Domain Registration Guide
What is Domain?
Internet is the large network of computers. On the Internet there should be some way to identify the computers. Domain name is the solution for this. Domain Name is the unique name that identifies an Computer Internet site) on the Internet. Example of domain name is google.com, roseindia.net, yahoo.com, cnn.com, internic.net, etc. Domain Names always have 2 or more parts, separated by dots. The part on the left is the most specific, and the part on the right is the most general. The last part of our address, "net", is called the "top level domain". To the left of the dot in our name, roseindia, is what is called the "second-level domain". It is also possible to have sub-domains such as "linux.roseindia.net".
A given machine may have more than one Domain Name but a given Domain Name
points to only one machine. For example, roseindia.net and many other site
hosted on the server may point the same machine.
What are the TLD( Top Level Domain)?
Short for top-level domain, and refers to the suffix attached to Internet Domain Name There are a limited number of predefined suffixes, and each one represent a top-level domain. Current top-level domains include:
| .com | For commercial entities, which anyone, anywhere in the world, can register. |
| .net | Originally designated for organizations directly involved in Internet operations. It is increasingly being used by businesses when the desired name under "com" is already registered by another organization. Today anyone can register a name in the Net domain. |
| .org | For miscellaneous organizations, including non-profits. |
| .biz | For business organizations. |
| .info | For anyone, anywhere in the world, can register. |
| .edu | For four-year accredited institutions of higher learning. |
| .gov | For US Federal Government entities |
| .mil | For US military |
| Country Codes |
For individual countries based on the International Standards Organization. For example, ca for Canada, and jp for Japan. |
What are the rules for registering domain names?
There are certain rules for registering a domain and it depend on the Central Naming Authority in each country. The general rules to follow are:- Domain names should be between 3 and 67 characters long (this includes the
dot and the tld). For example: domain.com is 10 characters in length.
- The domain name can only consist of alphanumeric characters (letters or
numbers) and hyphens (-)
- The hyphen (-), if used, cannot begin or end the domain name. my-own-domain.com
is ok, but -myowndomain-.com is not ok.
- The domain name is not case sensitive e.g. RoseIndia.net will work as
roseindia.net
- The domains name are unique and no two domains names can be exact.
- The costs for the domain name itself are not included with the costs for hosting the domain name.
Domain FAQ's
What is the process of domain name transfer?
Domain name transfer is the process of mapping a domain from one registrar to
another. Domain name transfer process varies by TLD (Top Level Domain -
.com/.net/.org/.biz/.us/.info/etc). First the domain name MUST be unlocked
in any case. For .com/.net/.cc domains there is a loose process in place where
the registrar requests a transfer to another registrar for a domain name. The
domain name in question then needs to be authorized by the administrative
contact on the domain name (this process varies from registrar to registrar).
For many other TLDs the EPP (Extensible Provisioning Protocol) process is used
where an authorization key is provided with the transfer request and only the
authorization is required to transfer. This process is very fast.
When does a domain name ?expire??
Domain names are registered for 1-10 years by a registrant. After they hit the
expiration date listed in the whois they either enter ?on-hold? period or
directly into the ?Redemption Grace Period.?(RGP) The ?on-hold? periods
means that the registrar has paid for the name and gives the owner the
opportunity to renew at a low cost for up to 45 days approximately (afterwards
the domain enters the Redemption Grace Period). The RGP period is a grace given
by the registry to renew the domain name for a higher cost (often around $200)
and lasts 30 days. If the domain is not renewed during these grace periods it
enters the ?Pending Delete? cycle and will be deleted in 6 days for
.com/.net domains and 5 days for .org domains.