Domain Name Registration, What You Need to Know

Do you own the domain name you use for your Web address? Are you able to freely move between Web hosts? When does your registration expire? Why do you even need to worry about this?

Domain name issues are consistently a concern to clients of Preferred Partners, and these issues can be notoriously difficult to understand. That's why we're making this information available. We hope that both existing and potential clients can increase confidence in their decisions by knowing the basis of those decisions.

What Is a Domain Name and What Does It Do?

Your domain name is your alphabetic Web address or the part that comes after the www. preferredpartnersllc.com is our domain name. We own that name, and therefore can use it for our Web address and e-mail addresses. Just owning that name does not mean that we have a Web site or access to e-mail addresses; we have to use a Web hosting company for those services. Owning that name means that a registrar holds a record stating that we own preferredpartnersllc.com. We use that registrar to direct requests for the preferredpartnersllc.com Web site and mail addressed to preferredpartnersllc.com e-mail addresses to our Web hosting company.

What is a Registrar?

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (www.icann.org) is the international organization charged with policy and management of domain names and how those names are used. ICANN maintains a list of approved registrars at http://www.icann.org/registrars/accredited-list.html. Each registrar operates independently, and as such, each offers its own services and price schedule. The one thing that they have in common is that they all field Internet requests and direct them to the appropriate services, e.g. Web and e-mail servers.

What is a Web Host?

A Web host is a company that maintains a network of computers that holds electronic files, such as the HTML files for your Web site, and handles e-mail. Many also offer related services. Like with registrars, the services and pricing that Web hosts offer varies greatly.
Some companies and individuals with Web sites choose to bypass Web hosting companies, and instead, host their own Web site and e-mail services; however the cost of maintaining a Web server capable of accommodating a desired level of traffic is typically cost-prohibitive for smaller companies. Furthermore, whether hosted in house or with a Web hosting company, a server on the Internet must be protected from unauthorized requests, and the data must be continually ensured with consistent backups.

Every Web site and every e-mail address must go through a registrar and to an Internet server, either in house or with a Web hosting company.

How Do I Know Who My Registrar Is and Who Is Hosting My Web Site?

Almost every registrar maintains a WHOIS registry that contains this information. For an example, see Network Solutions registry at http://www.networksolutions.com/en_US/whois/index.jhtml. Type in your address or preferredpartnersllc.com to see the underlying data. There, you can see quite a bit of information, and if it's your domain, hopefully some of that information is familiar to you. The most important information there, in descending order of importance, are the registrant, administrative contact, expiration date, domain servers and registrar.

Registrant - this is the entity with legal rights to your domain name. This absolutely must be current, because this entity can do whatever they want with the domain name.

Administrative contact - this typically is the same as the registrant, but it includes an e-mail address. Things can go a lot better for you when you want to do something with your domain name if you continually have access to this e-mail address.

Expiration date - unless the registrant has made other plans, this is the date on which the domain name will expire. Typically, the domain name enters a redemption period on this date, but to claim it from redemption, you will have to pay a penalty and have direct contact with your registrar.

Name servers - if your Web site is available online, this points to the Web server on which your Web site files reside.

Registrar - the entity that controls where your domain name points.

Something in My Registry Record is Incorrect, How Can I Change It?

This is where things can get tricky. If you registered your address directly with the registrar, you should have a login name and password from them. Use that information to gain access to your account and make the necessary changes.

If you signed up with a Web host or Web development company, it's likely that they signed you up with a registrar of their choice, probably one with which they have a reselling agreement. You will need to go through the company that initially created your Web site or hosted it, and follow their directions, in order to change it. That process can be easy or difficult, depending on the reseller.

If you signed up a long time ago, lost the login information for your registrar or never had it, all is not lost. If you have access to the e-mail address listed in the administrative contact, registrars will generally allow you to reset your access information; however, this process requires patience and time, so don't wait until you absolutely need access to try to gain access.

Why Is It Important to Keep Your Registry Information Current?

Registrars typically communicate with the owners of domain names through the e-mail address listed in your administrative contact information. That means, when a domain name is set to expire, notices will be sent to this e-mail address. If no response is received from these notices and the domain name expires, another party may claim it. This means that your Web site could change overnight. You will not have changed any Web files, but the new owner of the domain can point it at whatever they choose. I've seen this happen, and it can be ugly.

Also the registrant has legal ownership of the domain and can do anything they want to with it. If you have invested considerable time and resources in your Web site, and marketed it through print and other media, you don't want someone else to have control of your domain name.
Lastly, Web hosting companies have a vested interest in keeping your business, so they are not always quick to respond in giving you access to your registry. If you have control, you can move Web hosts simply and without getting a Web host's permission.

What Should I Do to Avoid Problems?

The two most important things that you can do are 1. register your address directly through a registrar. This is usually a little more expensive than registering the address through a Web hosting company, because Web hosting companies get preferential pricing from registrars; however, the difference in price is nominal compared to the headaches you can avoid by keeping direct control of your registry information; and 2. maintain access to the e-mail address you list in the administrative contact information. As stated above, it's important to keep this line of communication open with your registrar.

What Should I Do if I Still Have Questions?

Call Preferred Partners at 402-884-7466.