cPanel Tutorial: Configuring Google Webmail (Gmail) to Access Domain Mailbox

Wouldn’t it be great if your domain mailbox would have all the functionalities of Gmail and you could access your domain email through an easy-to-remember URL like http://mail.yourdomain.com? Gmail is arguably regarded as the most trusted e-mail client as far as security and functionality are concerned; and Gmail’s user-friendly interface has made it the most preferred mode of email communication across the globe.

In this tutorial, we will describe the procedure to configure Google webmail or gmail client to be used with your domain email ID.

Before we get in to the detailed technicalities, do make sure that you have verified your domain ownership and activated G suite (formerly known as Google Apps for work) service for your domain.

In order to configure Google Webmail to your domain mailbox, you will need to follow a somewhat similar approach of creating a new CNAME record and make it to point to Google Webmail Client. Let’s now get to the point straightaway.

Step 1: Log In to cPanel Interface & Navigate to Simple DNS Zone Editor

Use the username/password credentials supplied by your hosting service provider to log in to your cPanel interface. The icon for Simple DNS Zone Editor can be located on your cPanel home page under ‘Domains’ section.

Step 2: Add a CNAME Record

Expand the dropdown menu to select the desired domain name which you would like to integrate with Google Mail. As soon as you have selected the domain name, notice that two new sections – ‘Add A Record’ & ‘Add a CNAME Record’ have cropped up. There will be three input boxes available, namely, ‘Address’, ‘Name’ & ‘CNAME’. We will ignore the first box and use the remaining couple to insert a new CNAME record.

Enter ‘Webmail’ in the field denoted by ‘Name’, while the other text box, ‘CNAME’, should be filled in with ‘ghs.google.com’. Add the record by clicking on the designated button. A message will get displayed to confirm the successful addition of the CNAME record. You can also manually verify the same by having a look at ‘User Defined Records’ table which can be located right after the confirmatory message.

Step 3: Go to Google Apps Dashboard

Get inside the Email tab after logging in to your Google Apps Services dashboard.

Step 4: Change Default Webmail Address

Email Settings will consist of two sections – General and Email Addresses. In the General section, you will need to alter the ‘Web Address’ URL to point to your domain mailbox. Click on ‘Change URL’ link.

Step 4: Configure Email Settings

The Change URL interface will have two user defined options – ‘Default’ & ‘Custom’. Click on the radio button next to ‘Custom’ and input the URL (domain/subdomain) which you would like to use to access your e-mail account. For example – http://mail.yourdomain.com (Do not include the http:// part). Then click on ‘Continue’ button.

Step 5: Complete Domain Mailbox Setup

Google will prompt you to confirm that you have already added the required CNAME record in your CPanel (Step 1 & 2). Click on ‘I have completed these steps’ button to complete the Email Setup.

Allow 24-48 hours for your DNS changes to get propagated and you will then be able to access your domain mailbox directly through the URL specified in Step 4 (http://mail.yourdomain.com).