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How to setup your domain in Microsoft 365 and how to add DNS records in IONOS

Introduction

This is our third article in a complete series on migrating your emails to Microsoft 365 Exchange Online.

In this article we show you how to setup your domain Microsoft 3653 and how to add approriate DNS records in the IONOS control panel.

We assume you have just purcahsed a Microsoft 365 plan and are now in the Admin center.

1. Go to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.

2. Click on Set up email with a custom domain.

If you don't see option to setup email with a custom domain then go to Settings and Domains and Add Domain

M365 Exchange Online Step 9a

3. Enter your domain name.

4. Click Continue.

M365 Exchange Online Step 10

5. We now need to prove to Microsoft that you own your domain name. With IONOS there are two options, as sown in the screenshot:

Login to IONOS and Microsoft will automatically verify you own your domain.
Manually add a TXT record to DNS records in the IONOS Control Panel.

If you select the first option you will be prompted to login to your IONOS account and then Microsoft will be able to add the required DNS record to prove that you own your domain.

If this option doesn't appear or if you prefer to not allow Microsoft to have access to your IONOS accoun then follow the steps below.

6. Click More options.

 

M365 Exchange Online Step 11

7. Select Add TXT record to the domain's DNS records

 

M365 Prove domain ownership 1

8. Open a new browser tab

9. Go to the IONOS website.

10. Click Sign in and select Customer Account.

 

IONOS - Step 1

11. Enter you email address  and click Next

 

IONOS - Step 2

12. Enter your password and click Next.

 

IONOS - Step 3

13. Go to Domains & SSL

IONOS - Step -4

14, Click on your domain.

IONOS - Step 5

15. Click on DNS.

16. Click on Add record.

IONOS - Step 6

17. Click TXT

IONOS - Step 7

18. For Host name enter @

19. For Value, copy the value on the Microsoft 365 page. eg. MS=1234567890

20. Click Save.

M365 Prove domain ownership 3
M365 Prove domain ownership 4

Once the TXT record has been added you can go back to the Microsoft 365 page and click Verify.

If it doesn't work or you get an error message then leave it for about 10 minutes and then try again. When you add a new DNS record it can take a bit of time for all DNS servers around the world to update.

Once verified we won't carry on with the next recommended steps. We will come back to this later, once we have migrated emails from your current system into the new Microsoft 365 Exchange.

Once your domain is verified you will be signed out of Microsoft 365 and then prompted to sign back in again. The reason for this is that in step 1 you were given a .onmicrosoft.com account. This is currently the account we are signed into. Now that our domain is verified we want to sign in with our domain account. Microsoft explain the process and steps for you.