How to Create, Customise & Deploy Your Hbuild Website

• The HostAfrica AI Builder (Hbuild) is a fully managed, AI-powered website builder developed and hosted by HostAfrica. 
• With Hbuild, you can describe your website in plain language and have the AI generate a fully responsive, professional website in minutes. No coding required!
• It is different from other builders such as the SiteBuilder (Basekit builder) or the DirectAdmin shared hosting builder, Site.Pro.

2. How do I access Hbuild?

• The HostAfrica AI Builder hbuild.hostafrica.com and the HostAfrica Client Panel share the same login credentials.

• If you have Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) enabled on your HostAfrica account, you will need your 2FA code to log in to Hbuild as well.

• From your browser, go to https://hbuild.hostafrica.com 
• Enter your HostAfrica email address and password.
  These are the same credentials used for the HostAfrica Client Panel: Hostfrica Client panel
  

• You will be prompted to enter your 2FA code during login if you have Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) enabled on your HostAfrica account.
  
• Therefore, make sure you have access to either your authenticator app or 2FA email before logging in.

• Once you are logged in, you will see an interface similar to the one below.

• If you do not yet have a HostAfrica account, you can create one here: Register | HostAfrica
  

• You can start by choosing a style for your site or importing a classic website for quick customisation

a. Enter Your Website Prompt

• Once logged in, you will see a text input field prompting you to describe your website.

• This is where you tell the AI what kind of website to build.
• For our example below, we will create a pet website with Hbuild.

• Below is an example of a well-written prompt.
• You can adapt it for your own business or idea:

• The quality of your website depends heavily on how clearly you describe it.
• A well-crafted prompt helps the AI understand exactly what you need. Keep these tips in mind:

• Mention what your website is for, who your audience is, and what you want visitors to do (e.g. "contact us", "browse our services", "book an appointment").

• Name each page explicitly — Home, About, Services, Gallery, Blog, Contact, etc.

• Mention colours, mood, or tone (e.g. "warm earthy tones", "modern and minimal", "bold and colourful").

• Words like "responsive", "SEO-optimised", "fast loading", "mobile-first", and "WCAG accessible" guide the AI toward best practices.

• Examples include a contact form, image gallery, newsletter signup, social media links, smooth scrolling, or a search filter.

• A focused, concise prompt works better than a very long one. Cover the essentials clearly.

Prompt tip example:

• Instead of writing:
   'make me a website'
• Try:
  'Build a responsive website for a bakery in Cairo. Include Home with hero image, Menu page, About Us, and Contact form. Use warm browns and cream tones, mobile-first design, SEO meta tags, and social media icons.'

• Once you have entered your prompt, click the Build It button and allow the AI a few minutes to generate your website.
• You will see a loading screen with the message "Generating your website — this process may take up to several minutes."

• When the build is complete, your website preview will appear on the left side of the screen.
• On your dashboard, you may see a sidebar where you can continue making changes.

Note:

• Do not close or refresh the browser tab while your website is being generated.
• Wait for the preview to fully load before making any edits.

Congratulations — your website has been built!

• Take a moment to scroll through the live preview on the right to see the pages and sections the AI has created.
• You will notice a navigation bar, hero section, features section, gallery, testimonials, and contact section, among others, depending on your prompt.

4. How to customise your website?

• You can make changes to your website at any time using the AI chat input on the right of your screen. 
• Simply type your edit request in plain language, and the AI will apply the changes for you.

• In the text box that says "Describe A Change", type your instruction and press the Send button.

'Welcome to Dog Lovers Hub: Your go-to resource for all things canine'

Tip:

• Be clear and specific with your edit instructions.
  For example, instead of 'change the text',
  say 'change the hero headline to Welcome to My Bakery'. 
• The more specific you are, the better the AI will understand you.

5. How to deploy your website?

• When you are happy with your website, click the Deploy button at the top-right of the screen.
• A Configuration and Payment pop-up will appear.

• Free Subdomain:
  Select 'Free Subdomain' to publish your site on a yoursite.hbuild.site address at no additional cost.
  This is a great way to get started quickly.
  
• Custom Domain: 
  Select 'Custom Domain' if you want your website to have a professional address like yourwebsite.co.za.
  You can either search for a new domain or use one you already own.

This option is used only when you don't have a domain name.
If you have a domain name, please proceed to step iii.

• Click Custom Domain, then click Search for a Domain.

• Type your desired domain name
  (e.g. mynewwebsite.co.za) and click Search.
• Available domains will appear in the search results.
• Click on your preferred domain.

• Select your registration period
  (e.g. 1 Year at X amount) and choose whether to include Domain Warranty & Privacy
  (recommended; protects your domain and IP).
  
• Click Select Domain to add it to your order.

Domain Warranty & Privacy:

This add-on protects your domain from accidental loss and keeps your personal contact details private in the WHOIS registry

It is recommended for all new domain registrations.

This option should be used only when you have already registered a domain name.

If you do not have a domain name, refer to step ii above.

• Click Custom Domain, then click I Have a Domain.
• Enter your domain name in the field provided
  (e.g. yourwebsite.co.za).
• Do not include 'www' or 'https://'.
• Click Use My Domain.
• The domain will be confirmed with the label 'Using this domain'.
• Note: Your domain will be configured after payment.
• DNS setup instructions will be provided.

• Review your Order Summary to confirm the items and total amount.
• Select your Payment Method.
• Click Pay Now to proceed to the payment gateway.
• Complete your payment.
• Once payment is confirmed, the Deploy Now button will become active.
• Click Deploy Now to publish your website.

6. Where do I find the DNS information?

• After paying for your Hbuild website and clicking Deploy Now, you will be provided with some DNS records to add to your domain name that are similar to the example below.

• If your domain name is registered with HostAfrica, the required DNS records may already exist.
  In this case, you can skip this step, as adding the records will not be necessary.
  
  
• Log in to your domain registrar
  (e.g. GoDaddy, Namecheap, Google Domains).
• Navigate to DNS Management, DNS Settings, or Zone File Settings; the exact name varies by provider.
• Add a TXT Record with the name _hbuild and the unique value provided in your DNS Setup
• Add an A Record pointing your domain name to the IP address 169.255.58.11.
• Save your changes.

DNS propagation typically takes between 5 minutes and 60
minutes, but can take up to 48 hours in some cases.

• Return to the HostAfrica AI Builder and click Verify DNS Configuration to check that the records are correctly set up.
• Once verified, click Deploy Now to publish your website live.

Note:

DNS changes can take up to 48 hours to fully propagate worldwide, although most changes take effect within an hour.

If the verification fails initially, wait 15-30 minutes and try again.

i. Deployment Successful!

From here you can:

You will also receive an email confirmation with your details.

Your website is now live. 

Remember that you can return to the builder at any time to update content, add pages, change styling, or make any other edits using the AI chat feature.

8. How do I start over?

• To start over with a completely new website, click the Restart button under 'Actions' at the top of the builder screen.
• Please note that this will permanently delete your entire current website and cannot be undone.
• Use this option with caution.