Host mapping a brand

Host Mapping a Help Centre in Zendesk: A Quick Guide for Admins

This article outlines how Zendesk admins can map a subdomain of their own domain (e.g., support.mycompany.com) to their default Zendesk help center address (e.g., mycompany.zendesk.com). This feature is called host mapping. Note that host mapping doesn't affect the URL of the agent interface, only the external-facing URL of your help centre.

Important Considerations

• Host mapping can only be done to subdomains, mapping to a subdirectory of an external site is not supported.
• You cannot use host mapping for second-level domains, such as gravity.cx.
• Your host mapping must be set up correctly before you start configuring SSL.
• If you don’t obtain a Zendesk-provisioned certificate, or provide your own, help centre traffic for your host-mapped domain will result in SSL errors.

Step-by-Step Instructions for Host Mapping

Here are the steps to host map your help centre:

1. Get a Domain Name and Subdomain:

   • Purchase and register a domain name with a domain registrar.
     • You'll likely already have your own domain.
   • Add a support-related subdomain (e.g., support.gravity.cx).
   • Consult your system administrator if needed.

2. Make the Subdomain an Alias of Your Default Zendesk Address:

   • Sign in to your domain registrar's control panel.
   • Look for the option to change DNS records (e.g., DNS Management, Name Server Management).
   • Locate the CNAME records for your domain.
   • Point the CNAME record from your subdomain to your Zendesk subdomain.
     • If you don't have a CNAME record for your subdomain, add a new record.
     • If you already have a CNAME record, edit the record.
   • Note: It may take a few hours to a day for DNS changes to be implemented.

3. Specify the New Address in Zendesk:

   • In Admin Centre, click Account in the sidebar, then select Appearance > Branding.
   • Scroll down to Host Mapping and enter your subdomain and domain name.
   • Click Save Tab.
   • If you have multiple brands, specify the address in Admin Center > Account > Brand management > Brands instead. See this article to edit brand settings

4. Set Up a Hosted SSL:

   • To configure an SNI-based SSL certificate, you have two options:
     • Use the free Zendesk-provisioned SSL certificate (recommended):
       • In Admin Centre, click Account in the sidebar, then select Security > More settings.
       • Click the SSL tab.
       • In Hosted SSL, click Enable Zendesk-provisioned SSL.
       • Click Save.
     • Use your own SNI-based certificate:
       • Purchase an SSL certificate from a certificate authority, ensuring it supports Server Name Indication (SNI) technology. IP-based SSL certificates are not supported.
       • Generate a certificate signing request file (CSR).
       • In Admin Centre, click Account in the sidebar, then select Security > More settings.
       • Click the SSL tab.
       • In the Hosted SSL section, click I do not have a certificate, and then Generate a request.
       • Provide the CSR file to the certificate authority to generate the SSL certificate.
       • After obtaining the SSL certificate, upload it to Zendesk.
       • In Admin Centre, click Account in the sidebar, then select Security > More settings.
       • Click the SSL tab.
       • In the Hosted SSL section, click I have a certificate, then Upload certificate.
       • Navigate to the PEM file and select it.
       • If you have a private key, upload it and enter your passphrase.
       • Click Save.
   • Zendesk requires that the DNS record be a CNAME record that points to yoursubdomain.zendesk.com. DNS "A" records are not supported.

5. Review the SSL Status:

   • In Admin Centre, click Account in the sidebar, then select Security > More settings.
   • Click the SSL tab.
   • The SSL page displays information about your certificates.
   • Refresh the page to run the SSL status check again.

After setting up a host-mapped, SSL-enabled domain, you can also perform management tasks such as reviewing the SSL status of a certificate, replacing a certificate, and extending HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) to one year.