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Setting up a Custom Sub-Domain

Updated

Overview

Merchant Central allows you to use your own domain to access your CRM site. This helps create a branded experience for your partners, staff, and merchants by allowing them to sign in from a domain that matches your public website.

For example, if your public website is www.youriso.com, you can configure your CRM to be accessed from portal.youriso.com.

This article explains how to configure DNS records for a custom or white-labeled domain and how to confirm that the domain is connected successfully.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have:

  • Access to your domain hosting provider, such as GoDaddy, HostGator, Cloudflare, or another DNS provider.
  • Permission to edit DNS records for your public website domain.
  • Your Merchant Central CRM subdomain, such as <clientsite>.iriscrm.com.
  • The custom subdomain you want to use, such as portal.youriso.com.

DNS records are managed outside of Merchant Central through your domain hosting provider.

  1. Go to your domain hosting provider’s website.
  2. Sign in to the account that manages your public website domain.
  3. Open the DNS settings for your domain, such as youriso.com.

How does a custom domain work?

A custom domain points your branded domain or subdomain to your Merchant Central CRM site. When users go to the custom domain, they are directed to your Merchant Central login page.

To support this connection, you must add two CNAME records:

  • One record points your selected domain or subdomain to your Merchant Central CRM site.
  • One _acme-challenge record supports domain verification and SSL certificate setup.

After the records are created and saved, notify Merchant Central Support of the subdomain address so it can be registered as an approved domain for accessing your Merchant Central site.

Enabling a Custom Domain

To enable a custom domain, add the required DNS records with your domain hosting provider, then contact Merchant Central Support with the subdomain you created.

Merchant Central Support must register the domain before it can be used to access your Merchant Central site.

How to add DNS records for your custom domain

  1. Go to your domain hosting provider’s website.
  2. Open the DNS settings for your public website, such as youriso.com.
  3. Add the first DNS record using the following information:
    • Type: CNAME
    • Value: The subdomain to create on your domain. For example, use portal to create portal.youriso.com. If you are using a new domain for Merchant Central, such as www.youriso.com, the value is www.
    • Points To: <clientsite>.iriscrm.com Replace <clientsite> with your Merchant Central CRM subdomain.
    • TTL: 1 hour / 3600
  4. Add the second DNS record using the following information:
    • Type: CNAME
    • Value: _acme-challenge.<first part of your subdomain> For example, if your subdomain is portal.youriso.com, this value appears as _acme-challenge.portal.
    • Points To: _acme-challenge.<your subdomain>.<merchant central subdomain>. For example, if the name of your subdomain is portal.youriso.com and the name of your Merchant Central subdomain is demo.iriscrm.com, set the Points To value as: _acme-challenge.portal.youriso.com.demo.iriscrm.com
    • TTL: 1 hour / 3600
  5. Click Save in your DNS settings.

Your domain hosting provider will then process the DNS changes. In some cases, this happens immediately.

After saving the DNS records, notify Merchant Central Support of the subdomain address so it can be registered as an approved domain.

Once support confirms the domain has been registered, go to the subdomain you created. If the Merchant Central login page appears, the domain has been configured successfully.

☝️ If your custom domain is set up as www.youriso.com and you also want to direct youriso.com to the CRM, add two A-type DNS records that point youriso.com to 52.22.165.12 and 52.23.14.22.

For information on getting SSL for your custom domain, see this article.

How to add a white-labeled domain to Merchant Central

To add a white-labeled domain to Merchant Central, add two DNS records to your DNS settings. Use the examples below as a reference.

Example 1: White-labeled domain using www

  • White-labeled domain: www.youriso.com
  • Client: youriso.iriscrm.com

DNS record 1

  • Host: www 
    In some cases, this could be www.youriso.com.
  • Record Type: CNAME
  • TTL: 3600
  • Value: youriso.iriscrm.com.

DNS record 2

  • Host: _acme-challenge.www 
    In some cases, this could be _acme-challenge.www.youriso.com.
  • Record Type: CNAME
  • TTL: 3600
  • Value: _acme-challenge.www.youriso.com.youriso.iriscrm.com.

Example 2: White-labeled domain using a subdomain

  • White-labeled domain: reporting.iso2.com
  • Client: iso1.iriscrm.com

DNS record 1

  • Host: reporting 
    In some cases, this could be reporting.iso2.com.
  • Record Type: CNAME
  • TTL: 3600
  • Value: iso1.iriscrm.com.

DNS record 2

  • Host: _acme-challenge.reporting 
    In some cases, this could be _acme-challenge.reporting.iso2.com.
  • Record Type: CNAME
  • TTL: 3600
  • Value: _acme-challenge.reporting.iso2.com.iso1.iriscrm.com.

☝️ On Cloudflare, do not enable Proxy for the _acme-challenge record.procyoff.png

Using SSL with a custom domain or sub-domain

If you use a custom domain or sub-domain to access your CRM site, we recommend securing it with an SSL certificate. SSL encryption helps protect information sent between your users and the site.

Merchant Central uses Let's Encrypt to provide free SSL encryption. In most cases, SSL will be enabled automatically when you contact Support to add your domain or sub-domain as your Merchant Central site address.

If you already have a wildcard SSL certificate for your domain, such as https://*.123merchantservices.com, and want to use one of its sub-domains, such as https://sales.123merchantservices.com, follow these steps:

  1. Contact CRM Support and request a CSR. Be sure to mention that you have a wildcard SSL certificate, and include the applicable domain and sub-domain.
  2. CRM Support will provide the CSR.
  3. Download the certificate from your SSL vendor’s site. During this process, you will need to copy and paste the CSR provided by Support. Be sure to include all text and dashes from the CSR. If the SSL vendor asks for the server type, select Apache.
  4. The SSL certificate is typically provided as a ZIP file containing multiple files. Send the ZIP file to CRM Support so it can be installed on your site’s server.
  5. Once installed, your site address will begin with https instead of http, indicating that the site is secure.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Do I need to contact Merchant Central Support after creating the DNS records? Yes. After you create and save the DNS records, notify Merchant Central Support of the subdomain address. Support must register the subdomain as an approved domain before it can be used to access your Merchant Central site.
  • How do I know if my custom domain is configured correctly? Go to the subdomain you created. If the Merchant Central login page appears, your domain has been successfully configured.
  • What TTL should I use for the DNS records? Use a TTL of 1 hour or 3600.
  • What should I do if I use Cloudflare? Do not enable Proxy for the _acme-challenge record. The record should not be proxied.
  • Can I point both www.mypage.com and mypage.com to Merchant Central? Yes. If your custom domain is www.mypage.com and you also want mypage.com to point to Merchant Central, add two A-type DNS records for mypage.com that point to 52.22.165.12 and 52.23.14.22.