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    Should I switch to Cloudflare?

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    • Lonkle
      Lonkle last edited by

      I tried it before on their free plan and didn't like the interface and didn't feel the speed increases so I went back to just using my own registrar for DNS. But, I was curious if maybe I should switch and what some of the reasons people have for using it (aside from the reverse CDN it uses).

      girish 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
      • marcusquinn
        marcusquinn last edited by

        Honestly, for free, I like it, and kinda some small protection in the event of attack but not much.

        Otherwise Namecheap is pretty decent and has the Cloudron integration too.

        AWS & Azure I loathe on many levels.

        DNS Made Easy is paid but if you are fussy with interfaces might be a bit too techie and old-school, although the infrastructure seems solid.

        DNSimple looks good, ranks well on performance, but it costs.

        If I were you, I'd go Namecheap first, Cloudflare if you have a need for any of their specific features.

        If you need or want CDN, then Bunny CDN, and I think they are launching a DNS service too, which may be interesting if it were CLoudron integrated too.

        We're not here for a long time - but we are here for a good time :)
        Jersey/UK
        Work & Ecommerce Advice: https://brandlight.org
        Personal & Software Tips: https://marcusquinn.com

        Lonkle BrutalBirdie 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 3
        • Lonkle
          Lonkle @marcusquinn last edited by

          Woah, thank you for such a detailed reply on the pros / cons of different DNS services!

          @marcusquinn said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

          Namecheap is pretty decent and has the Cloudron integration too.

          Yeah, I used to use Namecheap but I switched to Namesilo because their developers were more responsive and their API was more thorough. But I didn't realize about the Cloudron integration support...does Cloudron do something special using the API of certain registrars when adding domains? I could imagine Cloudron auto-populating new domains purchased if it has my Namecheap API token which would be very cool. But it probably just changes the nameservers for you when adding.

          marcusquinn 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
          • marcusquinn
            marcusquinn @Lonkle last edited by

            @Lonk Cloudron's DNS API integration is a god-send, has saved me so much time and the auto-config when making changes is faster than I could ever do:

            https://docs.cloudron.io/domains/

            We're not here for a long time - but we are here for a good time :)
            Jersey/UK
            Work & Ecommerce Advice: https://brandlight.org
            Personal & Software Tips: https://marcusquinn.com

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
            • girish
              girish Staff @Lonkle last edited by

              @Lonk said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

              I tried it before on their free plan and didn't like the interface and didn't feel the speed increases so I went back to just using my own registrar for DNS. But, I was curious if maybe I should switch and what some of the reasons people have for using it (aside from the reverse CDN it uses).

              Many people use it because the reverse CDN is in free tier. I am not aware of any other CDN out there which is totally free as in beer. Hard to beat free šŸ™‚ Also, for people hosting at home, their service is very useful if you want to hide the server IP.

              I haven't used it but someone elsewhere had suggested https://bunnycdn.com/ for low priced but good CDN.

              Lonkle 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
              • jdaviescoates
                jdaviescoates last edited by jdaviescoates

                I use Gandi because imho they are more ethical than all the other options that integrate with Cloudron.

                Always liked their No Bullshit philosophy:

                https://www.gandi.net/en-GB/no-bullshit

                But just for info, see also Free DNS from 1984 Hosting Iceland who are also great:

                https://1984hosting.com/product/freedns/

                For why 1984 are great see e.g.
                https://1984hosting.com/about/

                Basically: free speech/ civil rights, green energy, free software.

                In the past I've also used https://joker.com/ who are good too.

                But neither Joker nor 1984 integrate with Cloudron (yet)

                I use Cloudron with Gandi & Hetzner

                Lonkle 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                • Lonkle
                  Lonkle @jdaviescoates last edited by

                  @jdaviescoates What does "integrate" mean? I thought that just meant it auto-configures your registrar's DNS to your VPS IP address (or changes name servers maybe). Is there more to it than that?

                  jdaviescoates 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • jdaviescoates
                    jdaviescoates @Lonkle last edited by jdaviescoates

                    @Lonk yeah, that's all I mean. And it does that for every domain/ sub-domain you add to Cloudron.

