web.imaginarycloud.com (using Webflow)
and imaginarycloud.com/blog
Have you searched for an answer?
Yes, from this article’s second step: https://university.webflow.com/integrations/cloudflare
Direct NS records from your registrar to your Cloudflare account
Add a CNAME record with the name www and target proxy-ssl.webflow.com
My main question is, would the Pro Cloudflare plan allow to perform the 2nd step and further steps?
(i.e. to “Point the Cloudflare domain to Webflow with www subdomain as the default”)
Additionally I found on this CNAME flattening article https://blog.cloudflare.com/introducing-cname-flattening-rfc-compliant-cnames-at-a-domains-root/
that “adding a CNAME to your root record feature is included for free for everyone using Cloudflare’s DNS”.
Or is it possible to perform the above step (or image below) on a free plan?
Would this allow me to place a reverse proxy server between Webflow and my domain, so that I could “pull” pages in from Webflow, to be served in www.imaginarycloud.com?
The domain you are mentioning is existing, but NOT actually using Cloudflare, so I’m wondering, … is it actually yours?
Domains like e.g. example.com, example.net and example.org are standardized as example domains, such as for use in e.g. documentation, and, like in your case if you are not actually sharing a real domain name.
Thank you for the details and interpretation, we are considering using Cloudflare due to it’s reverse proxy and CDN in order for the Webflow site and the blog site to be all under www. instead of web. or at the root, respectively.
I.e. by completing the points in that Webflow tutorial, are we able to achieve this with in the Webflow site? Would the above be guaranteed in all plans?
The main doubt was raised in this Partial (C_NAME) setup developers documentation: https://developers.cloudflare.com/dns/zone-setups/partial-setup:
A table presents that only the Business Plan and above allows “to use Cloudflare’s reverse proxy while maintaining your primary and authoritative DNS provider”.
And also “C_NAME records are not allowed on the zone apexOpen external link (example dot com ), you can only proxy your zone apex to Cloudflare if your authoritative DNS provider supports C_NAME Flattening”
Since you mentioned that Cloudflare gives 2 IP addresses to add as A records, would this be enough to get that C_NAME that the Webflow tutorial requires and also to get the root URLs pointing to www.?
Is also the reason that C_NAME flattening not particularly useful in this case?
PS: C_NAME used instead to avoid it to being transformed into a link in order to be able to post this reply.
Are you ready to switch your domain’s name servers over to Cloudflare, and thus, handle any kind of the DNS configuration within Cloudflare?
If you are, you can actually make the Full setup, which is most common.
Cloudflare’s reverse proxy and CDN works by setting the Proxy status to Proxied () for the individual DNS records.
Cloudflare will in that mode provide some of their own IP addresses to the public (e.g. visitors), when people request a DNS lookup for your website, so that Cloudflare can steer the traffic through their reverse proxy first.
In Unproxied / DNS-only () mode, Cloudflare would only work as a DNS provider, and as such, traffic would not travel over Cloudflare, and you wouldn’t be using their reverse proxy / CDN, at all.
Partial (CNAME) set up generally only become relevant if you (for any reason) cannot switch your domain’s name servers to Cloudflare.
Partial (CNAME) set up and CNAME flattening are two different things, independent of each other.
Cloudflare doesn’t provide you with these IP addresses, but Webflow do, according to link you initially provided, provide two IP addresses for you add as A records.
Webflow does however ask you to keep the records in Unproxied / DNS-only () mode, which would essentially be bypassing the Cloudflare reverse proxy / CDN .
And claims that they have compatibility issues with it, if we’re referring to point #5 but also the alert/error above the guide:
It is isn’t completely impossible that you could run into some issues with SSL provisioning and renewal, depending on how you set up your stuff, and how they have set up theirs (and of course, how Cloudflare, as a “middleman” has done their set up).
But it wouldn’t be unlikely that we could fix that, for example with huge thanks to @epic.network 's very cool post from a couple of days ago.
After digging up that post, it also turns out that it was in fact directly related to Webflow and how they (likely) do their stuff.
I would completely ignore the Partial setup (CNAME), and generally, also the CNAME flattening.
All that being said, I don’t personally see any potential issues with accomplishing the final goal of the set up you are explaining,
Really appreciate the effort and all details you provided.
That post you linked has a more recent reply where a blog post tutorial details on how to get those A records and C_NAME Proxied for Webflow:
) for the individual DNS records.
) mode, Cloudflare would only work as a DNS provider, and as such, traffic would not travel over Cloudflare, and you wouldn’t be using their reverse proxy / CDN, at all.
