Custom Domains

Point your domain to Pulsar and get an automatically provisioned SSL certificate via Let's Encrypt. Zero configuration required.

Adding a domain

Open any project → Domains tab → type your domain and click Add domain. Pulsar instantly shows the DNS records you need to configure at your registrar.

DNS configuration

The records differ depending on whether you're adding an apex domain (e.g. example.com) or a subdomain (e.g. app.example.com).

Subdomain — use a CNAME. It automatically follows server IP changes:

Type    Name    Value                    TTL
CNAME   app     cname.pulsardeploy.com   300

Apex domain — CNAME is not allowed at the zone root (RFC 1912), so use an A record. Optionally add a CNAME for www:

Type    Name    Value                    TTL
A       @       YOUR_SERVER_IP           300   (required)
CNAME   www     cname.pulsardeploy.com   300   (optional — makes www work too)

DNS propagation typically takes a few minutes but can be up to 48 hours depending on your registrar and TTL settings.

SSL certificates

Once DNS resolves to your server, Pulsar automatically provisions a certificate via Let's Encrypt (Certbot). The process runs in the background:

1. Domain added to project
2. DNS resolution check begins
3. DNS resolves → Certbot HTTP-01 challenge runs
4. Challenge passes → certificate issued
5. Nginx config updated with SSL
6. HTTPS live — auto-renewal configured (every 90 days)

SSL statuses

pendingWaiting for DNS to propagate

activeCertificate provisioned — HTTPS serving

failedCertbot challenge failed — check DNS and firewall

Troubleshooting

SSL stuck on pending: Check that your DNS A/CNAME record is correct and points to your server. Use dig app.yourdomain.com or an online DNS checker to verify propagation.

SSL failed: Make sure ports 80 and 443 are open in your server's firewall. Certbot requires inbound HTTP on port 80 to complete the challenge. Check your server's ufw or iptables rules.

Max 10 domains per project: Remove unused domains before adding new ones.