Putting your portal on your own domain
Moving your portal from the default hostname to portal.yourfirm.com: which DNS record to add, how certificates are issued, and what to check before you invite clients.
Your portal is reachable on a Pental-hosted subdomain the moment your database is installed, which is fine for setting things up. Before a client ever sees it, move it to a hostname you own. The domain is the first thing anyone checks before typing credentials, and it should say your firm.
Choose the hostname
Most firms use portal.yourfirm.com or app.yourfirm.com. Use a subdomain rather than the apex of your marketing domain: it keeps the portal independent of your website host, and it means changing website providers later never touches client access.
Add the record
In the portal, open the domain settings and enter the hostname you want. The platform generates the exact DNS record to create. Add it at your DNS provider, whoever that is, then leave the page open: the platform polls for propagation and tells you when the hostname resolves correctly.
DNS changes are usually live within minutes, but a provider with a long TTL can take a few hours. Nothing is broken while you wait, and the old hostname keeps working throughout.
Certificates
Once the record resolves, a TLS certificate is issued for your hostname automatically and renewed on schedule. There is nothing to buy, upload or diarise. If you have a CAA record on the domain, make sure it permits the issuing authority, otherwise issuance will fail quietly and you will see the hostname resolve but not secure.
Before you invite anyone
- Load the portal on the new hostname in a private window and confirm the padlock and your branding.
- Send yourself a test invitation and check the links in that email point at your hostname, not the default one.
- Add the hostname to your own asset inventory. It is production infrastructure carrying client data.
- Tell your clients the address once, in writing, so a future phishing attempt using a lookalike domain has something to fail against.
If you move the domain later
Changing hostname is supported and takes the same path: add the new record, confirm propagation, and the certificate is reissued. Old invitation links stop working when the previous hostname is released, so send anyone with an outstanding invitation a fresh one.
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