Connecting Your Hover Domain to Your Contra Portfolio

Contra is a platform for independent professionals to showcase their work, and Hover makes it simple to connect a domain to your Contra portfolio. This article covers the automatic setup that comes with a Contra voucher, as well as the manual connection steps for everyone else.

How Connecting Your Domain Works

There are two paths to connecting a domain to Contra. If you redeemed a Contra voucher through Hover, the connection happens automatically — no setup or verification needed. If you didn't, Hover's one-click Connect tool sets up the required DNS records and SSL certificate for you in a few steps.

Before you begin

• Point your domain to Hover's nameservers (ns1.hover.com and ns2.hover.com) — the Connect tool only works if Hover manages the domain's DNS.
• Make sure you're not relying on another provider's DNS for email or hosting tied to this domain before changing nameservers, to avoid a service interruption.
• Redeem your Contra voucher through Hover first, if you have one — this connects everything automatically, so you can skip the manual steps below.

Step 1: Redeeming a Contra Voucher

If you redeemed a Contra voucher through Hover, your domain connects automatically. The necessary DNS records are created and an SSL certificate is issued for you — no manual setup or verification required.

Step 2: Connecting a Domain Manually

1. Sign in to your Hover control panel using your chosen method of 2FA.
2. Select Domains. If you have more than one domain, click the domain name you want to use with Connect.
3. Confirm the domain uses Hover's nameservers, ns1.hover.com and ns2.hover.com. Before changing nameservers, make sure you're no longer relying on your current DNS manager for services like email or third-party hosting.
4. Select the Connect tab.
5. Choose Select next to Contra.
6. Follow Contra's on-screen instructions, then select Connect.
7. Watch for the confirmation message. DNS updates can take up to 30 minutes to take effect.
8. To review the records Hover added automatically, go to the DNS tab.

Troubleshooting a Connection

• Still shows "Not Connected"? Wait up to 5 minutes, then select Check Status again.
• Already connected to another host? Remove any existing A or CNAME records pointing elsewhere before reconnecting.
• Still stuck? Contact Hover Support or Contra Support.

Next steps

• Review your DNS records to confirm everything looks right — see Managing DNS Records (Hover).
• Read Contra's own connection guide for platform-specific tips: Connecting your Custom Domain on Contra.

Questions? Contact Hover Support.