Custom domains and free subdomains
Host your program page, partner portal and short links on your own domain or a free subdomain. Add one CNAME record and see what moves to the new address.
Your program page, application form, partner portal and short links can live on your own domain, such as partners.acme.com. On Cloud every program already has a free address like acme.openpromoter.com. Add a custom domain when you want partners and their audience to see your own name in every link.
On Cloud, custom domains come with the Starter plan and up.
How to add your domain
- Open Settings > Portal & domain.
- Under Custom domain, enter the domain (for example
partners.acme.com) and click Save. - At your DNS provider, add a CNAME record from that domain to the target shown on the page. On Cloud the target is
domains.openpromoter.com. - Click Check DNS and HTTPS (or Verify DNS when self-hosting). The domain shows Verified once the record is live.
DNS changes can take a few minutes to reach everyone. Click the button again if the first check fails.
On Cloud, HTTPS is automatic. We issue and renew the certificate once the record is live.
Each domain belongs to one program. You can't use a domain that another program already has, and you can't use one under openpromoter.com.
What lives on your domain
Once the domain is verified, your program lives at its root:
| Page | Address |
|---|---|
| Program page | https://partners.acme.com/ |
| Application form | https://partners.acme.com/apply |
| Partner portal | https://partners.acme.com/portal |
| Short links | https://partners.acme.com/<key> |
| Code links | https://partners.acme.com/r/<program>/<code> |
Old links to /p/<program> on the domain redirect to the clean address. Links partners already shared keep working.
Partner sign-in on your domain
Partner sign-in, forgot password and password reset open on your domain with your program's brand. The sign-up link on your domain goes to your application form, which creates the partner's account.
Google and GitHub sign-in return to the app's own host. On a custom domain, those buttons continue the sign-in on app.openpromoter.com (or your APP_URL).
Free subdomains
On Cloud, every program without a custom domain gets a free address at <slug>.openpromoter.com. A program with the slug acme lives at https://acme.openpromoter.com. It serves the program page, application, portal, partner sign-in and short links like a custom domain.
The address appears in Settings > Portal & domain under Custom domain. There is nothing to set up.
When a program also has a verified custom domain, that domain is its one address. Visits to the subdomain redirect there.
Some names are reserved and never serve a program. They include www, app, api, admin, docs, help, blog, mail, partners, portal and demo.
New programs never get a reserved name as their slug. An unknown or reserved subdomain answers with a 404.
Self-hosting
Custom domains work on your own server too. Founders point the CNAME at the host in your APP_URL, or at CUSTOM_DOMAIN_TARGET when you set it.
Your reverse proxy needs a TLS certificate for each domain. Caddy and Traefik get these automatically.
For automatic HTTPS through Cloudflare for SaaS, set CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN and CLOUDFLARE_ZONE_ID. The token needs Zone > SSL and Certificates > Edit on that zone.
To give programs free subdomains, set PROGRAM_SUBDOMAINS to your parent domain (for example partners.example.com). First add a wildcard DNS record (*.partners.example.com) that points at your server. Your reverse proxy also needs a wildcard certificate for HTTPS.
See Self-hosting for every variable.
Good to know
- Partner links made before you add a domain keep working after it is verified.
- To remove a domain, clear the field and click Save. The program goes back to its free address.
- The domain only serves partner pages. Your founder dashboard stays on
app.openpromoter.com.