Custom domains in GCP - Commands & Configuration

Introduction

Custom domains let you use your own website name instead of a default address. This makes your site easier to find and looks more professional. It solves the problem of having a long or unclear web address.

When you want your website to have a simple, memorable address like www.myapp.com instead of a long Google Cloud URL.

When you want to build trust with visitors by showing your own brand name in the web address.

When you need to connect your domain bought from a registrar to your Google Cloud service.

When you want to use HTTPS with your own domain for secure connections.

When you want to manage your website's address settings in one place.

Commands

This command connects your custom domain www.myapp.com to your Google App Engine app and sets up automatic SSL certificates for secure HTTPS.

Terminal

gcloud app domain-mappings create www.myapp.com --certificate-management=automatic

Expected Output

Created domain mapping [www.myapp.com].

Certificate management set to automatic.

→

--certificate-management=automatic - Automatically provisions and renews SSL certificates for HTTPS.

This command lists all custom domains currently connected to your Google App Engine app to verify the domain mapping.

Terminal

gcloud app domain-mappings list

Expected Output

DOMAIN NAME    SSL STATUS

www.myapp.com  managed

This command checks the DNS records for your custom domain to ensure it points to Google Cloud's servers.

Terminal

nslookup www.myapp.com

Expected Output

Server:  8.8.8.8

Address: 8.8.8.8#53



Non-authoritative answer:

www.myapp.com canonical name = ghs.googlehosted.com.

Key Concept

If you remember nothing else from this pattern, remember: connecting your custom domain to Google Cloud requires domain mapping and DNS setup to make your site reachable and secure.

Common Mistakes

Not updating DNS records at the domain registrar after creating the domain mapping.

Without correct DNS records, the domain won't point to your Google Cloud app, so visitors can't reach your site.

After creating the domain mapping, update your domain's DNS settings to point to Google Cloud as instructed.

Skipping the SSL certificate setup or using manual certificate management incorrectly.

This causes your site to be served without HTTPS, which is insecure and may scare visitors.

Use the --certificate-management=automatic flag to let Google handle SSL certificates for you.

Summary

Use 'gcloud app domain-mappings create' to connect your custom domain to your app.

Verify domain mappings with 'gcloud app domain-mappings list'.

Check DNS settings with 'nslookup' to ensure your domain points to Google Cloud.