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Overview

By default, Hado SEO requires DNS only mode (gray cloud) during initial setup for DNS verification and SSL provisioning. Once your domain is verified and working, you can enable Cloudflare’s proxy (orange cloud) to layer Cloudflare’s security features on top of Hado SEO. 
Without Cloudflare proxy:
  Visitor → Hado SEO → Your App

With Cloudflare proxy:
  Visitor → Cloudflare → Hado SEO → Your App

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Why Enable Cloudflare Proxy?

  • DDoS protection from Cloudflare’s network
  • Web Application Firewall (WAF) for additional security
  • IP masking so your origin IP isn’t exposed via DNS lookups
Hado SEO already includes a global edge network, SSL, and compression. Cloudflare proxy adds a security layer on top, not a performance one.

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Prerequisites

  • Your domain is already set up in Hado SEO with DNS verified and SSL active
  • Your site is loading correctly through Hado SEO
  • Your domain’s DNS is managed by Cloudflare

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Step-by-Step Setup

1

Verify Hado SEO is working

Before enabling the orange cloud, confirm everything works:
  1. Visit your domain in a browser and verify your site loads
  2. Check your Hado SEO Dashboard shows DNS Configured
  3. Test with the SEO Bot Crawler Test to confirm prerendering works
2

Set Cloudflare SSL/TLS to Full (Strict)

This is the most important step. Cloudflare must connect to Hado SEO over HTTPS.
  1. Go to your Cloudflare Dashboard
  2. Select your domain
  3. Go to SSL/TLS in the sidebar
  4. Set the encryption mode to Full (Strict)
ModeWorks?Notes
OffNoNo encryption
FlexibleNoCauses redirect loops
FullYesConnects to Hado over HTTPS
Full (Strict)YesBest option, validates certificate
Using Flexible mode will cause an infinite redirect loop because Hado SEO enforces HTTPS. You must use Full or Full (Strict).
3

Disable Bot Fight Mode

Cloudflare’s bot management can block search engine crawlers before they reach Hado SEO.
  1. Go to Security → Bots in the Cloudflare sidebar
  2. Turn off Bot Fight Mode
  3. If you have Super Bot Fight Mode (Pro+), ensure Verified Bots are set to Allow
If Bot Fight Mode is enabled, Cloudflare may challenge or block Googlebot, Bingbot, and other crawlers. This defeats the purpose of prerendering.
4

Enable the orange cloud

  1. Go to DNS → Records
  2. Click the gray cloud icon next to your A records to toggle it orange
  3. Save each record
TypeNameValueProxy Status
A@137.66.32.95Proxied (orange)
Awww137.66.32.95Proxied (orange)
5

Verify everything still works

After enabling the proxy:
  1. Visit your site in a browser
  2. Run the SEO Bot Crawler Test to confirm prerendering still works
  3. Check your Hado SEO Analytics over the next 24 hours to confirm bot visits are being tracked

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Caching

Cloudflare does not cache HTML by default, so bot detection works correctly out of the box. Hado SEO serves different content based on User-Agent (prerendered HTML for bots, passthrough for humans), and since HTML isn’t cached by Cloudflare, each request reaches Hado SEO properly. No changes needed for most sites. If you’ve added custom cache rules for HTML, make sure they don’t interfere with bot-specific responses.

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Security Settings

SettingRecommendedWhy
SSL/TLS ModeFull (Strict)Prevents redirect loops
Bot Fight ModeOffAllows search engine bots through
Under Attack ModeOff (use only during attacks)Challenges all visitors including bots
Browser Integrity CheckOn (default)Safe to keep enabled
Always Use HTTPSOnMatches Hado SEO’s HTTPS enforcement

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Settings to Avoid

Under Attack Mode shows a JavaScript challenge to every visitor. Search engine bots can’t solve these challenges and will fail to reach your prerendered pages.Only enable this during an active DDoS attack, and disable it afterward.
If you’ve set up custom Page Rules or Cache Rules that cache HTML (Cache Everything), Cloudflare may serve a cached human response to a bot (or vice versa).Either exclude HTML from caching or remove Cache Everything rules for your domain.
Cloudflare Workers that rewrite HTML, inject scripts, or modify headers can interfere with prerendered content and bot detection.If you use Workers, ensure they pass through requests to Hado SEO without modification.

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Troubleshooting

Cause: Cloudflare SSL/TLS is set to Flexible instead of Full (Strict).Fix: Go to Cloudflare → SSL/TLS and change to Full (Strict).
Cause: Cloudflare’s Bot Fight Mode or Super Bot Fight Mode is blocking crawlers.Fix:
  • Disable Bot Fight Mode in Security → Bots
  • For Super Bot Fight Mode, set Verified Bots to Allow
  • Check Cloudflare’s Firewall Events log to see if bots are being challenged
Cause: Cloudflare might be caching HTML or blocking bots silently.Fix:
  1. Run the SEO Bot Crawler Test to check prerendering
  2. Check Cloudflare Firewall Events for blocked requests
  3. Ensure no Cache Everything rules are active for HTML pages
  4. Wait 24-48 hours since bot visits are not immediate
Cause: Cloudflare can’t validate Hado SEO’s SSL certificate.Fix:
  • Ensure SSL/TLS is set to Full (not Full Strict) as a temporary workaround
  • Verify your domain’s SSL is active in your Hado SEO dashboard
  • If issues persist, temporarily switch back to gray cloud and contact [email protected]

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Reverting to DNS Only

If you need to disable Cloudflare proxy:
  1. Go to Cloudflare DNS → Records
  2. Click the orange cloud icon to toggle it back to gray
  3. Save each record
  4. Changes take effect within a few minutes

Cloudflare Pages Integration

Set up Hado SEO with Cloudflare Pages

DNS Setup Guide

DNS configuration for all providers