Understanding Domain Names and Registrars - Part II
Domain Renewal
gTLDs
Domains are leased on an annual basis, and need to be renewed once the current payment for the lease expires. If a domain is registered on April
9, 2004 and prepaid for one year, it will be due for renewal on April 9, 2005, at which point the registrant either pays for additional years, or lets the name expire. Domains can also be pre-paid for multiple years, up to a maximum of 10 years.
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Domain Transfer
The term 'transfer' has been used to describe various kinds of domain name transfers. Traditionally, simply changing the nameservers providing name service for a domain was considered a transfer. Nowadays, such a modification is more rightly called a
DNS modification, and the term 'transfer' describes the transfer of a domain from one registrar to another.
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ICANN
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is the non-profit corporation that was formed to assume responsibility for the IP address space allocation, protocol parameter assignment, domain name system management, and root server system management functions previously performed under U.S. Government contract by IANA and other entities.
For more information about ICANN, please visit: http://www.icann.org
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InterNIC
The InterNIC maintains the root domain registry, containing nameserver and registrar information for all .com, .net and .org domains. When an end user registers a domain name through an OpenSRS RSP, OpenSRS updates it's own database with the full
WHOIS information, and passes select domain information up to the root registry.
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IP Address
Every computer on the Internet has a numeric address called an IP Address, which is used to identify the location of the computer. An example of an IP address is
204.37.10.80. Each domain name replaces this string of numbers with a simple word or expression. Having a domain name means you don't have to remember a cumbersome numeric address.
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Name Servers
Nameservers (or Domain Name Servers) are the machines that perform the DNS function, containing zone files listing all the hosts on their network, and their corresponding IP addresses. If a nameserver is unable to determine which IP address a given hostname (i.e. www.opensrs.org) should map to, it will at least be able to point to another nameserver, which will either contain the information, or pass the request on until the correct nameserver is found.
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OpenSRS (Open Shared Registration System)
OpenSRS is a wholesale domain name registration service that uses Open Source principles to ensure equal participation for as many companies and individuals as possible. Sponsored by Tucows.com, OpenSRS has been accredited as a domain registrar by ICANN and recognized by the United States Government and Network Solutions.
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Registration Service Provider (RSP)
Under the OpenSRS model, the Registration Service Provider resells domain names through OpenSRS and sells them to individuals or businesses. RSPs are generally Internet based service providers, either running a domain registration business as a 'value add' to their core business, or in some cases, as their core business. RSPs also provide all technical support to domain registrants.
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UDRP
The Uniform Dispute Resolution policy is a document which governs how domain name disputes will be resolved within the gTLD namespace. It defines the conditions under which a genuine dispute may arise, and provides guidelines for administrative proceedings to settle the issue, outside of a court where possible. All registrants registering domains through OpenSRS (or any other registrar) are bound by the
UDRP.
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URL
URL stands for Universal Resource Locator and is a unique identifier for your Web address. Your URL contains your domain name. An example of a URL is http://www.forexample.com/.
No two websites can have the same URL. Whoever registers a domain name first gets to use it in their URL. This is why it is important to
register your domain name before someone else does.
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Web Hosting
One service often closely associated with domain names is web site
hosting. The World Wide Web is a massive collection of web sites, all hosted on computers (called web servers) all over the world. Because of the web's uniquely global nature, a web site should be accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Rather than pay to have a 24/7 dedicated Internet connection to an in-house webserver, many people opt to host their sites with a web hosting provider. Web hosting clients simply upload their web sites to a shared (or dedicated) webserver, which the ISP maintains to ensure a constant, fast connection to the Internet.
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WHOIS
WHOIS databases contain nameserver, registrar, and in some cases, full contact information about a domain name. Each registrar must maintain a WHOIS database containing all contact information for the domains they 'host'. A central registry WHOIS database is maintained by the InterNIC. This database contains only registrar and nameserver information for all .com, .net and .org domains.
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