---
title: "How to Choose a Domain and Customize the Short Name of a Link in Short URL Online"
description: "Learn how a Short URL Online link is built from a domain and a short name, how to choose the domain, how to set your own short name, how the full link is previewed and what to do when the name is already taken."
url: https://vitextra.com/en/support/kb/10473
language: en
published: 2026-11-02
modified: 2026-11-07
author: "Līga Ozola"
tags: ["Short URL domain", "custom short URL name", "sppro.org", "befly.nl", "friendly URL", "unique short name", "SharePoint short link name", "change short URL", "name already exists", "Vitextra Short URL Online"]
---

# How to Choose a Domain and Customize the Short Name of a Link in Short URL Online

Learn how a Short URL Online link is built from a domain and a short name, how to choose the domain, how to set your own short name, how the full link is previewed and what to do when the name is already taken.

## Introduction

Every short link created with Short URL Online has two parts: a **domain** and a **short name**. For example, in `https://sppro.org/price-list` the domain is `sppro.org` and the short name is `price-list`. You can set both whenever you create or edit a link, in the **Short URL** dialog, in the **Short URL** ::web part:: and in the edit panel of the **Short URL Management** web part.

![The Domain drop-down and the URL field](https://static.vitextra.com/articles/10473/domain-and-url-en.png)
*The Domain drop-down and the URL field*

## Choose a domain

1. Open the **Domain** drop-down. In the **Short URL** dialog and the **Short URL** web part it lists **sppro.org** and **befly.nl**; in the **Short URL Management** edit panel the ::list:: is loaded from the Short URL service.
2. Select the domain you want. The domain is required.

The default domain in the **Short URL** dialog and in the **Short URL** web part is **sppro.org**. In the edit panel of the **Short URL Management** web part, a new link starts with the first domain in the list.

📝 **Note**  
The domains are provided by Vitextra, not by ::SharePoint::, so they are the same on every ::site:: of your ::tenant::.

## Set the short name

The short name is entered in the field labeled **URL** in the **Short URL** web part, in the dialog and in the Management edit panel. The field is required. In the dialog and in the edit panel it accepts up to 200 characters.

- In the **Short URL** dialog for a document, a short name is generated for you; you can overwrite it.
- In the **Short URL** web part and in **Short URL Management**, you type the short name yourself.

Choose a name that is easy to say and remember, for example `hr-policy`, `price-list` or `onboarding`.

💡 **Tip**  
Use lowercase letters, digits and hyphens. Avoid characters that have a special meaning in web addresses, such as `?`, `#`, `/` and `&`.

## Preview of the full link

After a link is saved, the **Shortened URL** (in the **Short URL** web part) or the **URL** (in the dialog) shows the complete address, which is the domain followed by the short name. It is a regular hyperlink, with an icon to copy it to the clipboard.

## When the name is already taken

Short names must be unique. If you enter a name that is already in use, saving fails and the field shows **This name already exists. You must specify a unique name.** Enter a different name and save again. In the **Short URL Management** edit panel, the same message appears in the red message bar above and below the form.

❗ **Important**  
If you leave the short name empty, the form shows **This field is required** and the link is not saved. The same applies to the original address.

## Change the domain or the name of an existing link

1. Open the link for editing: use the **Short URL** command for a document, or select the link in the **Short URL Management** web part and click **Edit**.
2. Select another **Domain** or type a new short name.
3. Click **Update**.

The message **Save completed successfully.** confirms the change, and the full address that is shown reflects the new domain and name.

❗ **Important**  
The domain and the short name together form the link. When you change either of them, the link that you shared earlier is no longer the link of this item. Redistribute the new link if the old one has been published.

See also: [KB10474. How to Add and Configure the Short URL Management Web Part](https://vitextra.com/en/support/kb/10474).