How it works
Where an email lands is decided by one thing: the MX record of the domain it was sent to. SimpleFlare receives mail through Cloudflare Email Routing, which hands the message to a small worker that drops it straight into your SimpleFlare inbox. So the whole job is: send only your support address down that path, and leave every other address pointing at Google or Microsoft.
A customer emails support@yourco.com
→
Routing rule support@ → SimpleFlare
→
SimpleFlare inbox your team replies here
Everyone else emails sales@, hr@, people
→
Google / Microsoft unchanged
Two addresses, two destinations. Nothing about your normal mail moves, and there is no cut-over or downtime, you add the support route alongside what you already run.
The safe way: a dedicated support subdomain
This is what we recommend for any company that already runs Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, because your primary domain is never touched. You use a subdomain such as help.yourco.com or support.yourco.com that exists only for support.
- Add the subdomain to Cloudflare. In your registrar or DNS host, point just that subdomain's nameservers at Cloudflare (a one-line delegation). Your main domain, its registrar, and all mailboxes stay where they are.
- Connect Cloudflare in SimpleFlare. On the Cloudflare setup page in your console, connect your account and pick the subdomain. SimpleFlare enables Email Routing, deploys the inbound worker, and creates the record set for you.
- Add the subdomain as a project. Its incoming mail now flows into that project's inbox, and replies go out from it, fully authenticated.
- Point your public address at it. Keep showing customers
support@yourco.com and add a one-line alias so that address delivers into the subdomain (see the Google and Microsoft steps below). Or simply publish support@help.yourco.com directly.
Why this is safe: the only things that ever live on Cloudflare are the support subdomain and its own send/receive records. Your corporate domain's reputation, SPF, DKIM and mail flow are completely isolated, so support volume can never affect delivery of your normal business email.
Alternative: route one address on your main domain
If you would rather keep the exact address support@yourco.com with no alias, you can route it on the main domain instead. This moves your domain's MX to Cloudflare Email Routing, which then does two things:
- Sends
support@yourco.com to SimpleFlare via a single address rule.
- Forwards everything else to Google or Microsoft with a catch-all rule, so every other mailbox keeps working exactly as before.
Trade-off: this changes your primary MX, so all inbound mail now passes through Cloudflare before being forwarded on. It works well, but for a large organisation the subdomain approach above is lower risk because it leaves the main domain untouched.
Google Workspace: publish support@yourco.com into SimpleFlare
Use this with the subdomain approach so customers keep emailing support@yourco.com while the mail is delivered into SimpleFlare.
- In the Google Admin console, go to Apps → Google Workspace → Gmail → Routing.
- Add a routing rule that matches the recipient
support@yourco.com and changes the envelope recipient (or adds one) to support@help.yourco.com, your SimpleFlare subdomain address.
- Alternatively, simplest of all: create
support@yourco.com as a mail forwarding / group that forwards to support@help.yourco.com. No routing rule needed.
- Send a test email to
support@yourco.com and confirm it appears in your SimpleFlare inbox within a few seconds.
Note: you are only touching the single support address. Every other Workspace user, group and alias is unaffected.
Microsoft 365: publish support@yourco.com into SimpleFlare
- In the Microsoft 365 admin center (or Exchange admin center), open Mail flow → Rules.
- Create a rule: if the message is sent to
support@yourco.com, redirect it to support@help.yourco.com (your SimpleFlare subdomain address).
- Or, the simple route: turn
support@yourco.com into a shared mailbox or distribution list and set forwarding to support@help.yourco.com.
- Send a test to
support@yourco.com and confirm it lands in SimpleFlare.
Note: redirect keeps the original sender, so replies from SimpleFlare thread correctly with the customer.
DNS records reference
With the subdomain approach these are added on help.yourco.com only, and SimpleFlare's setup wizard fills them in for you when you connect Cloudflare. They are listed here for transparency and for teams who want to review them first.
| Record | Host | Purpose |
|---|
| MX | help.yourco.com | Cloudflare Email Routing receives support mail. Added automatically when routing is enabled. |
| TXT (SPF) | help.yourco.com | v=spf1 include:_spf.mx.cloudflare.net ~all, authorises sending for the subdomain. |
| TXT (DKIM) | <selector>._domainkey.help.yourco.com | Signs outgoing replies so they pass authentication. |
| TXT (DMARC) | _dmarc.help.yourco.com | v=DMARC1; p=none; rua=..., alignment and reporting for the subdomain. |
Important: because all of this sits on the subdomain, your primary domain's SPF, DKIM and DMARC are never edited. Your corporate mail authentication stays exactly as your IT team set it.
Sending the replies
When your team replies from the SimpleFlare inbox, the message goes out authenticated from your support address (for example support@help.yourco.com, shown to the customer as your support team). Because the SPF and DKIM above live on the subdomain, replies pass authentication cleanly and land in the inbox, without borrowing or affecting your main domain's sending reputation.
You can set a per-project signature and logo so replies look like they come from your brand, not from a generic helpdesk.
If you do not use Cloudflare
Receiving in SimpleFlare is built on Cloudflare Email Routing, so at least the address you want us to receive has to live on a domain that uses it. The key point: that can be just a subdomain.
You do not move your domain to Cloudflare, change registrar, or migrate any mailbox. You delegate one small subdomain (help.yourco.com) to Cloudflare with a single nameserver change at whatever DNS host you use today, GoDaddy, Route 53, Namecheap, Google Domains, anything. Your primary domain stays with your current provider and keeps serving all of your normal mail.
yourco.com stays on your current DNS + Google / Microsoft
+
help.yourco.com delegated to Cloudflare, support only
So the honest summary is: SimpleFlare does not require you to run your company on Cloudflare, it requires one support subdomain to use Cloudflare's routing. If a strict policy rules out Cloudflare even for a subdomain, get in touch before you sign up so we can confirm the right setup for you.
FAQ
Do I have to move my email to SimpleFlare?
No. Only your support address is routed in. Every other mailbox, alias, calendar and file stays on Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, unchanged.
Will this affect the deliverability of our normal business email?
No. With the subdomain approach, support sending is fully isolated on help.yourco.com. Your primary domain's SPF, DKIM, DMARC and reputation are never touched.
Can customers still email support@yourco.com?
Yes. You keep publishing that address and add one alias or forward so it delivers into SimpleFlare. Nothing about the customer-facing address changes.
Do I have to move my whole domain to Cloudflare?
No. Only a support subdomain is delegated to Cloudflare, via a single nameserver record. Your main domain stays with your current provider.
Is there downtime or a migration window?
No. The support route is added alongside your existing setup. Until the alias is switched on, mail keeps flowing exactly as it does now.
What about our existing support tickets or history?
New mail flows in from the moment you switch the alias. Your old mailbox and its history remain accessible wherever they live today.
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