Question: Why do domain registrars require two name servers?

Answer: The short answer to this question is that Internet standards require it according on RFC 1034, published by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). But there is a good reason for it.

The intent of the standard is to ensure that domain name servers have redundancy. If one name server goes down, a website will still have at least one more to keep it alive. In other words, your server could be working perfectly fine, but without name servers, no one will see your site. Furthermore, sites with heavy loads might be able to distribute that load between the two name servers.

Because of the above reasons, the intent is to have two distinct name servers, at two locations, using two different IP addresses. If you have your own server and do not have access to a another server for DNS, I recommend using one of the many DNS services that are available at low cost. It will save you trouble in the long run and will make sure your site is up to standards.

Photo: Flickr

Continue reading: Why do domain registrars require two name servers?

Question: What is CNAME?

Answer: A CNAME or Canonical Name record is a type of record found in DNS that allows the user to specify an alias for a domain name. For example, you can create an alias of domain1.com with domain2.com. More typically, however, it is used to create aliases for subdomains, including the most common, which is “www”.

Often a default domain record will have a wildcard (*) that will resolve any subdomain, including “www”. If it does not, it will need something like this:

www.domain1.com. CNAME domain1.com.

You can also have one point to another:

ftp.domain1.com. CNAME sftp.domain1.com.

Many mail servers will also use a mail subdomain:

mail.domain1.com. CNAME domain1.com.

CNAME records are also very useful when pointing to external domains, particularly when using cloud services like Google Apps. It effectively disguises the fact that the service is hosted on another domain.

Image Source: Wikimedia Commons

Continue reading: What is CNAME?

This year has been a big one for both the domain and web hosting industries. Significant growth has been seen in the ccTLD market while more prominent TLDs continue to sell for record-high prices. A recession has brought more entrepreneurs and investment online, spurring heavy growth in the hosting and data center realm.

Here are some of the more memorable stories of 2009:

Continue reading: InternetBlog: Best of 2009

Coming up with domain name ideas can at times be challenging. Some of us are great programmers or writers, but most people aren’t good at creating brand names. Luckily, there are a number of great domain name generators out there that can help. Here are my top three picks (in no particular order):

1. Web 2.0 Name Generator
This tool generates great Web 2.0 names. What’s great about these kind of domains is they are generic, so if your original site plan doesn’t work out you can always use the name for something else. Unfortunately, this generator does not check availability.

2. Bust a Name
This domain name generator has a lot of options to play with. It lets you add multiple words, prefixes, suffixes, and more. Besides returning only available names, it can also show domains for sale.

3. Net Substance
Net Substance is designed to be both a brand name creator and a domain generator. Just one query will bring back hundreds of results. Some generated names are better than others, however, and you might have to play with the settings a bit to get decent ideas.

Photo | Flickr

Continue reading: Domain name generator

In an effort to promote the .info extension, registry Afilias is holding a contest for the best .info site. Ten finalists have been selected and the top three will split a $15,500 cash prize.

Votes may be placed here. Polling will be available until November 6. The finalists are:

http://www.turkel.info
http://www.gps-tour.info
http://www.solicitor.info
http://de.med.info
http://www.digitaldruck.info/
http://your-affiliate.info/
http://www.thueringen.info
http://www.zulassungsdienst.info
http://www.westsussex.info
http://www.santosbrazil.info

Nearly 50% of submissions came from the United Sates and Germany, but the rest came from a smorgasbord of countries. Most entries were either special interest, corporate, or private sites.

Afilias is using the contest to demonstrate that .info is a quality extension, but as far as I’m concerned, .com is still king.

Source | DN Journal

Continue reading: Vote now in the .INFO Awards

Question: What is Reverse DNS?

Answer: Reverse DNS is a method of determining the domain name associated with an IP address. It is the opposite of DNS, which finds the IP address associated with a domain name. According to Internet standards, every IP address should have a domain name, and each one should be reachable through a reverse DNS record.

When running a dedicated server, it is important to have reverse DNS setup, and many web hosting providers will set it up for you or even require it. Reverse DNS also comes in handy if you ever need to lookup a domain for security reasons. For example, if there is a suspicious IP address logging into your server or hitting your site multiple times, you can find out the domain and thus the owner of that domain through reverse DNS.

On Linux and other Unix-based systems, there is an easy-to-use tool called nslookup. If you want to find DNS information for an IP address, just enter “nslookup” followed by the IP address:

nslookup 100.10.100.100

Reverse DNS can also be used to prevent people from spoofing your domain or IP address by requiring reverse DNS verification. A great tool for Reverse DNS lookup is MyIpTest.com.

