Set up your Help Center and domain

Choose your Help Center address, connect a custom domain, and set the visitor access and policy links.

Choose the address

Your Cactus-hosted Help Center uses https://<name>.heycactus.ai. When your custom domain is live, it becomes the main address. The hosted address still works and sends visitors to your custom domain.

In Connect › Help site, enter a new hosted name in Name.
In Connect › Help site, select Save. The new hosted address takes effect straight away, and the old one stops answering.

Custom domain status

Waiting for DNS: Cactus is waiting for your DNS record to point to the required target.
Issuing certificate: Your hostname is active while its certificate is being issued.
Live: Your custom domain is active and is now your Help Center address.
Needs attention: There’s a problem with your hostname or certificate. The panel shows advice about it.

Make it public

In Connect › Help site, select Public. Anyone with the address can read your Help Center and What's New. Visitors can read the public Help Center once at least one eligible page is listed.

Connect a custom domain

Yes, help.ourcompany.com fits the subdomain format. Your Help Center keeps working at its Cactus address until the custom domain is live.

In Connect › Help site, enter your subdomain in Your own domain.
In Connect › Help site, select Connect.
At your DNS provider, add a CNAME record with the displayed Name and Target customers.heycactus.ai.

Track activation

While DNS or certificate setup is pending, the panel checks for updates every five seconds when the browser tab is visible. DNS changes usually show up within a few minutes, and certificate issuance takes a minute or two. The first HTTPS request to your custom domain can also confirm it, so you don't need to keep the panel open.

Remove a custom domain

In Connect › Help site, hold Hold to remove to disconnect the custom domain. Visitors will be sent to the hosted Cactus address again.

Add policy links

In Connect › Help site, enter your privacy policy URL in Privacy policy address.
In Connect › Help site, enter your terms URL in Terms address.
In Connect › Help site, select Save.

When an address is set, Cactus links to it on every Help Center page. Leave either field empty to hide that link.

If a domain needs attention

What you see	What it means	What to do
Advice that your DNS provider is proxying the record	The record is proxied instead of set to DNS only	1. Set the record to DNS only. 2. In Connect › Help site, select Check again.
Advice that the hostname no longer points to Cactus	The custom domain no longer points to the required target	1. Point the CNAME to `customers.heycactus.ai`. 2. In Connect › Help site, select Check again.
Advice to add or check a CNAME	The record doesn't point to the required target, or ownership needs attention	Add a CNAME from your hostname to `customers.heycactus.ai`, set it to DNS only, then select Check again in Connect › Help site.
Advice that Cloudflare will not serve the hostname	Cloudflare has blocked the hostname	Write to the Cactus team so they can look at it.