If you’re using Name.com as your DNS provider and rely on their URL forwarding service, it’s crucial to change your DNS provider immediately. The service has been non-functional for years, and here’s why:
The problem stems from the fact that modern browsers like Chrome default to HTTPS, which is more secure than HTTP. However, Name.com’s URL forwarding service does not support HTTPS connections. As a result, if someone tries to access your forwarded URL without explicitly typing http://, they’ll encounter a timeout error.
The technical fix is simple: Name.com could reject HTTPS connections, prompting browsers like Chrome to retry with HTTP. However, this hasn’t been implemented. Instead, Name.com has left their customers in the dark, with no timeline for a fix, which indicates that they aren’t actively working on this issue—despite how critical it is for anyone using this feature.
For a practical demonstration, I’ve set up a 301 redirect to http://name.com. Here’s what happens:
- http://name.scaleupleaders.net – Works!
- https://name.scaleupleaders.net – Timeout on Chrome and other browsers.
- name.scaleupleaders.net – Results vary depending on the browser.
If you’re using this URL forwarding for business-critical tasks, such as creating easy-to-remember URLs for booking pages or sales pages, some of your customers may be getting a timeout, and Name.com doesn’t seem to care.
In any customer-centric company, this would be a top-priority issue, one that demands immediate action. However, Name.com has known about this problem for years, and they have done little to address it.
You can see their official guide on setting up URL forwarding here. Their troubleshooting page, which subtly hints at the issue, is available here.
Update - Now Fixed (With a Workaround)
After extensive communication with their support team, Name.com has implemented a workaround. Now, HTTPS connections are rejected, causing Chrome to immediately retry with HTTP, which should work most of the time. However, if HTTPS is explicitly specified, the browser won’t fall back to HTTP, which remains problematic. Some applications, like WhatsApp, even enforce HTTPS automatically, rendering this solution ineffective in those cases.
They’ve also informed me that they plan to release a full HTTPS version in the coming months, so this issue should be resolved eventually. In the meantime, this public effort and direct engagement with Name.com were more effective than migrating my domains to a different provider.
Thanks to everyone for their support and suggestions!