1. Creating the JSON file

Firstly, you need to go to the is-a-dev/register repository on GitHub.

If you don’t have a GitHub account, you can create one by clicking Sign Up.

Navigate to the domains/ folder and then from there click the Add file button and selecting the Create new file option.

If it says you need to fork the repository, click the fork repository button and continue with the next steps on your forked repository.

Next, add the file name near the top where it says Name your file.... Name your file the name of the subdomain you want, in my case I want william.is-a.dev, so I will name the file william.json.

Here are the naming requirements:

• It must be more than 2 characters long but less than 64 characters
• It cannot contain underscores, only dashes are permitted
• You can only use standard English characters

After naming your file you need to put the JSON content into it, here is an example JSON structure:

{
    "owner": {
        "username": "your-github-username"
    },
    "records": {
        "RECORDTYPE": "RECORDCONTENT"
    }
}

• Replace your-github-username with your GitHub username.
• For RECORDTYPE set it to what you require for your use. You can see the records is-a.dev supports here. If your website is using GitHub Pages, set this to CNAME.
• For RECORDCONTENT set this to the value of the record you need, for GitHub Pages this would be your-github-username.github.io. (A, AAAA and MX records must be an array [].)

MAKE SURE YOU MODIFY RECORDTYPE AND RECORDCONTENT TO MATCH THE DNS RECORD YOU REQUIRE.

Finally, click Commit changes... and then Propose changes.

2. Creating your pull request

Now you should be greeted with a screen which looks like this:

All you need to do here is fill out the requirements and place an x between the [ ] (so it looks like [x]) for each requirement you meet. Please make sure you meet all the requirements before creating the pull request.

Once you have filled out the requirements you can then click the Create pull request button and you’re done!

3. Waiting…

Since you have created your pull request, you will need to wait for a maintainer to merge it before you domain name becomes active. Make sure to keep an eye on your pull request incase one of the maintainers requests changes.

Your pull request will normally be merged with-in 24-48 hours, however in some cases it may take longer. Please be patient as the maintainers are very busy.

Once your pull request is merged you should be good to go! Open an issue if you run into any trouble.

Congratulations you have successfully setup your free is-a.dev subdomain!

Make sure to join the is-a.dev Discord server for announcements regarding the service.