When administrators send emails from the Okta Admin Console, the messages arrive from the default Okta subdomain rather instead of the configured custom email domain. This occurs because Okta uses the request host in the URL to determine the brand, and the Okta Admin Console operates strictly on the default Okta subdomain. Administrators must use the Okta API to trigger the email and change the request domain to send messages from a custom email domain.

• Okta Identity Engine (OIE)
• Okta Classic Engine
• Custom URL Domain
• Branding

Okta determines which brand and custom email domain to apply based on the request host in the URL of the incoming transaction. The Okta Admin Console operates and processes commands strictly using the default Okta subdomain URL, such as https://<domain>-okta-admin.pixtulate.com or https://<domain>.okta.com.  Because the action triggers directly from the default Okta subdomain, the routing mechanism reads the request host and defaults back to the Okta mail servers and subdomain. This bypasses the custom domain configuration. 

How are emails sent from a custom domain using the Okta API?

Administrators must use the Okta API to trigger the email to send it from a configured custom domain. Send an email from a configured custom domain by utilizing the Okta API to change the request domain to the custom domain associated with the brand.

• Change the domain of the request to the custom domain associated with the brand as part of the API call.
• Send a request to the Activate a User endpoint using the appropriate custom domain in the request to send a User Activation email.
• Review the Okta Developer documentation for Multibrand and emails for more information.

Related References

• Multibrand and emails
• Brands Documentation
• Customize email notifications