Today, we are taking the friction out of traffic routing. We are proud to introduce Domain Forwards (HTTPS), an API-first service built to provide top-tier security and precision routing without the infrastructure headache.
Why did we build this? Because we wanted to eliminate a scenario every DevOps engineer knows too well. You need to set up a simple 301 redirect, which sounds like a five-minute task. But suddenly, you find yourself spinning up a VPS, configuring Nginx, setting up Let's Encrypt cron jobs, and adding yet another server to your monitoring dashboard.
At OpusDNS, we believe you should never have to maintain a fleet of servers just to forward a domain. Here is a deep dive into how we built the solution.
Why HTTPS Is No Longer Optional
The web has moved on from HTTP. It is no longer just a recommendation, it is a requirement. Modern browsers like Chrome now aggressively flag unencrypted sites as "Not Secure," destroying user trust and increasing bounce rates immediately. Furthermore, search engines treat HTTPS as a core ranking signal, meaning non-secure redirects directly hurt your SEO visibility.
Beyond compliance, HTTPS is the key to performance, unlocking modern protocols like HTTP/2 and HTTP/3. Domain Forwards (HTTPS) future-proofs your infrastructure instantly. We eliminate the liability of unencrypted traffic by providing automatic TLS certificates and A-rated security for every redirect, keeping your domains fast, trusted, and compliant without you lifting a finger.
Automatic HTTPS with Top-Tier Security
Security is often the biggest headache when self-hosting redirects. If a certificate expires, the redirect breaks, and visitors see a warning. We wanted to eliminate that risk entirely. With OpusDNS, every redirect comes with automatic SSL certificate provisioning and renewal. We secure your traffic immediately with the latest TLS 1.3 support. This means:
- Zero-config SSL: No manual certificate uploads or management
- No Expirations: We handle renewals automatically
- No Warnings: Eliminate "Not Secure" browser warnings for your visitors
“Let’s be honest: nobody enjoys spending time babysitting redirect servers or renewing TLS certificates. That’s why we automated the whole process. With Domain Forwards you get scalable HTTPS redirects for thousands of domains: secure, performant and maintenance-free. No more server sprawl, no more cron jobs, just straightforward, rock-solid routing.”
— Kilian Ries, Head of IT and Cloud Infrastructure at OpusDNS
We are proud to maintain an A Rating on Qualys SSL Labs, guaranteeing industry-leading security with excellent device and browser compatibility right out of the box.
More Than Just Forwarding: Precision Routing
Modern infrastructure requires more than just pointing Domain A to Domain B. Our forwarding engine supports advanced routing logic to handle complex use cases, from SEO migrations to dynamic marketing campaigns. We moved away from static configurations to a dynamic approach:
- Protect your SEO: We support the full suite of status codes (301, 302, 307, 308). This allows you to signal the exact intent to search engines.
- Path Forwarding: Automatically preserve URL paths. A user visiting old-site.com/blog/post is seamlessly routed to new-site.com/blog/post.
- Marketing Data Intact: We ensure query strings and UTM tags pass through. Your marketing data follows your visitors to their destination.
- Granular Control: Need to catch all traffic from *.yourdomain.com? Or use Regular Expressions (Regex) for complex URL patterns? We have you covered.
A Developer-First Ecosystem
OpusDNS is built by developers, for developers. We know that in a modern DevOps environment, a redirect shouldn't require a manual ticket for the IT department. That’s why you can manage everything via our full-featured REST API.
"Redirects belong in your deployment pipeline, not in a ticket queue. That's why we built an API that lets you manage them programmatically."
— Thomas Weiß, Backend & AI Developer at OpusDNS
Whether you want to automate bulk updates, import thousands of domains, or sync redirects with your internal dashboards using Infrastructure-as-Code tools – our API makes it possible.
Domain Forwards at a Glance
Here are the technical specifications:
- Security: Automatic HTTPS, TLS 1.3, Qualys 'A' Rating
- Connectivity: Native IPv4 & IPv6 Support, Global Edge Network
- Routing: 301/302/307/308 support, Path Forwarding, Query String Pass-through
- Power Features: Wildcard Subdomains, Regex Matching, Bulk Import/Export
- Access: Full REST API
Try It Free until March 2026
We are launching Domain Forwards (HTTPS) with a special invitation. Starting today, December 1, 2025, until March 31, 2026, the feature is available at 0 €. This is the perfect opportunity to test the service, migrate your old Nginx configs, and integrate it into your workflows at no cost. You can find the new feature in your OpusDNS dashboard starting today.
Ready to upgrade your infrastructure? Create your free account here and start redirecting the modern way. To stay up to date with new features and what’s coming next, make sure to follow us on LinkedIn.