Continue reading: What is Reverse DNS?

One perk offered with web hosting packages these days is a free domain. If you sign up for several months, many providers are willing to register any major TLD for you.

This may look like a good way to save money at first glance, but read the fine print. Most web hosts who offer this sort of deal have a clause in their terms stating that if you cancel the hosting account, you must pay them the yearly registration fee. This seems reasonable enough until you discover providers will often charge as much as £15 for a domain.

Your best bet is to register your domain with a registrar unaffiliated with your web host. While the alternative would most likely be perfectly safe, why needlessly put all your eggs in one basket? If there is ever a major technical or billing issue, having your domain elsewhere not only makes switching easier, but also gives you more bargaining power with the host.

Photo | Flickr

Continue reading: Free domain offers aren't all they're cracked up to be

Things were looking bad for the new gTLD program yesterday when two Congressmen criticized the plan, but now it looks like ICANN is having problems of its own.

According to an inside source at DN Journal, internal developments at the California organization will more than likely delay the gTLD system launch from Q1 2010 to Q2.

It sounds like ICANN isn’t having a good week. Personally, I think there will be more delays if the gTLD system even goes live at all. It is such a big change and will cause so many disruptions to the Internet that I doubt it Congress will let it become active without more research on its potential effects.

Continue reading: New gTLDs to be delayed

Have a domain you know you will be keeping for a long time? Why renew it yearly when you could register it for an extended period of time and save money?

Many registrars offer discounts on long-term registrations. Usually the longer the period, the greater the discount. For instance, you might be able to get a 5% discount for two years, 10% for 5 years, and 15% for ten years.

By registering for an extended period, you can also ensure that you don’t forget to renew a name. I’ve done this more than a few times in the past with some of my more important domains and now generally renew them at least for two years at a time.

Photo | webvizion

Continue reading: Save money with long-term domain registrations

Can’t think of any good domain ideas? Your first inclination might be to visitor one of the many free domain name finder sites on the Internet. This isn’t a bad thing to do, but you are overlooking the most powerful resource available: the human mind.

With a little bit of pushing and nudging, you would be surprised what your mind can do. Generating domain ideas on your own may be hard at first, but once you get the creative juices flowing, you’ll find a number of available domains much better than anything a free finder service could suggest. Best of all, no computer is required.

To get started, sit down with a piece of a paper, a pencil, and a thesaurus. Think of words that identify the product or service your site provides (cars, window washing, etc.) and them down. Next, write down words you would like to be associated with your site. You can use adjectives like “quick” or “easy,” as well as suffixes, prefixes, and numbers. Using your thesaurus if necessary, write down at least ten solid domains you would be happy with. Don’t worry about checking for availability

Continue reading: The best domain finder: your mind

Domains are so cheap these days, why stick with just one? You may use a .com or .co.uk for your site, but it’s always worthwhile to register other top extensions if you can.

Why is this important? It’s all about brand protection. Someone once registered the .net version of my site’s domain, for example, and threatened to set up a competing site unless I paid him a small sum of money. Thankfully, the person quickly realized his idea wasn’t a good one and I bought the name from him for its yearly registration fee, but I wished I had owned it in the first place.

Domains are very inexpensive, and the brand protection owning one or two extra TLD provides can save you quite a bit down the road. Some registrars will even offer discounts on the name name under multiple extensions. I recommend owning the .com, the .net, the .co.uk, and possibly the .org. These extensions may not be available, but if they are, do yourself a favor and grab them before someone else does.

Photo | annaOMline

Continue reading: Registering TLD variants

After you register a domain, the Internet has to have a way to find your site. Most of the time, your web host will give you a pair of DNS servers to give to your registrar. The DNS servers show the world where your site is, much like a driveway connects a house to the main road.

For many years, domain providers have offered an alternative to DNS: domain forwarding. To set this up, all one has to do is input a web address of where they would like the name to go, such as a directory within an existing domain or perhaps a freely-hosted site on a subdomain.

Domain forwarding is a little bit easier to set up, but should not be used under any circumstances unless your host does not support DNS (mainly free hosts). Domain forwarding provides only a simple redirect to site visitors and search engines, whereas DNS gives you a faster direct connection. Forwarding will only send visitors to one place, but setting up DNS lets you have additional pages on your domain.

In real-world terms, think of DNS and domain forwarding as ways to get across a river. DNS is a long, wide bridge that will let anything and everything across quickly. Conversely, domain forwarding is a one-seat kayak. It well get you where you need to go, but with serious limitations.

Continue reading: To forward, or not to forward?