How to Setup Google Apps for Your Domain
Why Google Apps?
Google Apps provides everyone at your organization a custom email address (like bob@yourdomain.com), tools for word processing, spreadsheets and presentations (Google Docs), a shared calendaring system and access to a flexible intranet system (Google Sites). All this for free in Google Apps Standard Edition.
Google Apps Premier Editions also gives security and compliance services. Or you can buy same separately. Premier edition gives you 25GB mailbox, Postini (security and compliance), and host of other features you may need for an enterprise.
More details on Google apps can be found at
http://www.google.com/a
If you you are already sold on Google apps - here is step by step tutorial to setup Google Apps for your domain:
Step 1: Register with Google Apps
You got to go to
www.google.com/a
and sign up for an account. While signing up you can either buy a domain (if you do not have one) or can enter your existing domain. If you enter your existing domain chose an option that you are an administrator for this account.
You will now be asked for
Number of users - Chose the number of users you want (if you have doubt - enter a large number)
You may need to enter an your first & last name, email id, phone, country , job title, company name, type and company size. Make sure you neter an email which the other than email in the domain your are configuring. (This will be the id where they will send you welcome email. This email will be used in case you forget the admin password- so use this email carefully)
Next you will be asked for your admin user id and password for your domain.
Step 2: Verify your domain
Now that you have registered your Google apps account you have to verify that you own this domain. You are required to do this step otherwise anyone can register your domain at Google Apps and start using your domain. Domain verification ensures that right owners of domain are configured.
Google offers two methods of verification. You can either upload an HTML file with a name (UNIQUE CODE) Google specify, or you can change the CNAME record for your domain using the values (UNIQUE CODE) they specify. You can choose your preferred method.
To verify your domain login to your admin id and click on verify domain ownership link at the top of page.
Chose the method you want from drop do
HTML Verification
To do HTML verification create a HTML verification file named
googlehostedservice.html
And copy the (UNIQUE CODE/STRING) specified in your verification into it, and upload it to your website's root directory. You can create a file in any word processor and save it as html document.
Once you have made the changes, make sure you can see the file at http://yourdomain.com/googlehostedservice.html.
Then click on verify domain button to verify.
Cname Verification
Sign in to your domain control panel at your name server locate the DNS management page. The location varies by service, but can typically be found under Domain Management or Advanced Settings.
Use the UNIQUE CODE/STRING provided by Google to create a new CNAME record for the yourdomain.com domain:
Point the CNAME record to: google.com
Once you have made the changes, you can verify that the record exists by doing a lookup for
http://UNIQUESTRING.yourdomain.com
this url should take you to google.com
Wow - you have verified your domain
Remaining in next part of this tutorial...
Monday, June 16, 2008
How to setup Google Apps for your domain
Friday, June 13, 2008
Google Apps Setup with Plesk
Many administrators hit trouble while setting up Google Apps for domains with DNS in Plesk. Here are some vital tips for setting up with Plesk
If you are hitting the wall using Plesk, just making changes to Plesk will not be enough. You have to change the DNS setting in control panel of your Name Server provider.
- You have to log in to your Server Command Control panel - which will be with your hosting provider and is is separate and distinct from PLESK. So you have to go to this panel and there you manage the DNS settings for your domain.
- Add the MX records as provided in the generic instructions for Google Apps. Make sure that you set the MX pointers to .yourdomain.com. and not to mail.yourdomain.com. The mail.yourdomain.com. record will not work correctly. Here is an example:
yourdomain.com. NS your name server
yourdomain.com. NS your name server
yourdomain.com. MX 1 ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM.
yourdomain.com. MX 5 ALT1.ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM.
yourdomain.com. MX 5 ALT2.ASPMX.L.GOOGLE.COM.
yourdomain.com. MX 10 ASPMX2.GOOGLEMAIL.COM.
yourdomain.com. MX 10 ASPMX3.GOOGLEMAIL.COM.
yourdomain.com. MX 10 ASPMX4.GOOGLEMAIL.COM.
yourdomain.com. MX 10 ASPMX5.GOOGLEMAIL.COM.
calendar.yourdomain.com. CNAME ghs.google.com.
docs.yourdomain.com. CNAME ghs.google.com.
googlexyzabcxy1ab2x3y4.yourdomain.com. CNAME google.com.
mail.yourdomain.com. CNAME ghs.google.com.
start.yourdomain.com. CNAME ghs.google.com.
cpanel.yourdomain.com. A your ip address
ensim.yourdomain.com. A your ip address
ftp.yourdomain.com. A your ip address
lists.yourdomain.com. A your ip address
yourdomain.com. A your ip address
plesk.yourdomain.com. A your ip address
www.yourdomain.com. A your ip address
- You have to delete any and all references that point to your server's IP address that have to do with mail.
- Now login to your PLESK control panel and turn off mail for your domain.
- Within PLESK, navigate to the DNS settings, and replicate the MX settings you set up in the online DNS panel. Here also delete any DNS settings that would resolve mail to your IP address versus to google.
When your host does not accepts CNAME
When your host does not accepts CNAME you have to use IP address to setup Google Apps. Some Domain hosts don't like to use CNAMEs.
You can give them the following IP addresses:
Domain Verification: For domain verification you need to create a Cname with string provided by Google Apps. You can use following IP address for this to create three A records:
This will create an A record of the form string.mydomain.com pointing to above IP address.
After verification, if you want to have custom urls, e.g. www.mydomain.com,
mail.mydomain.com, you may have to give them following IP in lieu of ghs.google.com
