Using a Custom Domain

[Vanya]

No more long unreadable URLs for your applications running on SAP HANA Cloud Platform - you can now choose and configure your own recognizable URL.

You can set your custom URL (https://mydomain.com) instead of the default URL on the hana.ondemand.com domain (https://whatiswrongwiththisurla0c06405f.hana.ondemand.com) for any application deployed on the platform.

You just need to have custom domain quota for your account. The custom domain configuration on SAP HANA Cloud Platform is done using console client commands.

But before you start with the actual configuration on the platform, note that you need to take care of some steps that involve service providers external to SAP – domain name registrar and Certificate Authority (CA).

Buy the domain

You first need to buy the custom domain names that you want for your applications. You have a wide choice of registrars selling domain names on the market – GoDaddy.com, Hover.com, Namecheap.com, Register.com, to name a few.

Choose a CA

Another external provider you need to use is the CA that will issue the certificate for your domain. You have to get an appropriate SSL certificate to make sure your domain is trusted and all your application data is protected.

Again, there is a huge number of CAs to choose from. To save money and hassle, before buying a certificate, carefully consider the number and type of domains you want to be protected by this certificate. One certificate can be valid for a number of domains and there are various types of domains (single; wildcard; multiple, etc.).

Set up

With the actual configuration, you set up secure SSL communication and then route the traffic for your custom domain to your application on SAP HANA Cloud Platform.

The configuration is done in the following sequence of steps:

    1. Create an SSL host.

The host holds the mapping between your chosen custom domain and the application on SAP HANA Cloud Platform as well as the SSL configuration for secure communication through this custom domain.

     2. Upload a domain certificate.

The certificate generation process starts with certificate signing request (CSR) that you generate on SAP HANA Cloud Platform and then send to a CA.

A CSR is an encoded file containing your public key and specific information that identifies your company and domain name.

Then, use the CSR to get a server certificate signed by the CA of your choice.

• Generate CSR
• Sign the CSR with a CA
• Upload the certificate

     3. Bind the certificate to the SSL host.

     4. Add the custom domain

     This maps the custom domain to the application URL.

     6. Configure DNS.

Now you need to route the traffic for the custom domain to your application on SAP HANA Cloud Platform by configuring it in the Domain Name System (DNS) that you use.

The mapping is specific for the domain name provider and usually is done by modifying CNAME records using their administration tools.

You are now ready.

Check if the application is accessible on the new domain.

In your Application Dashboard in the cockpit, the new custom URL should have replaced the default one.