Configure Support for a Custom Domain

If you want your customers to see a different URL than the one generated by Visual Builder, you can map a custom domain to your instance.

A custom domain is a customer-provided hostname and domain (FQDN) created by adding a subdomain to your domain. After configuring your instance to use a custom domain, app users accessing the app using the custom domain will not see the typical Oracle domain (for example, myvbinstance-accountname.builder.ocp.oraclecloud.com) in the URL, but instead would see something like mycustom.example.org.

Note:

For the custom domain to work, you must set the custom domain in the visual application's Settings editor and publish the app. See Specify a Custom App URL in Developing Applications with Oracle Visual Builder.

After configuring a custom domain:

• Users can access a single web app by typing just the custom domain URL in the browser, for example, mycustom.example.org. The app is loaded from the custom domain root ("/"), and no additional path information or query parameters are required in the URL.
• http can be redirected to https, so if a user types "mycustom.example.com", this will resolve to https://mycustom.example.com, and load the default web app.
• For applications that contain business objects, the Business Object REST API can also use the custom domain configuration.
• Developers can access the Designer in Visual Builder using a custom domain.
• If you create and stage an application from a custom domain (https://mycustom.example.com/ic/builder/designer), you'll be automatically redirected to the custom domain (https://mycustom.example.com/ic/builder/rt/appid/version/...) when you open the app using a URL that isn't the application's custom domain (for example, your instance's URL https://servicename.oraclecloud.com/ic/builder/rt/appid/version/...).

Multiple custom domains can be configured for an instance, but each custom domain must be mapped to a different visual application. For example, if the visual application myvisualapp1 is mapped to the subdomain mysubdomain1, if you want to map mysubdomain2 to an application it must be mapped to a different visual application (myvisualapp2).

Custom domains are also subject to other limitations:

• A custom domain can only access a published app. It will not work for apps that are only staged.
• If you publish a different web app in your visual application, it immediately becomes the default app for the custom domain, and the previous web app will no longer be available at the custom domain.
• A custom domain can only be used to access one live app (in the visual application configured for the root URL). You can access other live apps in the same instance only by using the full Oracle Cloud URL or by creating and configuring a different custom domain and visual application.
• If a visual application contains more than one web app, only one of them can be accessed using the custom domain. It's not possible to specify which app in a visual application will be available at the custom domain because the domain is configured in the Settings for the visual application, not for individual web apps. If you are going to use a custom domain, it is recommended that the visual application only contain one web app to ensure that the correct app is loaded.
• Mobile and PWA apps are not supported at this time. Custom domains can only be used for web apps.

To configure a custom domain for your instance:

• You must be the registered owner of the domain and have access to its SSL certificate bundle information.
• You must have an Oracle Visual Builder instance.

  Note:

  Custom domains are also supported on Oracle Integration instances, but only if you're on Generation 2.

Depending on whether you're on Oracle Integration Generation 2, Visual Builder, Visual Builder Generation 2, or a Visual Builder instance that was provisioned as part of a SaaS order, the process for enabling custom URLs varies. To enable a custom domain:

• For a Visual Builder Generation 2 instance, use the instructions in Create and Configure a Custom Endpoint for Your Visual Builder Instance in Administering Oracle Visual Builder Generation 2.
• For a Visual Builder instance that is not Generation 2, but where you have access to the OCI Console, you'll need to:
  • Create a WAF Policy in the OCI Console for your OCI account;
  • Create and Configure a Subdomain and Configure SSL in the WAF Policy; and
  • Log a service request with Oracle Support.
• For a Visual Builder instance provisioned as part of a SaaS order, you might not have access to the OCI Console for configuring WAF. In this case, you'll need to use the instructions in Create Custom Domain for Visual Builder Instance Provisioned as Part of a SaaS Order.
• For a Visual Builder in Oracle Integration Generation 2 instance, use the instructions in Configure a Custom Endpoint for an Instance in Provisioning and Administering Oracle Integration and Oracle Integration for SaaS, Generation 2.

Create a WAF Policy in the OCI Console

To create a custom domain for your Visual Builder instance, you'll need to create and configure an Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Web Application Firewall (WAF) policy for your OCI account in the OCI Console.

Note:

If you do not have access to the OCI Console, you'll need to use the instructions in Create Custom Domain for Visual Builder Instance Provisioned as Part of a SaaS Order.

To create the WAF policy:

1. Sign in to the Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Console and open WAF Policies under Security.
2. Select the compartment you want the WAF policy to be created in and click Create WAF Policy.
3. Enter the details for the policy in the Create WAF Policy dialog box.
   
   

   
   Description of the illustration wafpolicy.png

   
   

   In the Create WAF Policy dialog box you need to enter a policy name, primary domain, WAF origin name and URI.

   • Policy Name: provide a name for the WAF policy (for example, mycustom_example_com_waf_policy)
   • Primary Domain: the customer's chosen DNS name (for example, mycustom.example.com)
   • Additional Domains: (empty, or additional (sub)domains)
   • Origin Name: provide a name for the primary origin (for example, mycustom_vb_waf_origin)
   • URI: the URI of the Visual Builder service (for example, myvbcsinstance-example.builder.ocp.oraclecloud.com)

   Note:

   If you would like to have more than one custom domain pointing to different applications on the same Visual Builder instance (for example, mysubdomain1.example.com pointing to myvisualapp1, and mysubdomain2.example.com pointing to myvisualapp2), you can configure this in a single WAF policy by adding additional (sub)domains in the Domains section of the WAF policy dialog box.