                    Of course can also set-up a wildcard on 1984/ Joker/ wherever too, but it's nicer to not even have to do that šŸ™‚

                    I use Cloudron with Gandi & Hetzner

                    Lonkle 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • Lonkle
                      Lonkle @jdaviescoates last edited by

                      @jdaviescoates That's pretty cool, but could it be cooler, could "adding domains" not even be needed. We don't have a bulk input of domains, but having them all at the ready when installing apps would be cool, maybe an extra list item at the end of the domains you own saying "check others on registrars you own" and it'll auto-populate beyond the domains you've "chosen" to add / link to Cloudron.

                      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                      • marcusquinn
                        marcusquinn last edited by

                        The Cloudron integration with DNS Provider APIs also handles all the necessary TXT records for you, which is kinda handy for email setup too.

                        We're not here for a long time - but we are here for a good time :)
                        Jersey/UK
                        Work & Ecommerce Advice: https://brandlight.org
                        Personal & Software Tips: https://marcusquinn.com

                        Lonkle 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                        • Lonkle
                          Lonkle @marcusquinn last edited by

                          @marcusquinn I use wildcards to my static IP personally but I could see the use in having email ready on the platform. I haven't touched Cloudron email yet.

                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • mehdi
                            mehdi App Dev last edited by

                            Personally, from a security standpoint, I would totally not recommend Cloudflare. Their model is literally performing a (authorized) man-in-the-middle attack on your traffic. They have access to all your data.

                            I'm not saying they're nefarious. I'm just saying that for the minute benefit they offer, I don't think it's worth it to add yet another entity to the chain of trust.

                            Lonkle 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 5
                            • BrutalBirdie
                              BrutalBirdie Staff @marcusquinn last edited by

                              I also use Namecheap for my private Domains and I am very happy with them.

                              The initial "pain" with "Namecheap API Access" can be a put off, but the Namecheap live chat will help with that.

                              Like my work? Consider donating a beer šŸ» Cheers!

                              Lonkle 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                              • V
                                vjvanjungg last edited by

                                Hey guys... so if we add something like BunnyCDN, which doesn’t integrate with Cloudron yet, everytime we add a new domain, we need to do all the DNS configs manually?

                                mehdi 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • mehdi
                                  mehdi App Dev @vjvanjungg last edited by

                                  @vjvanjungg

                                  • every time you add a sub-domain: no, not necessarily, you can just setup a wildcard once, and you're good
                                  • every time you add a first-level domain: yeah
                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                  • Lonkle
                                    Lonkle @girish last edited by

                                    @girish said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                    their service is very useful if you want to hide the server IP.

                                    I think I may know of another way to hide the server IP. šŸ˜‰ šŸ˜‚

                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                    • Lonkle
                                      Lonkle @BrutalBirdie last edited by

                                      @BrutalBirdie What’s the initial pain of API access. I haven’t used them in years. But I use to use their API after they updated their interface and made it horrible - and started using their API for all my changes. I was building Wordpress integration into Namecheap actually - when adding or changing to a new domain in Wordpress Multisite, it would check my Namecheap and configure the DNS, just like Cloudron or if I didn’t own the domain, it checked it’s availability and offered to purchase it on Name heap and configure the DNS. All without leaving the Wordpress Web App.

                                      It was amazing. But I have yet to make the same thing for NameSilo but I’m planning too. Their API is even better.

                                      marcusquinn girish BrutalBirdie 3 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                      • Lonkle
                                        Lonkle @mehdi last edited by

                                        @mehdi said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                        Personally, from a security standpoint, I would totally not recommend Cloudflare. Their model is literally performing a (authorized) man-in-the-middle attack on your traffic. They have access to all your data.

                                        I'm not saying they're nefarious. I'm just saying that for the minute benefit they offer, I don't think it's worth it to add yet another entity to the chain of trust.

                                        That’s exactly how I feel. But I wanted to know if the benefit was worth the free so I’m glad you mirror my feelings and spoke into the negligible benefits.

