Custom Sending Domain
Send branded report emails from an address on your own domain
Overview
By default, branded report emails are sent from the Semaphor address, noreply@semaphor.cloud on Semaphor Cloud, with your From name in front of it. With a custom sending domain, they come from an address you choose, such as noreply@reports.respark.com, so recipients see your domain in the From line and replies, filters, and safe-sender rules work against it.
Setting it up takes one address, three DNS records, and one button press. You can complete those steps before saving email branding. The verified address starts sending immediately. If branding is configured, its name, logo, intro, footer, reply-to, and BCC continue to apply.
Custom sending domains are available on Semaphor Cloud and on self-hosted deployments that send through Amazon SES. Deployments that send through the bundled Resend provider configure their sending domain in Resend instead; see Provider differences.
Set up your domain
Open Brand Studio and switch to Email reports. Use your own domain is the outlined button in the Sender block's header, whether or not branding is saved yet; the From address row beneath it shows the address currently in use.
Enter the complete address
Type the full From address you want, for example reports@respark.com, then press Set up domain. You will need someone who can edit DNS for the domain. If you spot a typo later, you can start over from the same dialog.
Add the three DNS records
The dialog now shows three CNAME records. Add all three where DNS for your domain is managed, using the copy button next to each name and value, or Copy all records to hand the set to your DNS administrator. Verification usually completes within an hour of the records going live and can take up to 72 hours.
Press Check again
Come back to the same dialog and press Check again. Semaphor asks the email service whether the domain is verified and stores the answer. Once the status is Verified, the next scheduled report and Briefing go out from your address.
Checking happens only when you press the button. Semaphor does not poll DNS in the background, and neither opening Brand Studio nor sending a report triggers a check.
What each status means
| Status | From address used | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Pending | The Semaphor address | Add the DNS records and press Check again, or choose Start over after the records appear to enter a different address. If setup is still being recovered and no records appear, press Check again first. |
| Verified | Your configured address | Keep the DNS records in place, or choose Remove to return to the Semaphor address. |
| Failed | The Semaphor address | Confirm the records and press Check again, or choose Start over to enter a different address. |
While a domain is Pending or Failed, every other part of your branding still applies: the From name, logo, intro, footer, reply-to, and BCC. Only the address falls back. The From address row and the email preview always show the address in use.
After verification
Your address keeps working as long as the three CNAME records stay in DNS. Check again remains available on the View details dialog, and it is the way to confirm the domain is still verified, for example after a DNS change on your side. If a check finds the domain no longer verified, the status becomes Failed and emails return to the Semaphor address until you fix the records and check again.
If the records are removed but no one presses Check again, Semaphor continues to trust the last stored status and sends from your address; the email service then rejects those sends and the affected reports fail rather than going out from a different address. If reports stop arriving after a DNS change, open the dialog and press Check again.
Changing or removing the domain
For a Pending or Failed setup with DNS records, choose Start over and confirm the removal. If an interrupted setup has not returned records yet, press Check again to recover them before starting over. For a Verified domain, choose Remove, then confirm Remove custom domain. Report email returns to the Semaphor address immediately, and the dialog lets you enter another address after cleanup completes. If removal cannot be confirmed, the domain remains listed but inactive so you can safely retry.
Removing your email branding does not remove or deactivate the domain. Its status and DNS controls remain available, and a Verified address keeps sending without branding.
Provider differences
- Semaphor Cloud and self-hosted deployments on Amazon SES: the flow above applies. Semaphor creates the domain identity in its email service and gives you the DNS records.
- Self-hosted deployments on the bundled Resend provider: branding works exactly the same, but the sending domain is configured and verified in your Resend account, and the scheduler's
RESEND_SENDER_EMAILis the address used. If you press Use your own domain on such a deployment, Semaphor tells you to set up the sending domain in your email provider. See Reports, Briefings, and Scheduled Delivery.