Domain Name 101

A lot of people tend to register a domain name, pay for it, set the DNS and then forget all about it until the next year when it comes due for renewal. For many, it can spell disaster. Read on and I’ll explain.

When registering a domain name, consider making your contact information private especially if you’re using it for something personal. If you’re going to use it for business purposes then by all means leave your contact information available but set it to reflect your business. For example, set the address, phone number and any other pertinent information, to your business.

If you’re registering the domain name for personal use, the last thing you want to do is leave your personal information available to anyone who knows how to do a simple Whois search. Put it this way, with all the crazies out there, would you want one to show up at your front door one night? Nope. Me neither. Set or purchase private registration from your domain registrar. It’s simple to set up and is low cost.

Another tip to think about: Do not use an email address associated with the domain name as a form of contact! Why? What if your site goes down for some reason? Your email might too! What if you missed that renewal notice for the umpteenth time? The domain goes down and so does your email address right along with it!

Domain name + DNS + web host = possible loss of contact issues.

Instead, use an email address that’s not associated with a domain name such as one from Gmail, Yahoo or Hotmail for example. They’re free and if your domain name, email server or renewal glitches, you can still be contacted. Personally, I use Gmail. It’s free, simple to set up and has pretty much everything you might need.

Want to check on your domain name(s) to see if they’re showing any of your personal information or if you’re using an email address associated with the domain name? Visit the site listed here (CentralOps) and click on Domain Dossier. Then enter your domain name in the box. Don’t bother with Service Scan or Traceroute as you’re only interested in your contact information. The screen shots below will show you mine.

Here you see this site’s domain name entered with the category’s box ticked that I want to see:

After you’re satisfied with what you have entered and the boxes ticked, click the ‘go’ button and wait for the information to be queried and displayed. Should take a few seconds at best. Below is what you’ll see when yours is displayed if you have domain privacy enabled. If not, either your business information or your personal contact details will be seen.

So, if you see that your contact information isn’t what you want, you might want to take this time to make a few changes. It’ll save you a whole lot of grief later.

Class dismissed!