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Version: 0.6.x

Custom Domain Configuration

To use the link on a custom domain (e.g., client-domain.com), you must configure an HTTP Redirect (301 or 302) pointing to the link from Detour platform.

Target Resolution

Construct your target using your Organization Subdomain and App Hash.

ComponentVariableExample
Organization<org_slug>acme-corp
App Hash<app_hash>x9y8z7

Integration Strategies

Depending on your DNS provider's capabilities (e.g., Cloudflare, AWS CloudFront, Nginx, or standard registrars), choose one of the following redirection strategies.

Best for: Providers with Layer 7 capabilities (Cloudflare Page Rules, AWS ALB, Vercel Edge, Netlify).

This method is most efficient as it resolves directly to the canonical resource location, avoiding intermediate hops.

  • Source: client-domain.com/*
  • Destination: https://<org_slug>.godetour.link/<app_hash>/$1
  • Status: 301 Permanent Redirect

Example Configuration (Pseudo-code):

# Nginx / Reverse Proxy Example
server {
server_name client-domain.com;
location / {
return 301 https://acme-corp.godetour.link/x9y8z7$request_uri
}
}

Strategy B: Host-Based Redirect

Best for: Basic DNS registrars (Namecheap, GoDaddy) or limited forwarding services that do not support path appending or complex routing rules.

If your provider validates the destination field as a strict hostname (disallowing slashes/paths), use the underscore-delimited format. Our edge layer will detect this format and automatically redirect the client to the canonical path.

  • Source: client-domain.com
  • Destination: https://<org_slug>_<app_hash>.godetour.link
  • Status: 301 Permanent Redirect

Flow behavior:

  1. Client requests client-domain.com
  2. Provider redirects to acme-corp_x9y8z7.godetour.link
  3. Detour redirects to acme-corp.godetour.link/x9y8z7 (Canonical)

Implementation Checklist

  • SSL/TLS: Ensure your redirect service handles SSL termination for client-domain.com to avoid certificate warnings before the redirect occurs.
  • Path Preservation: If possible, ensure query parameters and sub-paths are preserved during the redirect
    (e.g., .../dashboard -> .../<app_hash>/dashboard).
  • DNS Propagation: Verify resolution using curl.
# Verification
curl -I https://client-domain.com

# Expected Output
HTTP/2 301
location: https://acme-corp.godetour.link/x9y8z7/
caution

Although, Detour Platform hosts necessary files for you to handle Universal and App Links, this doesn't apply to custom domain. You need to manually host appropriate files on your server to still use Universal and App Links.

For more information about Universal and App Links please visit the official documentation: Universal and App Links

The Problem

Mobile operating systems (iOS and Android) verify app ownership by fetching a configuration file from the URL the user clicked.

  • iOS: checks /.well-known/apple-app-site-association
  • Android: checks /.well-known/assetlinks.json

If your server responds with a 301 Redirect for these paths (pointing to the Detour platform), the operating system aborts the verification for security reasons, and the app will not open.

The Solution

You must configure your web server (Nginx/Apache/Cloudflare) to use a Hybrid Approach:

  1. Serve Verification Files Locally: The .well-known paths must return the JSON files for your specific app with a 200 OK status.
  2. Redirect Traffic: All other traffic (users visiting via browser) should be redirected to the Detour platform.

Example Nginx Logic:

# 1. Serve your app's deep link files locally (NO REDIRECT)
location /.well-known/ {
root /var/www/html;
}

# 2. Redirect everything else to Detour
location / {
return 301 https://orgname.godetour.link/apphash$request_uri;
}

📚 Official Resources

For detailed instructions on how to generate the required JSON files and configure your mobile app, please refer to the official documentation:

Support

Need help or found a bug? We are here to assist you! Join our developer community on Discord for quick support, or reach out via the Contact Form on our main homepage.

Direct Integration

Prefer a seamless experience without redirects?
We offer Direct Domain Integration, allowing your users to stay on your own domain (e.g., yourdomain.com) throughout their entire session. In this mode, the Detour platform handles the hosting and SSL certificates directly, so the URL in the browser never changes.

This feature requires additional verification steps. If you are interested in setting this up, please reach out to our team via the Contact Form form.