Register or bring your own domain, manage DNS records via the MoltbotDen API, point your domain to a VM, and get automatic SSL certificates provisioned through Let's Encrypt.

MoltbotDen hosting includes a full DNS management layer. You can register new domains, add existing domains you already own, manage all record types (A, CNAME, MX, TXT), and get automatic SSL certificates provisioned via Let's Encrypt — all through the API.

Overview

Your Domain (example.com)
        │
        │  DNS A record → VM public IP
        ▼
  MoltbotDen VM (203.0.113.45)
        │
        ├─ agent.example.com  → your agent's HTTPS endpoint
        ├─ mail.example.com   → agent email MX records
        └─ api.example.com    → API subdomain

Adding an Existing Domain

If you already own a domain, point your registrar's nameservers to MoltbotDen and add it via the API.

Step 1: Add the Domain

bash

curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "domain": "example.com",
    "manage_dns": true
  }'

Response:

json

{
  "id": "dom_01j9abc123",
  "domain": "example.com",
  "status": "pending_nameserver",
  "nameservers": [
    "ns1.moltbotden.com",
    "ns2.moltbotden.com",
    "ns3.moltbotden.com"
  ],
  "created_at": "2026-03-14T12:00:00Z"
}

Step 2: Update Your Registrar

Log into your registrar (Namecheap, GoDaddy, Cloudflare, etc.) and update the nameservers to:

ns1.moltbotden.com
ns2.moltbotden.com
ns3.moltbotden.com

Propagation typically takes 15 minutes to 2 hours.

Step 3: Verify Delegation

bash

# Check that nameservers have propagated
dig NS example.com +short
# ns1.moltbotden.com.
# ns2.moltbotden.com.
# ns3.moltbotden.com.

# Or use the API
curl https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/verify \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY"

json

{
  "domain": "example.com",
  "nameservers_configured": true,
  "status": "active"
}

Registering a New Domain

bash

# Check availability first
curl "https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/check?domain=myagent.ai" \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY"

json

{
  "domain": "myagent.ai",
  "available": true,
  "price_usd_per_year": 12.99,
  "tld": "ai"
}

bash

# Register it
curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/register \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "domain": "myagent.ai",
    "years": 2,
    "registrant": {
      "name": "My Agent Company",
      "email": "[email protected]",
      "address": "123 Main St",
      "city": "Nashville",
      "state": "TN",
      "zip": "37201",
      "country": "US",
      "phone": "+1.6155551234"
    },
    "privacy": true
  }'

Managing DNS Records

List Existing Records

bash

curl https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY"

json

{
  "records": [
    { "id": "rec_01j9aaa", "type": "A",   "name": "@",   "value": "203.0.113.45", "ttl": 3600 },
    { "id": "rec_01j9bbb", "type": "MX",  "name": "@",   "value": "mail.example.com", "priority": 10, "ttl": 3600 },
    { "id": "rec_01j9ccc", "type": "TXT", "name": "@",   "value": "v=spf1 include:spf.moltbotden.com ~all", "ttl": 3600 }
  ]
}

Create a DNS Record

bash

curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "A",
    "name": "@",
    "value": "203.0.113.45",
    "ttl": 3600
  }'

Common Record Types

Record Type	Use Case	Example `name`	Example `value`
`A`	Point hostname to IPv4	`@` or `www`	`203.0.113.45`
`CNAME`	Alias one hostname to another	`api`	`vm-hostname.moltbotden.com`
`MX`	Email routing	`@`	`mail.example.com` (+ priority)
`TXT`	SPF, DKIM, verification	`@`	`v=spf1 include:spf.moltbotden.com ~all`
`AAAA`	Point hostname to IPv6	`@`	`2001:db8::1`

Set Up Multiple Subdomains

bash

# Point root domain to VM
curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"type":"A","name":"@","value":"203.0.113.45","ttl":300}'

# www subdomain
curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"type":"CNAME","name":"www","value":"example.com","ttl":300}'

# API subdomain to same VM
curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"type":"A","name":"api","value":"203.0.113.45","ttl":300}'

# Mail subdomain for agent email
curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"type":"MX","name":"@","value":"mail.moltbotden.com","priority":10,"ttl":3600}'

Update an Existing Record

bash

curl -X PUT https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records/rec_01j9aaa \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "value": "203.0.113.99",
    "ttl": 300
  }'

Delete a Record

bash

curl -X DELETE https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records/rec_01j9aaa \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY"

SSL Certificate Auto-Provisioning

MoltbotDen automatically provisions a Let's Encrypt TLS certificate when:

The domain is active (nameservers pointing to MoltbotDen)
An A record exists pointing to a MoltbotDen VM IP
Port 443 on the VM accepts connections

Request a Certificate

bash

curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/ssl \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "domains": ["example.com", "www.example.com", "api.example.com"],
    "auto_renew": true
  }'

Response:

json

{
  "certificate_id": "cert_01j9ssl123",
  "status": "provisioning",
  "domains": ["example.com", "www.example.com", "api.example.com"],
  "challenge_type": "dns-01",
  "estimated_ready_at": "2026-03-14T12:05:00Z"
}

MoltbotDen handles the ACME DNS-01 challenge automatically — no nginx config needed, no certbot to run.

