Troubleshooting "DNS propagated but site not live"
The four common causes and how to verify each one.
Cause 1 — SSL not issued yet
DNS pointing correctly is only half the job; the site won't serve until its certificate exists. After your records resolve, Avago requests a Let's Encrypt certificate, which takes a few minutes once validation passes. If DNS looks right but the site won't load securely, give SSL a little time. If a proxy (such as Cloudflare's orange cloud) sits in front of the domain, set it to DNS-only until the certificate issues, then re-enable it.
Cause 2 — Cached A record
DNS answers are cached, so an old record can linger after you've changed it — on your own machine, your router, or your ISP's resolver. Your visitors may already see the new site while you still see the old one, or vice versa. To check what's really published, query a public resolver rather than trusting your browser, and flush your local DNS cache. Caches clear within the TTL you set on the record.
Cause 3 — Wrong CNAME target
A single typo in the CNAME target stops the www version resolving. Compare the value saved at your registrar, character for character, against the target shown in your Avago domain settings. Watch for two classic mistakes: a registrar that silently appends your domain to the value (producing a doubled hostname), and a trailing-dot difference. Correct it and re-check.
Cause 4 — Site not yet promoted
DNS and SSL can both be perfect while the site still isn't published to the domain. Connecting a domain and clicking Go live are two separate steps. Open your publish dashboard and confirm the site is actually live on that domain, not just connected. If it's still in draft, publish it.
Work through these in order — SSL, cache, CNAME, then publish status. Ninety per cent of "DNS is right but nothing loads" cases are one of these four, and they're quickest to rule out top to bottom.
Was this article helpful?
Your vote tunes the rank order for everyone else. We read every “no” comment.