CDDC Piano-managed - Configuration Guide

Recommended: Turnkey solution for optimal data collection with automatic SSL certificate management.

Configuration in 3 steps

Step 1: Choose your subdomain

Select a subdomain dedicated to Piano Analytics collection. Ideally, choose a subdomain with a random name.

📋 Best practices:

✅ Recommended:
- ignis.yourdomain.com
- laguna.yourdomain.com
- nox.yourdomain.com

❌ To avoid:
- analytics.yourdomain.com
- data.yourdomain.com

Multi-site strategy:

Step 2: Create the CDDC in the Data Collection Portal

1. Access the Data Collection Portal: https://analytics.piano.io/datacollection/#/dashboard

2. Navigate to "Collection Domains"

3. Click on "+"

4. Select "CNAME" then "Piano-managed certificate"

5. Enter your subdomain: ignis.yourdomain.com

6. Validate: Piano automatically generates:

   • A CNAME alias to configure in your DNS

   • A valid SSL certificate

Step 3: Configure your DNS

Piano provides you with a CNAME alias to add to your DNS zone.

Verification:
Once DNS is propagated, the status in the Data Collection Portal automatically changes to "Active".

Tagging update

Once your CDDC is active, update your Piano Analytics configuration.

Piano Analytics SDK (JavaScript)

pa.setConfigurations({
    site: 123456, // Your site ID
    collectDomain: 'ignis.yourdomain.com',
});

Cookie management

Recommended configuration

To benefit from optimal cookies, our recommendation remains to use client-side, first-party cookies. No additional configuration is required for this.

Security: Sensitive cookies

Important: Cookies set on your parent domain (.yourdomain.com) are automatically sent with requests to your CDDC.

Best practices:

• Use specific subdomains for your sensitive cookies

• Set your authentication cookies on a dedicated domain

• Piano Analytics does not use your cookies, but they transit to our servers (standard cookie behavior). They are in no way retained after the visitor's request

💡 If you have strict security constraints: We then recommend a CDN/Reverse Proxy type collection.

Monitoring & Maintenance

Dashboard

In the Data Collection Portal, you can monitor:

• Status: Valid / Pending / Invalid

• DNS Entry (CNAME): Current DNS configuration, xxx-at-o-dev-net-cddc.at-o.net

• Emails: Notified contacts (in addition to your organization's administrators)

Migration from Custom Certificate (recommended)

Currently using a custom certificate (BYOC)? Migrate to Piano-managed in 2 clicks.

Migration process

1. Access your CDDC in the Data Collection Portal

2. Click on "Switch to Piano-managed certificate" in the side menu

3. Confirm: Piano automatically generates the new certificate

4. No DNS change required: The alias remains identical

Duration: Instant migration, no service interruption.

Financial impact: Removal of custom certificate billing.

❓ FAQ

Can I use a wildcard (*.yourdomain.com)?

No, for security reasons, Piano only allows specific subdomains.

How long before my CDDC is active?

Once DNS is configured: 15 minutes to 48 hours depending on DNS propagation. Piano automatically checks every 15 minutes.

What happens if I forget to renew my custom certificate?

Total collection interruption upon expiration. This is why we strongly recommend Piano-managed.

Can I have multiple CDDCs for different domains?

Yes, you can create as many CDDCs as needed (one per parent domain recommended).

Does CDDC work with adblockers?

Advanced adblockers detect CNAMEs. For maximum coverage, consider a CDN/Reverse Proxy architecture (contact your CSM).