Providing a custom domain name for a hosted service
A hosted service can expose an input endpoint to the Internet. This endpoint has a load-balanced Virtual IP (VIP) address which remains constant as long as the hosted service exists.
Each VIP has an associated domain of the form servicednsprefix.cloudapp.net. The servicednsprefix is specified when the hosted service is created, and is not changeable following creation. A hosted service may be reached over the Internet with the following URL: servicednsprefix.cloudapp.net. All hosted services exist under the cloudapp.net domain.
The DNS system supports a CNAME record that maps one domain to another. This allows, for example, www.servicename.com to be mapped to servicednsprefix.cloudapp.net. The DNS system also supports an A record that maps a domain to a fixed IP address. Unfortunately, reliable use of an A record is not possible with a hosted service because the IP address can change if the hosted service is deleted and redeployed.
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