                                        1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • marcusquinn
                                          marcusquinn @Lonkle last edited by

                                          @Lonk said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                          @BrutalBirdie What’s the initial pain of API access. I haven’t used them in years. But I use to use their API after they updated their interface and made it horrible - and started using their API for all my changes. I was building Wordpress integration into Namecheap actually - when adding or changing to a new domain in Wordpress Multisite, it would check my Namecheap and configure the DNS, just like Cloudron or if I didn’t own the domain, it checked it’s availability and offered to purchase it on Name heap and configure the DNS. All without leaving the Wordpress Web App.

                                          It was amazing. But I have yet to make the same thing for NameSilo but I’m planning too. Their API is even better.

                                          Oooo, I can think of a good use for that! šŸ˜‰

                                          We're not here for a long time - but we are here for a good time :)
                                          Jersey/UK
                                          Work & Ecommerce Advice: https://brandlight.org
                                          Personal & Software Tips: https://marcusquinn.com

                                          Lonkle 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • Lonkle
                                            Lonkle @marcusquinn last edited by

                                            @marcusquinn Unfortunately, their API had changed since I coded this and I haven't revamped it for their new API. But, tell you what, since I exclusively use NameSilo now and will be revamping my code to be "NameSilo compatible. I'll see if I can't add updated Namecheap API definitions so I can test it before moving out to porting my code.

                                            Honestly though, despite being able to accomplish anything using the REST API synchronizing posts
                                            (all types) across single site installations - your business does sound like it may benefit from ease of development that Multisite deployment provides. Though, since like I said you can do this all through the REST API, if what you're already doing works, their are def cons to Multisite. The main benefit is ease of development and deployment and if you've already figured out your pipeline, you may never need to consider multisite.

                                            marcusquinn 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                            • marcusquinn
                                              marcusquinn @Lonkle last edited by

                                              @Lonk said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                              NameSilo

                                              Not heard of them before, and kinda tired of transferring so many domains over the years but if you recommend I might find time.

                                              Seem to be a little cheaper? Anything else?

                                              We're not here for a long time - but we are here for a good time :)
                                              Jersey/UK
                                              Work & Ecommerce Advice: https://brandlight.org
                                              Personal & Software Tips: https://marcusquinn.com

                                              Lonkle 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                              • marcusquinn
                                                marcusquinn @Lonkle last edited by

                                                @Lonk We use a combo of wp-cfm and distributor plugins to achieve the same. The target it to have all site seed data checked into the repo as json. Not a fan of SQL script commits with the hazards from the order in which they're run.

                                                Open to idea but I think you'll like what you see. I can think of multi-site potential too - but would want to automate CDN setups so that each has it's own IP.

                                                We're not here for a long time - but we are here for a good time :)
                                                Jersey/UK
                                                Work & Ecommerce Advice: https://brandlight.org
                                                Personal & Software Tips: https://marcusquinn.com

                                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                • marcusquinn
                                                  marcusquinn last edited by

                                                  Weird, Namesilo doesn't support .co.uk, just .uk 😵

                                                  We're not here for a long time - but we are here for a good time :)
                                                  Jersey/UK
                                                  Work & Ecommerce Advice: https://brandlight.org
                                                  Personal & Software Tips: https://marcusquinn.com

                                                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                  • girish
                                                    girish Staff @Lonkle last edited by

                                                    @Lonk said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                    @BrutalBirdie What’s the initial pain of API access. I haven’t used them in years. But I use to use their API

                                                    namecheap requires you to manually whilelist every IP that uses their API. He is probably referring to that.

                                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                    • BrutalBirdie
                                                      BrutalBirdie Staff @Lonkle last edited by

                                                      @Lonk said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                      @BrutalBirdie What’s the initial pain of API access. I haven’t used them in years. But I use to use their API after they updated their interface and made it horrible - and started using their API for all my changes. I was building Wordpress integration into Namecheap actually - when adding or changing to a new domain in Wordpress Multisite, it would check my Namecheap and configure the DNS, just like Cloudron or if I didn’t own the domain, it checked it’s availability and offered to purchase it on Name heap and configure the DNS. All without leaving the Wordpress Web App.

                                                      It was amazing. But I have yet to make the same thing for NameSilo but I’m planning too. Their API is even better.

                                                      @girish said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                      @Lonk said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                      @BrutalBirdie What’s the initial pain of API access. I haven’t used them in years. But I use to use their API

                                                      namecheap requires you to manually whilelist every IP that uses their API. He is probably referring to that.

