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Custom domain for the hosted chat page

Written by , Founder, AskVault · Reviewed by Aashiq
Last updated: · 4 min read

When to use a custom domain

By default the hosted chat page lives at askvault.co/c/{slug}. Most teams move to a custom subdomain for three reasons:

  1. Brand consistency. chat.yoursite.co looks like your product. askvault.co/c/... looks like a third party.
  2. Trust. Visitors are more likely to click a link on your own domain than a link going off-site.
  3. SEO signal. The hosted page can rank for branded queries when on your domain.

The cost is one DNS record plus about 30 minutes of setup time.

What you'll need

Three things before you start:

  • Access to your DNS provider. Cloudflare, Route 53, GoDaddy, Namecheap, etc.
  • A subdomain. Typically chat, support, help, or ask. Avoid the root domain (yoursite.co directly) since it conflicts with your main site.
  • An AskVault workspace on Growth or above. Growth+

Setup walkthrough

Five steps, about 30 minutes including DNS propagation:

Step 1: pick the subdomain

In your dashboard:

  1. Open Deploy Hub > Hosted Page > Custom Domain.
  2. Enter the subdomain (e.g., chat.yoursite.co).
  3. Click "Verify and proceed".

AskVault generates a verification token and shows the CNAME target.

Step 2: add the CNAME record

In your DNS provider:

  1. Open your DNS zone editor.
  2. Add a new CNAME record:
    • Name: chat (or your chosen subdomain prefix)
    • Target: the value AskVault shows (e.g., hosted.askvault.co)
    • TTL: 300 seconds (5 minutes) for faster initial propagation; can raise later.
  3. Save.

If you also need a verification TXT record (some DNS validation paths require this), add it too. AskVault tells you in the dashboard if it's needed.

Step 3: wait for DNS propagation

Typical wait: 5 to 60 minutes for the CNAME to be globally visible.

Check propagation:

Terminal window
dig CNAME chat.yoursite.co

Or:

Terminal window
nslookup chat.yoursite.co

Both should return AskVault's hosted endpoint. If they return NXDOMAIN, wait longer or check the DNS record syntax.

Step 4: verify in AskVault

Back in the dashboard:

  1. Click "Check verification".
  2. AskVault probes the CNAME. Success message appears within 30 seconds.
  3. SSL certificate auto-provisions. Takes 2 to 5 minutes.

The certificate is issued via Let's Encrypt. No action needed from you. AskVault auto-renews every 60 days.

Step 5: confirm and ship

Open https://chat.yoursite.co in your browser. You should see your hosted chat page rendered under the custom domain with a valid SSL certificate.

Update any links on your site, marketing materials, or email signatures that pointed at the old askvault.co/c/{slug} URL. The old URL still works (no redirect break), but the new domain is the canonical surface.

DNS provider specifics

The CNAME record itself is standard, but some providers have quirks:

Cloudflare.

  • Proxy status: turn OFF the orange cloud (set to "DNS only"). Cloudflare's proxy interferes with our SSL provisioning.
  • After SSL provisions: you can optionally re-enable the proxy, but this disables AskVault's edge optimizations.

Route 53.

  • Alias vs CNAME: use a regular CNAME, not an "A record alias". Aliases only work for AWS-internal targets.

GoDaddy, Namecheap.

  • TTL options: pick the lowest available (typically 600 seconds). Lower TTL = faster propagation.

Apex domain (root domain).

  • Most DNS providers don't allow CNAME at the apex. Use a subdomain. ALIAS / ANAME records (Cloudflare, Route 53) can work for apex on Business and above; contact support for the right target.

Multiple custom domains per workspace

Available on Business and above:

  • Up to 5 domains per workspace.
  • Useful when you have multiple brands sharing one knowledge base (e.g., chat.brand1.co and chat.brand2.co).
  • Configure each separately under Custom Domain settings.

The hosted page can detect which domain the request came in on and apply per-domain branding (logo, accent color).

SSL certificate details

What we provision automatically:

  • Issuer: Let's Encrypt.
  • Validity: 90 days, auto-renewed every 60 days.
  • Cipher suite: TLS 1.3 with TLS 1.2 fallback.
  • HSTS header: sent with max-age=31536000; includeSubDomains; preload.

If you need an EV certificate or a specific CA (some Enterprise security policies require this), contact support. Custom certificates available on Enterprise.

Redirect behavior

After setup:

  • chat.yoursite.co. Loads the hosted page directly.
  • askvault.co/c/{slug}. Still works. Returns the same page. No 301 redirect to the custom domain by default.

Optionally enable "Force redirect to custom domain" under Custom Domain settings. With it on, askvault.co/c/{slug} 301-redirects to chat.yoursite.co. Some teams prefer this for SEO consolidation; others prefer to keep both URLs live.

Audience-tag aware hosted pages

If your hosted page uses audience tags to gate content (e.g., paying-customer docs vs public docs), the custom domain inherits the same gating. Authenticated visitors (via identity verification) see their plan-specific content; anonymous visitors see public content.

Monitoring and uptime

The hosted page sits behind AskVault's CDN with the same SLA as the API:

  • 99.95% uptime target on Business and above (SLA page covers the details).
  • Edge caching for static assets at about 50 worldwide locations.
  • First-load TTFB typically under 300 ms globally.

See SLA per plan.

Planned features (on the roadmap)

Documented for accuracy:

  • Domain-level analytics. Today, analytics roll up per workspace. Planned to break down by custom domain (which domain drove which conversations).
  • Self-serve apex (root domain) support. Today, apex requires support help. Planned as self-serve on Business.
  • BYO certificate. Today, Let's Encrypt only. Planned BYO certificate upload for Enterprise.

Limits

  • Custom domains per workspace. 1 on Growth, 5 on Business, unlimited on Enterprise.
  • SSL auto-renewal. Every 60 days.
  • DNS propagation. 5 to 60 minutes typical.
  • Certificate validity. 90 days per Let's Encrypt issuance.

Common pitfalls

CNAME doesn't resolve. TTL not elapsed yet, or typo in the record. Wait 30 minutes; if still failing, re-check the record.

SSL not provisioning. Cloudflare proxy enabled. Turn off the orange cloud during initial setup.

"Connection not secure" warning in browser. Certificate hasn't issued yet. Wait 5 minutes after CNAME propagation.

Old URL stops working after enabling redirect. Expected. Update any links pointing at the old URL.

Apex domain CNAME rejected. DNS providers don't allow CNAME at the apex. Use a subdomain (chat, support, ask).

FAQ

Can I use the root domain (yoursite.co) directly?

Not via CNAME on most DNS providers. Cloudflare and Route 53 support ALIAS/ANAME records which can target the root; contact support for the right target.

How long does setup take?

About 30 minutes total: 5 minutes to add the CNAME, 5 to 60 minutes for DNS propagation, 2 to 5 minutes for SSL provisioning.

Can I use my own SSL certificate?

Today, Let's Encrypt only. BYO certificate is planned for Enterprise.

What happens if I let the custom domain DNS lapse?

Visitors see a DNS error. The fallback askvault.co/c/{slug} URL keeps working. Restore DNS to recover.

Can I have multiple custom domains for one workspace?

Yes, up to 5 on Business. Useful for multi-brand teams.

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