Email with Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, website with WebOké

Many businesses have their website with WebOké and their email with Microsoft 365 (Outlook, Exchange) or Google Workspace (Gmail). That works perfectly well. You just need to change a few things in DNS and switch off one tick box in DirectAdmin. Follow all the steps, otherwise you'll miss out on mail.

Step 1: verify your domain with the provider

Microsoft and Google first ask for a TXT record with a code, to check that the domain belongs to you. Add that record in DNS Administration (see TXT records for verification (Google, Microsoft and others)) and click verify with the provider.

Step 2: point the MX records to the provider

1. Go to MX Records (under E-mail Manager).
2. Under MX Template, choose Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace.
3. Click SAVE under the template. DirectAdmin replaces the MX records with those of the provider.
4. Check the new MX records against what the provider specifies. With Microsoft 365, each domain has its own address, such as yourdomain-nl.mail.protection.outlook.com: adjust the record with the pencil icon if needed.

Prefer to do it manually? Then remove the two MX records pointing to WebOké and add the provider's records instead (see MX records: where does your e-mail arrive?). You can type in the priority yourself, so 1 or 5 both work. Google currently specifies a single record: smtp.google.com. with priority 1.

Step 3: switch off the tick box

On the same page, under Options, remove the tick next to Use this server to handle my email, and click SAVE.

Why? As long as the tick box is on, our server assumes your mailboxes are with us. Mail from your own website (for example, from your contact form or webshop) and from other websites on the same server is then delivered to us and never reaches Microsoft or Google. Sometimes the sender even gets the message 550 Unknown user.

Step 4: update your SPF record

Add the provider to your SPF record with include: (see Setting up and adding to SPF). Keep include:webawere.nl in place, as your website still sends mail through our servers. For Microsoft 365, the record then looks like this, for example:

v=spf1 a mx include:webawere.nl include:spf.protection.outlook.com ~all

For Google Workspace, use include:_spf.google.com.

Step 5: DKIM and the other records

• DKIM: switch on DKIM in the provider's admin centre and add the records you get there. With Microsoft 365, these are two CNAME records (selector1._domainkey and selector2._domainkey); with Google, it's a TXT record (google._domainkey). See Turning on and checking DKIM.
• Autodiscover (Microsoft 365): a CNAME record with the name autodiscover and the value autodiscover.outlook.com., including the dot. This lets Outlook automatically find the right settings.
• DMARC: you can leave the DMARC record as it is (see Setting up DMARC).

Step 6: your old mail and mailboxes

Your mailboxes at WebOké keep existing, but no new mail will arrive in them. Want to take your old mail with you to the new provider? Read chapter 10 on moving email, or use the migration tools from Microsoft or Google. Once you no longer need the mailboxes with us, you can delete them (see Deleting an e-mail address).

Switching back to WebOké

Under MX Template, choose Local Default, switch the Use this server to handle my email tick box back on, and remove the old provider's include from your SPF record.

Can I do this in My WebOké as well?

Yes. In My WebOké, under My Domains, on the DNS tab, you'll find a block with your domain's email settings. Use Quick setup to choose Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace. You'll see in advance which records will be added; the existing MX and SPF records are replaced and Delivery on our server is switched off for that domain. That last part is step 3 above (see DNS in My WebOké and with external name servers such as Cloudflare).