                                                      Yes and No.

                                                      My 'initial pain' was that the api access is locked for new users, there was a text like 'you need to have 50€ balance' or something strange restriction.
                                                      But after chatting with the live chat I told them I want to host SaaS Services (aka. Cloudron šŸ™‚ ) and need api access to automatically change domains.

                                                      They had no problem with that and enabled it for me with no questions asked.

                                                      Like my work? Consider donating a beer šŸ» Cheers!

                                                      girish 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                                      • girish
                                                        girish Staff @BrutalBirdie last edited by

                                                        @BrutalBirdie said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                        My 'initial pain' was that the api access is locked for new users, there was a text like 'you need to have 50€ balance' or something strange restriction.

                                                        Ah, this is probably something new. We enabled is 3-4 years ago, when I guess they didn't have this restriction. Good to know they are friendly and enable it.

                                                        Lonkle 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                        • Lonkle
                                                          Lonkle @girish last edited by

                                                          @girish said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                          Ah, this is probably something new. We enabled is 3-4 years ago, when I guess they didn't have this restriction. Good to know they are friendly and enable it.

                                                          Same here, which was why I was confused. Btw, I may code another registrar integration for Cloudron down the road (2021), if you'll let me, I don't know how modular that part of the code is.

                                                          girish 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                          • girish
                                                            girish Staff @Lonkle last edited by

                                                            @Lonk said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                            Same here, which was why I was confused. Btw, I may code another registrar integration for Cloudron down the road (2021), if you'll let me, I don't know how modular that part of the code is.

                                                            That's quite easy. Just have to fill up the interface.js - https://git.cloudron.io/cloudron/box/-/tree/master/src/dns

                                                            Lonkle jdaviescoates 2 Replies Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                                            • Lonkle
                                                              Lonkle @marcusquinn last edited by

                                                              @marcusquinn said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                              @Lonk said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                              NameSilo

                                                              Not heard of them before, and kinda tired of transferring so many domains over the years but if you recommend I might find time.

                                                              Seem to be a little cheaper? Anything else?

                                                              A little cheaper, the developers work with me directly when I need a new feature (they're slow, but I get to talk to their actual web developers). And their API is more fleshed out. Oh, but the reason I switched aside from them being cheaper was that Private Registry was Free and I really wanted that. At Namecheap it was like $5 per domain or something which adds up with 60 domains.

                                                              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                              • Lonkle
                                                                Lonkle @girish last edited by

                                                                @girish said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                                That's quite easy. Just have to fill up the interface.js - https://git.cloudron.io/cloudron/box/-/tree/master/src/dns

                                                                As always, thanks for the guidance. Bookmarked your post to come back to later! ā˜ŗļø

                                                                1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                                                • jdaviescoates
                                                                  jdaviescoates @girish last edited by

                                                                  @girish said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                                  That's quite easy. Just have to fill up the interface.js - https://git.cloudron.io/cloudron/box/-/tree/master/src/dns

                                                                  So I guess if I want e.g. joker.com and 1984hosting.com to integrate I should just relay this info to them? šŸ™‚

                                                                  I use Cloudron with Gandi & Hetzner

                                                                  girish 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                                  • girish
                                                                    girish Staff @jdaviescoates last edited by

                                                                    @jdaviescoates said in Should I switch to Cloudflare?:

                                                                    So I guess if I want e.g. joker.com and 1984hosting.com to integrate I should just relay this info to them?

                                                                    Yes, if they have an api, it's probably a day's work to integrate a dns provider.

                                                                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                                                                    • humptydumpty
                                                                      humptydumpty last edited by

                                                                      I'm a bit late to the party but just want to say Cloudflare be damned. I use a VPN online and every site that has Cloudflare CDN blocks me out. Oh, and you can add Google Captcha to the naughty list.

                                                                      robi 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
                                                                      • robi
                                                                        robi @humptydumpty last edited by

                                                                        @humptydumpty you can use their VPN.

                                                                        Life of Advanced Technology

                                                                        humptydumpty 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                                                        • humptydumpty
                                                                          humptydumpty @robi last edited by

                                                                          @robi No thanks. I'm not going to feed the beast.

                                                                          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
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