Shared Link AEM/ Assets 6.5 Managed Service

[FabianaBa]

Does anyone in this community manage to set up their AEM/ Assets 6.5 Managed Service Shared Link? Any tips?

[AmitVishwakarma]

Hi @FabianaBa ,

Getting Shared Links configured in a Managed Service environment is a standard process, but it often requires one key configuration that's easy to miss. Here’s a practical guide based on what usually needs to be adjusted.

The Main Thing to Check: The Externalizer Configuration

The most common reason shared links don’t work is a misconfigured OSGi setting that tells AEM how to generate the public URL for the link.

1. Navigate to your AEM Web Console (OSGi Configuration Manager):
http://<your-aem-author-instance>/system/console/configMgr

2. Search for the "Day CQ Link Externalizer" configuration.

3. Look at the Default field.

  - The Problem: If this field contains a local hostname like http://localhost:4503, all your shared links will point to that invalid, internal address.

  - The Fix: Update this field to the public, external URL of your publish environment (e.g., https://assets.yourcompany.com).

This is the official Adobe documentation that explains this critical configuration:
Configuring the Externalizer in AEM 6.5

Other Common Issues and Checks

Asset is Not Published: A shared link provides public access, so the asset must be replicated to the publish instance first. If the asset hasn't been published, the link will return a 404 error. Always ensure your asset is activated before sharing.

The user guide for sharing assets is here:
Share Assets as a Link (AEM 6.5)

Dispatcher Configuration: Sometimes, the Dispatcher on your publish instance might have rules that block access to the shared link URLs. If you are confident the Externalizer is correct and assets are published, this is the next thing to investigate. Since this is a Managed Service, you will need to work with Adobe Support for this.

Your Action Plan:

1. First, check the Externalizer configuration as described above. This fixes the issue 90% of the time.

2. Always publish your assets before generating and sharing the link.

3. Test the link in an incognito browser window to simulate an external user.

4. If it still fails, open a support ticket with Adobe Managed Services (AMS). Provide them with the details of what you've already checked. They can investigate server logs and Dispatcher configurations on your behalf.

Thanks,
Amit

[FabianaBa]

Thank you for your response. 

Fabiana

[HrishikeshKagne · Accepted solution]

Hi @FabianaBa ,

Here are some short, practical tips for setting up AEM Assets 6.5 Managed Service Shared Links:

• Enable sharing in AEM Assets console - Admins must configure the Asset Link Sharing option in OSGi (Day CQ DAM Commons Link Externalizer).
• Externalizer setup - Make sure your publish domain is correctly set in the Externalizer (used to generate public URLs).
• Dispatcher rules - Update dispatcher/CDN rules to allow /linkshare URLs and static assets to resolve externally.
• SMTP config - Shared link emails require proper mail service setup (Day CQ Mail Service).
• Expiration & permissions - Always set expiration dates and control access to avoid exposing assets too widely.
• Security note - Shared links are tokenized, but they are public; avoid using for highly confidential assets.

[FabianaBa]

Thank you @HrishikeshKagne, I am following up with IT.

Fabiana