This version of GitHub Enterprise will be discontinued on This version of GitHub Enterprise was discontinued on 2020-05-23. No patch releases will be made, even for critical security issues. For better performance, improved security, and new features, upgrade to the latest version of GitHub Enterprise. For help with the upgrade, contact GitHub Enterprise support.

Article version: Enterprise Server 2.17

Configuring a hostname

We recommend setting a hostname for your appliance instead of using a hard-coded IP address.

If you configure a hostname instead of a hard-coded IP address, you will be able to change the physical hardware that your GitHub Enterprise Server instance runs on without affecting users or client software.

The hostname setting in the Management Console should be set to an appropriate fully qualified domain name (FQDN) which is resolvable on the internet or within your internal network. For example, your hostname setting could be github.companyname.com. We also recommend enabling subdomain isolation for the chosen hostname to mitigate several cross-site scripting style vulnerabilities. For more information on hostname settings, see Section 2.1 of the HTTP RFC.

Warning: Do not change the hostname for GitHub Enterprise Server after initial setup. Changing the hostname will cause unexpected behavior, up to and including instance outages. If you need to change the hostname for GitHub Enterprise Server, contact GitHub Enterprise Support or GitHub Premium Support.

  1. In the upper-right corner of any page, click .
    Rocketship icon for accessing site admin settings
  2. In the left sidebar, click Management Console.
    Management Console tab in the left sidebar
  3. In the left sidebar, click Hostname.
    Hostname tab in the settings sidebar
  4. Type the hostname you'd like to set for your GitHub Enterprise Server instance.
    Field for setting a hostname
  5. To test the DNS and SSL settings for the new hostname, click Test domain settings.
    Test domain settings button
  6. If you don't receive a green checkmark next to all entries, review your configuration for the setting that failed. For more information, see "Configuring DNS nameservers."
    Table showing status of DNS and SSL configurations
  7. Under the left sidebar, click Save settings.
    Save settings button

After you configure a hostname, we recommend that you enable subdomain isolation for your GitHub Enterprise Server instance. For more information, see "Enabling subdomain isolation."

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