for verifying your domain. If you click on "verify domain" you will see two options to add a CNAME or upload html. There is also a third option not listed and that is to update your MX records. Since we need to update MX records anyway, so this is the method we will use.

6. 
    
   Update MX records

   To make the necessary dns changes, you need to log in to your domain name registrant account. For example, if you registered your domain with GoDaddy, then you would log in to your account at godaddy.com. Select the option to manage your domain name and then go to the dns management option. If you have any MX records listed for your domain remove them and add those provided by gmail as listed here:
   MX Server address Priority
   ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM. 10
   ALT1.ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM. 20
   ALT2.ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM. 20
   ASPMX2.GOOGLEMAIL.COM. 30
   ASPMX3.GOOGLEMAIL.COM. 30
   ASPMX4.GOOGLEMAIL.COM. 30
   ASPMX5.GOOGLEMAIL.COM. 30

7. 
    
   Your new inbox

   It can take up to 48 hours for dns changes to update, so be patient. Once your changes have updated and been verified, you will notice that the email section of your dashboard now says active rather than pending. When your email is active, you are ready to send and receive email with your personal domain name.

Tips & Warnings

• Gmail provides up to 7 GB of storage for free for each user you create.
• If you already have a hosted email service and are switching over, be sure to coordinate with your users before making any dns changes.

Resources

• Sign up for google apps

[sonni57]

on 3/5/2009 Thanks for the detailed instructions