I’m trying to figure out how to create a system similar to what WordPress.com offers where users can connect their own domain names to their accounts. I’m working with ASP.NET and IIS and wondering if this is doable.
From what I understand, WordPress makes users update their domain’s DNS records to point to WordPress servers. I’m guessing this probably won’t work on shared hosting since you’d need to modify DNS server entries for every custom domain that users add.
But what about on a VPS or dedicated server? Could you automate this process through code? I’m curious about the technical requirements and whether there are any ASP.NET libraries or IIS features that could help with this kind of domain routing setup.
Any insights on how to approach this would be really helpful.
Yeah, totally doable - just don’t overcomplicate the DNS stuff. I usually tell users to set up a CNAME pointing to custom.yourapp.com, then handle the routing by checking Request.Headers["Host"]. Way easier than messing with automated DNS records.
You’re right - shared hosting won’t give you the DNS control you need. VPS or dedicated server makes this way easier. I’ve done something similar with IIS URL Rewrite and custom ASP.NET routing. Set up a wildcard DNS entry (*.yourdomain.com) pointing to your server, then detect domains in your app code using the Host header. For DNS automation, don’t try managing records directly on your server. Use a DNS provider’s API instead - Cloudflare, Route 53, or DNSimple all work great. Your users either delegate their DNS to your provider or create CNAMEs pointing to your setup. IIS Application Request Routing (ARR) helps if you need fancier load balancing or domain handling. Just don’t forget SSL certificates for custom domains - you’ll want Let’s Encrypt automation when you scale up.
The real challenge isn’t DNS - it’s SSL certificates and performance at scale. I built this for a SaaS platform on Azure VMs and certificate provisioning became the bottleneck fast. You need automated cert generation through ACME protocol. I wrote a background service that watches for new domains and provisions certificates async. For routing, build middleware that catches requests early and maps the custom domain to the right tenant. Cache those domain-to-account database lookups heavily since they happen on every request. And definitely add domain verification before going live - make users upload a verification file or add a DNS TXT record. Otherwise you’ll get domain hijacking attempts.
This topic was automatically closed 24 hours after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.