4. Click Create WAF Policy.
   After you click Create WAF Policy, it might take several minutes to create the policy. The CNAME target is displayed after the policy is created.
5. Note the CNAME Target for the WAF policy.

   At the top of the WAF policy view you'll see a message with the name. You'll need this CNAME when you configure your domain's DNS record at your DNS provider to map the subdomain to your instance. The CNAME Target will look similar to this:

   mycustom-example-com.b.waas.oci.oraclecloud.net

You still need to upload the SSL certificate for your domain to your WAF policy so you can enable HTTPS. You can get the SSL certificate when you configure your domain's DNS record.

Create and Configure a Subdomain and Configure SSL in the WAF Policy

To use a custom domain for your app you'll need to use your domain provider's tools to create a subdomain that points to the WAF CNAME target for your instance that was generated for you after you created the WAF policy.

Note:

If you do not have access to the OCI Console to create the WAF policy, you'll need to use the instructions in Create Custom Domain for Visual Builder Instance Provisioned as Part of a SaaS Order.

Using the tools for administering your domain, you will need to edit your domain's DNS record to create or identify the subdomain and map it to the WAF CNAME of your Visual Builder instance. Your WAF CNAME will look similar to mycustom-example-com.b.waas.oci.oraclecloud.net. If you are unsure about how to create a subdomain and CNAME entry with your domain provider, please check with your organization's network administrator.

After editing the DNS record, you'll need to get the SSL certificate for the domain so you can upload it to your WAF policy. You'll then need to log a Service Request to configure the instance backend.

To create and configure a subdomain for your instance:

1. Open the tool of your domain provider for creating a subdomain.
2. Create the subdomain you want to use (for example, mycustom.example.com) and edit it's CNAME record to point to the WAF CNAME of your WAF policy.
3. Confirm there is a valid SSL certificate that applies to the subdomain.

   The certificate might be provided by your domain provider or through a valid certifying authority (CA) (for example, Comodo, DigiCert). It shouldn't be a self-signed certificate. You will need to provide the CA-signed SSL certificate in the WAF policy, so you might want to consider an SSL certificate specifically for the subdomain rather than a wildcard SSL cert (*.example.com).

4. Extract or export the bundle containing the certificate and private key.
   
   

   
   Description of the illustration url-ssl-certificate.png

   
   

   Depending on your domain provider, you may need to indicate that you want to use the certificate on your own server in order to download the bundle.

   
   
   Description of the illustration url-icert-nstall-message.png
   
5. In the OCI Console, locate and open the policy you created to view the WAF policy details.
6. Click Settings for your WAF policy, and then click Edit.
7. Select Enable HTTPS Support and upload the SSL Certificate and Private Key for your DNS name (for example, mycustom.example.com).

   Keep the HTTP to HTTPS Redirect option enabled.

8. Click Save.

   It will take some time for the configuration change for the SSL certificate to complete.

9. Log a Service Request through your Oracle Support representative to request that your Visual Builder instance be configured to handle requests for your custom subdomain.

   When you file the service request you will need to provide the following information:

   • your IDCS GUID
   • name of your Oracle Visual Builder or Oracle Integration instance
   • domain/subdomain created in the DNS CNAME record and mapped to the WAF policy (for example, mycustom.example.com)

After these setup steps have been completed by you and Oracle, you can map your visual application to the custom domain.

Create Custom Domain for Visual Builder Instance Provisioned as Part of a SaaS Order

If your Visual Builder instance was provisioned as part of a SaaS order, you may not have access to the OCI Console for configuring WAF. In this case, you'll need to use your domain provider's tools to create a subdomain that points to your instance, and then log a Service Request with Oracle Support to configure the instance backend, and include the SSL certificate and associated private key for the subdomain with the service request.

Note:

Instances provisioned as part of a SaaS order will contain -ODCSVBCS- as part of the instance's URL. Contact your service administrator if you're not sure.

To create and configure a subdomain for your instance:

1. Open the tool of your domain provider for creating a subdomain.
2. Create the subdomain and edit it's CNAME record to point to your Visual Builder instance URL.
3. Confirm there is a valid SSL certificate that applies to the subdomain.

   Oracle will need to maintain the certificate bundle on Oracle servers, so you might want to consider an SSL certificate specifically for the subdomain rather than a wildcard SSL cert (*.example.com). The certificate might be provided by your domain provider or through a valid certifying authority (for example, Comodo, DigiCert).

4. Extract or export the bundle containing the certificate and private key.
   
   

   
   Description of the illustration url-ssl-certificate.png

   
   

   Depending on your domain provider, you may need to indicate that you want to use the certificate on your own server in order to download the bundle.

   
   
   Description of the illustration url-icert-nstall-message.png
   
5. Log a Service Request through your Oracle Support representative to request that your Visual Builder instance be configured to handle requests for your custom subdomain.

   When you file the service request you will need to provide the following information:

   • The URL of your instance.
   • The details of the CNAME record showing the subdomain and the Visual Builder instance it points to.
   • Certificate and Private key files (.cer and .key)

Once setup is complete you can map your visual application to the custom domain.