When you look at your Domains page, the Nameservers column shows whether your domain is pointed at the nameservers Maildoso uses to manage its DNS (MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC). If it shows "NS Not Set," that step hasn't completed yet — and what to do next depends on how you got the domain and whether this is a new domain or one that was previously working.
If you registered the domain through Maildoso
New domains need a short window after purchase to finish provisioning, including generating and attaching the nameservers. This is handled automatically on our side — there's nothing for you to configure.
Give it some time after purchase before checking again.
If the status still shows "NS Not Set" after 24 hours, contact us with the domain name(s) affected — this can happen when a registration didn't fully complete, and we'll finish it on our side.
You don't need to re-purchase the domain or add anything yourself — doing so won't speed this up and can cause duplicate charges.
If you brought your own domain (already owned elsewhere)
For external domains, "NS Not Set" usually means our two nameservers haven't been added at your domain's registrar yet.
Check your domain's page in Maildoso for the two nameservers we've assigned to it, then add only those two at your registrar (wherever you manage the domain — GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, etc.).
Don't leave your registrar's original nameservers in place alongside ours, and don't add any extra ones — only our two should be set.
Nameservers are generated as soon as you click Connect, and you have 24 hours to set them at your registrar. If that window passes before you set them, they expire automatically (status "NS Expired") and you'll need to regenerate a fresh set from the Domains page or via API — this is a normal, self-service step, not something you need to contact support for.
Once you've updated them at your registrar, we detect the change automatically and the domain typically activates within about 2 hours. Full DNS propagation across the internet can occasionally take longer, up to 24 hours depending on your registrar.
If your domain was registered through a registrar that locks nameservers to its own infrastructure (for example, domains bought directly through Cloudflare Registrar), it may not be possible to point it to our nameservers while it stays with that registrar. The most common fix is to transfer the domain's registration to a registrar that allows nameserver changes (for example, Namecheap or GoDaddy) and then point it to ours — registrar transfers can take several days and aren't instant, so plan ahead if you're on a deadline. If a transfer isn't an option for you, contact us and we'll help you find another path forward.
My domain was active before, but now shows "NS Processing" or "NS Expired" after a renewal
This is a different situation from a brand-new domain still finishing setup. If a domain that was previously Active drops back to "NS Not Set," "NS Processing," or "NS Expired" shortly after its renewal date, here's what to do:
Don't remove or change the nameservers at your registrar — for a domain that was already working, they should still be set to ours from before the renewal. Touching them can restart the process and delay things further.
This can take longer to clear than a typical new-domain setup. Give it up to 24 hours after the renewal date before assuming something is wrong.
If it's still stuck after 24 hours, contact us with the domain name(s) and the approximate renewal date — this is a known class of issue our team is actively tracking, and we can push the domain through manually rather than you needing to re-add nameservers or re-purchase anything.
Domains with DNSSEC enabled
If your external domain has DNSSEC enabled at your registrar, delegating it to our nameservers can fail or fall out of sync even after you've pointed the nameservers correctly. The old DNSSEC (DS) records left at the registry conflict with the new nameservers, which can leave the domain looking stuck or intermittently unresolvable.
Before pointing an external domain to our nameservers, disable DNSSEC for that domain at your registrar first.
If you've already switched nameservers correctly and the domain still won't resolve or keeps showing "NS Not Set," check whether DNSSEC is still enabled — it's the most common cause we see for this specific symptom.
Not sure whether DNSSEC is on, or how to turn it off at your registrar? Contact us with the domain name and we can help you check.
Why we need our nameservers specifically
Maildoso manages your domain's DNS records (MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC) for you so your mailboxes work correctly out of the box. That only works once the domain's nameservers point to us — we can't apply or troubleshoot DNS records on a domain that's still pointed elsewhere, and we don't support adding these records manually at a third-party DNS host.
Still showing "NS Not Set," "NS Processing," or "NS Expired" after following the steps above, or not sure which case applies to your domain? Contact us with the domain name and we'll take a look.