Domain Registration

This guide will help you get started with our domain registration services at DynDNS.com.

What is a Domain Registration? Why do I need it?

A domain name is essentially online real estate. The registration of this domain name provides temporary ownership over that real estate. Domain registrations allow the registrant to "build" on this property (such as example.com) by offering services such as web sites, e-mail, and FTP for personal, commercial, or public use. DynDNS.com offers a Domain Registration service for users who would like to purchase a domain name.

What is included in a Domain Registration?

The domain registration only includes rights to the domain name you purchase (such as example.com) for the period of time you leased the domain registration, usually one to ten years. With this registration you can set the contact information for the domain, change the nameserver delegation, and add glue records.

Domain registrations do not by itself include any other services, such as DNS, e-mail, Secret Registration, etc.

Do I need DNS service with my Domain Registration?

Yes, all domain names require DNS service to function. Without DNS, no one will be able to reach your web site, e-mail server, etc. using your domain name.

We recommend using our Custom DNS service, which is our all-in-one managed DNS hosting solution. It has a simple web interface, servers in five geographically diverse locations, and 100% uptime since the service's inception in 2001. Custom DNS includes features such as Dynamic DNS support, WebHop forwarding service, and phone support.

Third-party DNS providers can be used instead by simply delegating your domain to their nameservers or in rare cases you can self-host your own DNS using software such as BIND and by creating glue records.

How do I get started?

Domain registration is fairly straightforward. Please choose the statement below that best describes your situation.

My Domain is unregistered.

Creating a new domain registration is easy, the registration page will walk you through the process step by step:

  1. Create a DynDNS.com account
  2. Create the domain registration and select any additional services (Custom DNS, e-mail, etc.) you would like to purchase.
  3. Fill out your valid contact information.
  4. Type in the nameservers for the DNS service you wish to use.
  5. Decide whether you want our Secret Registration service.
  6. Change the length of time for the service in the shopping cart.
  7. Complete the purchase of your domain name.

My domain is registered with another provider, and I wish to transfer it to DynDNS.com.

Please read our detailed Domain Transfer Guide for a full list of instructions on how to successfully complete a domain transfer. You also need to make any DNS delegation changes before you begin the domain transfer, unlock the domain, update the contact information for the domain, and get the authorization code from the old registrar in order to transfer it.

Advanced Topics

For those who would like to know more and don't mind reading lots of dry & boring text, here are some advanced topics related to domain registration.

[+] [—] Delegation

In addition to providing ownership, domain registrations hold the nameserver delegation for a domain. Delegation assigns DNS resolution duties to nameservers. By delegating to nameservers, you are telling a domain that this nameserver contains all of the DNS records. That is how when someone types in example.com into their web browser, your computer can find not only what nameserver your domain uses, but what DNS record it needs to lookup.

Delegation changes can happen at any time; however, depending on the TLD of your domain, the delegation may not immediately take effect. Furthermore, cached DNS queries may continue to go to the old DNS provider for up to four days after a delegation change. To avoid potential downtime during a delegation change, please see our Changing DNS Providers Without Downtime article.

[+] [—] Glue Records

If you are a DNS guru who wants to run your own nameserver, a glue record needs to be created for the nameserver at the registry. Glue records provide information on a nameserver, such as the IP address and responsible registrar. Without a glue record, it would not be possible to initally locate a nameserver to ask it for information about itself or the domains it servers.

The only time you would need to create a glue record is if you are running a nameserver on your own domain (such as ns1.example.com), have a static IP address for that nameserver, and would like to use it in your own domain's delegation or another domain's delegation. You can view your glue records by going on the domain registration page for your domain on your DynDNS.com account. If you are using your own nameserver, we highly recommend using our Secondary DNS service for redundancy to prevent downtime if your nameserver goes down.

[+] [—] WHOIS

When a registrant creates a new domain, they must provide some information about the people or entities which will be responsible for the domain name, including the Owner, Administrative, Technical, and Billing contacts. This information is publicly available in the WHOIS database. You can do a WHOIS query using use an online WHOIS tool such as DNSCog.

If you are concerned about privacy of your contact information, you can use our Secret Registration service to hide your contact information from WHOIS.

[+] [—] Transfers

A registrant is not forced to remain with their initial registrar for life; they may transfer their registration to virtually any other registrar which provides service for that TLD. You can learn more information about domain transfers in our Domain Transfers article.

[+] [—] Expirations

Domain registrations will eventually expire unless you renew the registration. When a domain expires, all services uses that domain will stop functioning (your web site, e-mail, etc.) and you need to renew it immediately to avoid the risk of losing control of the domain. You can learn more by reading our Domain Expiration article.

[+] [—] Domain Information Chart †

The following chart provides general information on common TLDs, their expiration cycle and their registry operators.

TLD Delegation Delay Grace Period Redemption Period Pending Delete Authcode? Registry
.biz Instantaneous** 40 Days 30 Days Up to 7 Days EPP NeuStar
.ca 30 Days VeriSign
.cc Instantaneous 45 Days 30 Days Up to 5 Days EPP CIRA
*.cn Instantaneous 15 Days None Up to 15 Days EPP NeuStar
.com 15 Minutes 40 Days 30 Days Up to 7 Days EPP VeriSign
.cx Instantaneous None None None EPP CoCCA
.de Instantaneous None None One Day EPP DENIC
.eu 5 Updates a Day 2nd-to-last day of month 40 Days None EURid
.gs 24 Hours None None None EPP CoCCA
.info Instantaneous 40 Days 30 Days Up to 7 Days EPP Afilias (PIR)
.mobi Instantaneous 30 Days 30 Days Up to 5 Days EPP NeuStar (Sponsored)
.name Instantaneous 40 Days None Up to 5 Days EPP Global Name Registry
.net 15 Minutes 40 Days 30 Days Up to 7 Days EPP VeriSign
.org Instantaneous 40 Days 30 Days Up to 7 Days EPP PIR
.tv 15 Minutes** 45 Days 30 Days Up to 5 Days EPP VeriSign
*.uk 5 Minutes None 25th Day of Next Month None IPS Tag Nominet UK
.us Instantaneous 40 Days 30 Days** Up to 7 Days** EPP NeuStar

† Data accurate as of Dec. 23, 2008. Information is provided for general guidance, not service guarantee.
** Inferred based on registry, e.g. VeriSign operates .com, .com takes 15 minutes, therefore .tv and .cc likely take 15 minutes.

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