Introduction to custom domain names
Adobe Experience Manager as a Cloud Service is provisioned with a default domain name, ending in *.adobeaemcloud.com. Using Cloud Manager’s UI you can add a custom domain to identify your site with a unique, branded name in a self-service manner. The default *.adobeaemcloud.com domain name remains, even after you associate custom domain names to your website.
What are custom domain names?
Each website has a unique, machine-readable, numerical address associated with it such as 184.33.123.64. The Domain Name System (DNS) is what lets you have custom, branded domains attached to websites by translating numerical addresses into memorable addresses such as wknd.com.
It is good practice to have a domain name for your site that is memorable for your customers and reflects your brand.
You can buy a domain name from a domain name registrar, a company or organization managing and selling domain names. Domain name registrars manage domain names on DNS servers.
IMPORTANTCustom domain names and Bring Your Own CDNs
AEM as a Cloud Service offers a built-in CDN (Content Delivery Network) service, but also lets you BYO (Bring Your Own) CDN to use with AEM. Custom domains can be installed either in the AEM-managed CDN or a CDN you manage.
- Cloud Manager manages custom domain names and certificates installed in the AEM-managed CDN.
- Custom domain names and certificates installed in a BYO CDN are managed directly within that CDN.
Domains managed in your own CDN do not require installation through Cloud Manager - They are made available to AEM by way of X-Forwarded-Host and match the vhosts defined in the Dispatcher. See the CDN documentation.
In one environment, you can have both domains installed in the AEM-managed CDN and installed in a BYO CDN.
Workflow
Adding a custom domain name requires interaction between the DNS service and Cloud Manager. Because of this workflow, there are several steps required to install, configure, and verify custom domain names. The following table gives an overview of the steps required, including links to documentation resources to complete those steps.
| Step | Description | Documentation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Add SSL certificate to Cloud Manager | Add an SSL certificate |
| 2 | Add custom domain to Cloud Manager | Add a custom domain name |
| 3 | Configure DNS settings by adding DNS CNAME or APEX records that point to AEM as a Cloud Service | Add a custom domain name |
| 4 | Review domain verification status | Check domain name status |
| 5 | Check DNS record status | Check DNS record status |
TIPUsage notes
- Custom domain names are supported in Cloud Manager only for publish and preview services for Sites programs.
- Custom domains for author services are not supported.
- Each Cloud Manager environment can host up to a maximum of 500 custom domains per environment.
- Domain names cannot be added to environments while there is a current running pipeline attached to those environments.
- The same domain name cannot be used in more than one environment.
- Only one domain name can be added at a time.
- AEM as a Cloud Service does not support wildcard domains such as
*.example.com. - Before adding a custom domain name, a valid SSL certificate that contains the custom domain name (wildcard certificates are valid) must be installed for your program.
- Additional configuration steps are required to use a custom domain name with the Front-End Pipeline feature.