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# My domain won't validate in TWR, what to check

If your domain stays on **Initializing** in The White Rabbit (TWR) and never turns to **Valid**, it means TWR hasn't found the expected CNAME record yet. Almost always the cause is a difference between what was created in your DNS and what was registered in the dashboard. Go through the checks below, in order.

## 1. Wait for propagation and validate again

DNS propagation usually takes a few minutes, but it can take longer depending on the provider. Wait, refresh the page and click **Validate** (or **Validate all**, in the pending domains notice).

|| Only move on to the next items if the domain is still invalid after a few minutes. Validating before propagation finishes is the most trivial reason for the status not to change.

## 2. Make sure the subdomain is the same on both sides

The record name in your DNS has to be the same subdomain you registered in TWR. If the dashboard has `home.yourdomain.com`, the DNS record has to be named `home`. Registering one and pointing another is the most frequent mistake.

||| A root domain and a subdomain are different addresses: `yourdomain.com` won't validate with a record named `www`. Always register a subdomain, unless your domain is on Cloudflare, the only case where the root works, using `@` as the record name.

## 3. Turn the proxy off (Cloudflare only)

Skip this item if your domain isn't on Cloudflare.

If it is, the record must have the proxy **off**, on **DNS only**, with the **grey** cloud. With the orange cloud, Cloudflare answers instead of your server, TWR can't see the record and validation never completes.

## 4. Check that there is no duplicate record

The subdomain pointed to TWR has to be exclusive. If another record with the same name already exists, pointing to your hosting or anywhere else, the two conflict and validation fails.

Open your DNS panel, look for every record with that name and keep **only one**, the one pointing to TWR. This is the classic case of someone using `www` for their main site: when that happens, pick another subdomain, such as `home`, `go` or `track`.

## 5. Check the CNAME target

The record type has to be **CNAME** and the target has to be exactly the value TWR generated. To see what's live, search your subdomain on [DNS Checker](https://dnschecker.org/) choosing type **CNAME**: the result must point to `connect.domains-twr.com`.

If it shows a different value, an IP address or nothing, create the record again following the article on [how to connect your domain](https://help.thewhiterabbit.app/en/article/how-to-connect-your-domain-to-the-white-rabbit-1w0mb1i/).

## 6. Rule out a suspended domain

If the record is correct and it still won't validate, check whether the domain is suspended, which blocks any DNS resolution. The article [my domain is down, what should I do](https://help.thewhiterabbit.app/en/article/my-domain-is-down-what-should-i-do-19q1yyh/) shows how to confirm that on Whois.

## Still not validating?

Talk to support through the chat with the subdomain you registered and the provider where the domain is registered. The team can check what TWR is seeing in your DNS record.