We need a service that will handle e-mail messages before we request our free certificate to AWS. I suggest Zoho Mail as a free option (up to 5 GB space). In this section, we will see how to configure this service by performing the following steps:
- First, browse www.zoho.com/mail and sign up for a free business e-mail account. This account will be associated with your domain. When selecting the administrator account, choose the name admin. This name is important because AWS will check your domain ownership by sending a confirmation e-mail to admin@example.com.
- After you create your account, you will be requested to confirm the ownership of the associated domain. There are a few options to prove your ownership, and I prefer using the CNAME method. In the Select your domain's DNS Manager (DNS Hosting provider) from the list option, choose Others.. because AWS is not listed. Now, select CNAME Method, and the CNAME and Destination will be presented. You need to configure a new temporary Route 53 record set with this pair and finish clicking on the Proceed to CNAME Verification button:
- After verifying, confirm the creation of the admin account. You can add in the sequence other users.
- The next step is to configure MX (mail exchange) records in Route 53. Copy the values that are presented by Zoho:
- Go back to Route 53. Delete the CNAME record set that was created to verify your Zoho account because it is no longer necessary. Now you need to create a new record set of the type MX using the values from the preceding screenshot:
- We are done. You can test whether it is working correctly by sending an e-mail to this new address and by checking your Zoho e-mail account for received e-mails.