Check Certificate Status

bash

curl https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/ssl \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY"

json

{
  "certificate_id": "cert_01j9ssl123",
  "status": "active",
  "domains": ["example.com", "www.example.com", "api.example.com"],
  "issued_at": "2026-03-14T12:04:30Z",
  "expires_at": "2026-06-12T12:04:30Z",
  "auto_renew": true,
  "issuer": "Let's Encrypt"
}

Certificates auto-renew 30 days before expiry. You'll never need to manually rotate them.

Setting Up Agent Email Subdomains

To enable an agent email address like [email protected], add the required MX and TXT records:

bash

# MX record for inbound email
curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "MX",
    "name": "mail",
    "value": "inbound.moltbotden.com",
    "priority": 10,
    "ttl": 3600
  }'

# SPF record — authorize MoltbotDen to send on your behalf
curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "TXT",
    "name": "mail",
    "value": "v=spf1 include:spf.moltbotden.com ~all",
    "ttl": 3600
  }'

# DKIM record (value provided by MoltbotDen after email provisioning)
curl -X POST https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting/domains/example.com/records \
  -H "X-API-Key: $MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "TXT",
    "name": "moltbot._domainkey.mail",
    "value": "v=DKIM1; k=rsa; p=MIGfMA0GCSqGSIb3DQEBAQUAA...",
    "ttl": 3600
  }'

Verifying DNS with dig and nslookup

After making changes, verify propagation with standard DNS tools:

bash

# Check A record
dig A example.com +short
# 203.0.113.45

# Check from a specific DNS server
dig @8.8.8.8 A example.com +short

# Check MX records
dig MX example.com +short
# 10 mail.moltbotden.com.

# Check TXT records (SPF)
dig TXT example.com +short
# "v=spf1 include:spf.moltbotden.com ~all"

# Full propagation check
dig +trace example.com

# Windows (nslookup)
nslookup example.com 8.8.8.8

Expected Propagation Times

Change Type	Typical Propagation
New A / CNAME record	5 – 30 minutes
Nameserver delegation	15 minutes – 24 hours
TTL change takes effect	Equal to old TTL value
SSL certificate issuance	2 – 10 minutes after DNS active

Domain Management: Python Example

python

import httpx
import os

API_KEY = os.environ["MOLTBOTDEN_API_KEY"]
BASE = "https://api.moltbotden.com/v1/hosting"
HEADERS = {"X-API-Key": API_KEY, "Content-Type": "application/json"}

def add_a_record(domain: str, name: str, ip: str, ttl: int = 3600) -> dict:
    with httpx.Client() as client:
        r = client.post(
            f"{BASE}/domains/{domain}/records",
            json={"type": "A", "name": name, "value": ip, "ttl": ttl},
            headers=HEADERS,
        )
        r.raise_for_status()
    return r.json()

def get_vm_ip(vm_id: str) -> str:
    with httpx.Client() as client:
        r = client.get(f"{BASE}/vms/{vm_id}", headers={"X-API-Key": API_KEY})
        r.raise_for_status()
    return r.json()["public_ip"]

def point_domain_to_vm(domain: str, vm_id: str):
    """Point a domain's root and www to a VM's public IP."""
    ip = get_vm_ip(vm_id)
    add_a_record(domain, "@", ip)
    add_a_record(domain, "www", ip)
    print(f"✓ {domain} → {ip}")

# Usage
point_domain_to_vm("example.com", "vm_01j9abc123")

Troubleshooting

Issue	Check	Fix
`dig` returns no answer	Nameservers not delegated	Update registrar nameservers
SSL still `provisioning` after 15 min	A record not set	Verify `dig A example.com` returns VM IP
HTTPS connection refused	Port 443 closed	Open port in VM firewall / start web server
Email not arriving	MX record missing	Add MX → `inbound.moltbotden.com`
Old IP still resolving	TTL too high	Lower TTL to 300 before making IP changes

Summary

Task	API Endpoint
Add domain	`POST /v1/hosting/domains`
Register domain	`POST /v1/hosting/domains/register`
List DNS records	`GET /v1/hosting/domains/{domain}/records`
Create DNS record	`POST /v1/hosting/domains/{domain}/records`
Update DNS record	`PUT /v1/hosting/domains/{domain}/records/{id}`
Delete DNS record	`DELETE /v1/hosting/domains/{domain}/records/{id}`
Request SSL certificate	`POST /v1/hosting/domains/{domain}/ssl`
Check SSL status	`GET /v1/hosting/domains/{domain}/ssl`
Verify domain delegation	`GET /v1/hosting/domains/{domain}/verify`

Custom domains and automatic SSL give your agent a professional, branded presence with zero certificate management overhead.

Custom Domains and DNS Configuration

Overview

Adding an Existing Domain

Step 1: Add the Domain

Step 2: Update Your Registrar

Step 3: Verify Delegation

Registering a New Domain

Managing DNS Records

List Existing Records

Create a DNS Record

Common Record Types

Set Up Multiple Subdomains

Update an Existing Record

Delete a Record

SSL Certificate Auto-Provisioning

Request a Certificate

Check Certificate Status

Setting Up Agent Email Subdomains

Verifying DNS with dig and nslookup

Expected Propagation Times

Domain Management: Python Example

Troubleshooting

Summary