Introduction
Netlify is a leading platform for deploying static sites and frontend applications, offering features like form handling, serverless functions, deploy previews, and split testing. Pairing Netlify with an is-pro.dev subdomain gives you a professional hosting setup with global CDN, automatic HTTPS via Let's Encrypt, and continuous deployment from Git — all on the free tier. This guide walks through connecting your is-pro.dev subdomain to Netlify step by step.
Prerequisites
- A Netlify account (free tier) with a deployed site
- An is-pro.dev subdomain registered at dash.is-pro.dev
- Access to the is-pro.dev DNS management interface (Cloudflare-powered)
- Your site's Netlify-assigned URL (e.g.,
mysite.netlify.app)
Step 1: Deploy Your Site to Netlify
If you have not deployed to Netlify yet, log into your Netlify dashboard and click "Add new site → Import an existing project". Connect your Git provider (GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket) and select the repository for your site. Netlify auto-detects the framework and pre-fills build settings. Review and click "Deploy site". Netlify assigns a random subdomain like random-words-123456.netlify.app. Your site is immediately live at this URL. Verify everything works before proceeding to add your custom subdomain.
Step 2: Add Your is-pro.dev Subdomain in Netlify
In your Netlify site dashboard, go to "Site settings → Domain management → Custom domains". Click "Add custom domain". Enter your full is-pro.dev subdomain (e.g., mysite.is-pro.dev). Netlify will prompt you to check DNS configuration. It provides the required DNS target — typically a CNAME record pointing to mysite.netlify.app or an A record pointing to Netlify's load balancer IPs. Note: if you are adding the bare domain (e.g., is-pro.dev itself), Netlify expects A records. For subdomains, a CNAME record suffices.
Step 3: Configure DNS in the is-pro.dev Dashboard
Open the is-pro.dev DNS dashboard. Click "Add Record". For a subdomain setup, select CNAME as the record type. Enter your subdomain prefix as the name (e.g., mysite) and your Netlify site URL (mysite.netlify.app) as the target. Important: Netlify recommends setting the proxy status to DNS-only (gray cloud) rather than proxied (orange cloud). This is because Netlify handles its own SSL via Let's Encrypt and needs direct traffic for certificate validation. Save the record and verify it appears in your DNS list.
Step 4: Configure Netlify SSL / HTTPS
Back in Netlify, under "Domain management → Custom domains", wait for Netlify to detect the DNS changes. Netlify automatically provisions a Let's Encrypt SSL certificate for your custom domain once it confirms DNS resolution. This process can take 1-15 minutes. Do not check "External DNS" if you are managing DNS through is-pro.dev. Once the certificate is active, you will see a "Netlify Certificate" status with a green checkmark. Enable "Force HTTPS" to redirect all HTTP traffic to HTTPS.
Step 5: Handle the WWW Subdomain Variant
Many visitors still type www.mysite.is-pro.dev out of habit. In Netlify, add www.mysite.is-pro.dev as another custom domain. Then add a CNAME record in the is-pro.dev dashboard: name it www.mysite, target it to mysite.netlify.app. Netlify handles the redirect from www to the non-www version (or vice versa, based on your configured primary domain). Set this up under "Domain management → Custom domains → Options → Set preferred domain".
Step 6: Verify Full Setup
Visit your is-pro.dev subdomain in a browser. Confirm the site loads over HTTPS with a valid Let's Encrypt certificate. Check that the www variant redirects correctly to your primary domain. Test Netlify-specific features like deploy previews and form handling. Use the DNS Checker tool to confirm your CNAME record resolves to Netlify's servers. If you see a Netlify-branded page saying "This page is not found", your DNS record may not point to the correct target or the certificate has not yet provisioned.
Best Practices
- Use Netlify's deploy previews for staging — each branch or PR gets a unique URL to test before merging to production
- Configure form handling in Netlify by adding
netlifyattribute to your HTML forms — submissions are collected in the Netlify dashboard - Set up branch-based subdomains (e.g.,
staging.mysite.is-pro.dev) by adding additional CNAME records
Conclusion
Netlify combined with an is-pro.dev subdomain provides a complete, free hosting solution for static sites and frontend applications. Netlify handles builds, deployments, and SSL, while your is-pro.dev subdomain gives you a clean, professional URL backed by Cloudflare DNS.
FAQ
Why does Netlify recommend DNS-only (gray cloud) instead of proxied?
Netlify manages its own SSL certificates through Let's Encrypt and needs to verify domain ownership by connecting directly to your origin. Proxied mode (orange cloud) can interfere with this verification process.
Can I use Netlify with a proxied (orange cloud) DNS record?
Technically yes, but Netlify cannot provision its own SSL certificate in that case. You would rely on Cloudflare's edge certificate, which works but limits some Netlify features like custom 404 pages.
How do I set up a redirect from my old domain to the new is-pro.dev subdomain?
Netlify supports redirects via a _redirects file or netlify.toml. Add the old domain as a custom domain and configure a redirect rule to your primary subdomain.
FAQ
Is Deployment setup free on is-pro.dev?
Yes, all subdomains on is-pro.dev include free DNS management and SSL certificates.
How long does DNS take to propagate?
Cloudflare typically propagates DNS changes within seconds to a few minutes globally.
Can I use this for commercial projects?
Yes, is-pro.dev subdomains can be used for personal and commercial projects within our fair use policy.