Custom domain shows valid configuration but apex and www fail TLS with ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR

Hey all, I’m having an issue with an SSL Protocol Error…

Problem

Two custom domains (whimsi.xyz and www.whimsi.xyz) show “Valid Configuration” in Vercel, but browsers return ERR_SSL_PROTOCOL_ERROR. Other domains on the same project (domstack.app, www.domstack.app) work perfectly.

Evidence

Failing - no certificate served

openssl s_client -connect 216.198.79.1:443 -servername whimsi.xyz -tls1_2

Result: no peer certificate available

openssl s_client -connect 216.198.79.1:443 -servername www.whimsi.xyz -tls1_2

Result: no peer certificate available

Working - valid cert served

openssl s_client -connect 216.198.79.1:443 -servername domstack.app -tls1_2

Result: valid Let’s Encrypt certificate

What I’ve Tried

  1. Removed both whimsi domains from Vercel.
  2. Waited, then re-added them.
  3. Verified DNS is set to DNS-only in Cloudflare (no proxy/redirect/worker rules).
  4. Dashboard now shows valid configuration, but TLS still fails.

Diagnosis

This appears to be an SNI routing issue at the edge layer — the certificate exists and is valid, but isn’t being served for the whimsi.xyz hostname on certain edge nodes. The cert binding seems incomplete.

Ask

Has anyone experienced this? Is there a way to force certificate re-provisioning, or does this require Vercel infrastructure intervention?

The domain troubleshooting guide can help with most custom domain configuration issues. You might be able to use that guide to solve it before a human is available to help you. Then you can come back here and share the answer for bonus points.

You can also use v0 to narrow down the possibilities.

did you ever figure it out? having the same issue