How to Redirect a Domain Name to Your Minecraft Server in 2026

Giving your friends a complicated address like mc321.boxtoplay.com:25570 to join your server is neither elegant nor easy to remember on Discord. Nothing beats a clean, custom address like play.yourdomain.com!

Good news: linking your own domain name to your game server only takes a few minutes. You don’t need to be a network engineer: just add one or two DNS records in your domain’s DNS zone.

This guide is made for Minecraft: Java Edition players. The goal is simple: allow your entire community to connect directly using your custom address, without ever having to type a port number.

How does it work under the hood?

To route players to your server, Minecraft needs two pieces of information: an IP address (where the machine is located) and a port number (the specific entrance to your server).

Depending on the port displayed in your BoxToPlay panel, two situations arise:

• Your server uses Minecraft’s default port (25565): this is the fastest setup! A simple A (or CNAME) record is all you need, because Minecraft always connects to port 25565 by default. No SRV record is required.
• Your server uses a different port (e.g., 25570): since Minecraft looks for port 25565 by default, you need to tell it your real port. In addition to the A record, you add a special record called SRV. It acts like a little signpost that quietly tells the game: « When a player connects to play.yourdomain.com, route them to port 25570! ». That way, your players never have to type the port.

Step 1: Gather your server details

Head over to your BoxToPlay panel and find your server details on the main page:

• Hostname and port: they appear in the format mc321.boxtoplay.com:25570. The port is the number after the colon.
• Numerical IPv4 address: if your domain provider strictly requires a numeric IP address (like 51.xxx.xxx.xxx) to create an A record, you can easily find it. Open your computer’s terminal (Command Prompt on Windows, Terminal on Mac/Linux) and type:

ping -4 mc321.boxtoplay.com

The machine’s IP address will appear right inside square brackets on the very first line (for example [51.68.xxx.xxx]). Note it down along with your port, as you will need both below.

Where do I make these changes? Log in to the management console of the service where you manage your domain name (OVHcloud, Cloudflare, IONOS, Namecheap, GoDaddy, Gandi, etc.), under the section called DNS Zone, DNS Management, or DNS Records.

Step 2: Configure your DNS zone

In all our examples, we use the subdomain play and the example domain yourdomain.com: replace them with your actual domain and server details.

Case 1: Your server uses the default port 25565

If your panel shows port 25565, you only need a single record in your DNS zone:

• Type: A
• Host / Name: play (or play.yourdomain.com depending on your provider)
• Target / Value: your server’s IPv4 address
• TTL: leave the default value

Alternative: if your DNS provider allows it, you can also create a CNAME record with the host play pointing to your BoxToPlay hostname (mc321.boxtoplay.com).

And that’s it for the default port! You can skip straight to in-game testing.

Case 2: Your server uses another port (e.g., 25570)

If your server uses a port other than 25565, you need to create two complementary records:

1. The A record (for the machine’s address):

   • Type: A
   • Host / Name: play
   • Target / Value: your server’s IPv4 address

2. The SRV record (to route Minecraft to your port):

   • Type: SRV
   • Service: _minecraft
   • Protocol: _tcp (or TCP depending on dropdowns)
   • Name / Subdomain: play (the form automatically builds _minecraft._tcp.play.yourdomain.com)
   • Priority: 0
   • Weight: 0
   • Port: your server’s actual port (e.g., 25570)
   • Target: play.yourdomain.com (some providers like OVH require a trailing dot: play.yourdomain.com.)

The Cloudflare trap: watch out for the orange cloud!

If you manage your DNS zone on Cloudflare, here is the classic mistake that prevents thousands of players from connecting:

Cloudflare enables its web proxy by default (represented by an orange cloud). This proxy is fantastic for protecting HTTP websites, but it is completely incompatible with the Minecraft game protocol.

On your A record (or CNAME), make sure to click the orange cloud to set it to DNS only (grey cloud). If you leave the orange cloud enabled, the game will immediately display a connection error. The official Cloudflare documentation confirms this limitation on non-HTTP protocols.

Step-by-step guides by provider

Every provider has a slightly different interface. Click your provider below to see the exact steps:

Step 3: Test your new address in game

Once your records are saved, it’s time for the moment of truth!

Launch Minecraft, open the Multiplayer menu, click Direct Connection (or Add Server), and enter your brand-new address: play.yourdomain.com.

Nothing shows up or connection fails? Don’t panic!

Changes to a DNS zone are not always instantaneous: this is known as DNS propagation. Depending on providers and internet resolvers, updating can take anywhere from a few minutes to two hours.

If the game cannot find your server after waiting a little while, check these few points:

• Original address test: try connecting with the address provided by BoxToPlay (mc321.boxtoplay.com:25570). If that fails too, simply verify that your server is running in your panel.
• Manual port test: if your server uses a port other than 25565, try typing play.yourdomain.com:25570 in Minecraft (using your actual port). If the connection succeeds with the port but fails without it, your A record is working perfectly, but your SRV record has a typo (full name, port, or target).
• Cloudflare check: verify once again that the orange cloud is turned off on your A record (it must be grey, in DNS only mode).

Don’t have a domain name? Use a BoxToPlay subdomain!

Want a clean address without buying a domain name? BoxToPlay has you covered!

Directly from your administration panel, under the Custom IP section, you can choose a free .boxtoplay.com subdomain (for example myserver.boxtoplay.com). Our system automatically sets up all required DNS records behind the scenes, with zero extra configuration needed on your end.

What about Minecraft Bedrock?
On Minecraft Bedrock (consoles, mobile, Windows 10/11 Bedrock), networking works differently: the game uses UDP and does not support SRV records in the same way. To join a Bedrock server, players must enter both the hostname and the specific port (default 19132 or the port displayed on your panel).

Ready to build your own world with your friends? Explore all our Minecraft server hosting plans ready in seconds with BoxToPlay!