CDN biz – Domain Basics Guide for Beginners. Did you know that the actual website addresses that you normally access such as Google.com or Facebook.com actually consist of a certain series of numbers?
This row of numbers called IP is the address of the hosting server where the website files you access are stored.
Pay attention to the following IP rows:
172.217.26.78
66.220.156.68
The first IP row is Google’s server IP address, while the second IP row is Facebook’s IP address.
You can access both websites by typing the IP address into your browser.
However, to what extent can you memorize the IP address, if there are many websites you need to visit?
IP address
Accessing websites with IP addresses is a difficult thing. Imagine, if you want to access 10 websites, it means you have to remember 10 IP addresses!
From the above problems, a domain was created to make it easier for internet users to access a website address.
Well, in this article you will learn hosting and domains for beginners, see the full discussion below.
How do you describe how domains work?
Please refer to the illustration below to understand how the domain works simply:
Domain Analogy
If likened, in our everyday life a domain name is the address of a place. If we want to go to such a place, we must know the address first. Only after we are in a place can we see and find out what is in the destination address. Domain names are unique (there cannot be more than 1 same domain name) so there is no more than 1 domain with the exact same name and extension.
You know, every domain name that is created will be registered with the domain registrar (domain name provider) under the auspices of ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers). A non-profit international organization in charge of coordinating the maintenance and data collection of worldwide domain name databases.
Age / The minimum active period of a domain is 1 year, and because the domain name is unique, the registered domain name cannot be registered by anyone else before the active period expires and is deleted from the registrar.
To find out when the domain expires, when the domain enters the redemption period, and when the domain is deleted from the registrar, you must know the duration of the domain lifecycle.
The image below is a domain name life cycle that will explain the steps that a domain goes through from registration to deletion.
1. Domain Registration
When a domain is registered & active, the duration of the domain’s active period will begin. The smallest active period for a domain is 1 year / 365 days.
2. Grace period/grace period
After 365 days the domain will expire and enter a grace period. At this time your domain registrar will be suspended & not functioning / unable to display the website. Grace period duration is 40 days.
3. Redemption Period
When your domain enters a redemption period/grace period, it can still be renewed. However, your domain renewal fee can usually be up to 10 times the normal renewal price, unlike when you get a cheap domain price when you first register it. The redemption period is 30 days.
4. Pending Deletion
When your domain enters the pending deletion period, your domain cannot be renewed/renewed. You can only wait for 5 days until the domain is deleted/deleted by the registrar & can be registered again.
What you need to pay attention to, when your domain is deleted & want to use it again, it is highly recommended to immediately register it again. Because if your domain is quality, it is not impossible that other people will be interested in registering your domain name too.
The types of domains that you can register and their functions
So far what domain extensions do you know? .com? .net or .biz? Like this cdn.biz
Most people are generally familiar with the .com domain which is indeed the most popular, but did you know that there are actually hundreds of types of domain extensions in the world?
Market Share domain
Marketshare domain in the world is dominated by the .com domain, followed by the .net, .org and other domain extensions.
However, that doesn’t mean other domain names are bad, for those of you who want to use a .com domain extension but that domain name has been registered by someone else. then you can use any other domain name extension as an alternative.
Check out the explanation below about the types of domains and their extensions.
TLD – Top Level Domains
The TLD domain is the highest domain type in the DNS structure on the Internet. TLD domains are subdivided into several types, namely:
ccTLD – the country code Top Level Domains
CCTLD
ccTLD or country code Top Level Domain is a two-letter extension domain based on the geographic naming of a country such as .id for Indonesian ccTLDs, .us for United States, .au for Australia, and others.
Previously, ccTLD domains were only available to citizens according to their tld extensions, but nowadays most ccTLD domains can be registered by anyone even if they are not citizens of the country concerned.
The advantages of a ccTLD domain
- Clarity of identity (registering a ccTLD domain usually requires uploading a scan of identity or passport)
- The chances of being used for fraud or illegal activities are very small because registration is required to use identity.
- More domain name choices because there are not as many users of the ‘.ccTLD’ domain as ‘.com’
- In search engines, prioritization for the relevant country market.
ccTLD domains Disadvantages
- Naming domain name extensions are less popular.
- Registration procedure that requires identity verification so that activation is not as fast as .com & the like.
- In some ccTLD extensions, the price of the domain tends to be higher than gTLD domains such as .com & the like.
The ccTLD domain is suitable for…
Business owners who want to look more professional.
Alternative .com domains that are already owned by someone else.
gTLD – generic Top Level
TLD
Common types of domains and can be registered by anyone. Some of the known types of gTLD domains are .com, .net, .org and the like.
The advantages of gTLD domains
- Most popular extension among other TLDs.
- No identification documents are required to register.
- Relatively low prices for Premium domains or multiple ccTLDs.
gTLD domains Disadvantages
- Domain name searches are difficult because many have registered the same name before.
- It is relatively vulnerable to be used for crime because it does not require a valid identity scan.
TLD domains are suitable for…
- For those of you who need a popular extension domain such as .com, .net .org to make it easier to remember.
- You don’t want to be too bothered with document requirements.
Premium TLD
Although relatively new, the premium TLD domain is an alternative to domain names that uses premium extensions such as .site, .web, .travel, .host, .doctor and other extensions. Premium TLD domains tend to emphasize the specifications of a website. For example, a domain that uses the .travel extension will most likely discuss travel or a travel product/service. Likewise with other extensions.
The advantages of a Premium TLD domain
- Specific refers to the specifications of a website.
- Alternative .com domains that are already owned by someone else.
Premium TLD domain Disadvantages
- Prices are relatively more expensive than other domain extensions.
- A domain extension that is not as familiar as a regular gTLD domain.
Premium TLD domains are suitable for…
- Website with a specific category. For example the .host domain for hosting services, then the .travel domain for travel service providers.
- Alternative domain names other than .com that are already owned by someone else.
How do domains work until they are accessible & visible?
If your goal is to register a domain, then there are 2 things you need to know to build a website, namely hosting and the website files themselves.
How are the three related?
Hosting can be likened to a house that has a location somewhere.
Website files can be described as the “contents” of the house such as doors, windows, and furniture in them.
While the domain is the address of the house.
When you want to visit a place/building, then you must know the address first, then go to the address you already know.
After arriving, you will find a building, complete with the appearance and everything in it.
The parable above is the same as when you access a website, the first step is to access the domain name through a browser. Then the browser will display the website files and their appearance which are stored on the hosting server.
From some of the explanations above, you already know what a domain is and how it works.
But you also need to know a few things that function to connect a domain with hosting, namely the Domain Name System (DNS) and Nameserver (NS).
Domain Name System & Nameserver
When you buy a domain and hosting, they don’t just connect right away. Because they are basically two different things. However, you can connect the two with the help of DNS. So what is DNS and what are its components? Please refer to the following explanation.
Domain Name System (DNS): DNS is a database system that functions to translate / direct domain names to IP addresses or vice versa.
DNS consists of several records, including NS Record, A Record, PTR, CNAME, TXT, SOA, and so on.
With this DNS you can point the domain to the IP server you want through the DNS settings in the domain panel where you buy/register the domain.
Nameserver (NS): Nameserver is a unique name that represents the name of the domain name system (DNS Server) database storage server in which there is a description of the IP address that goes to the predetermined hosting server. Generally, nameservers are made using domain names to make it easier to remember and use.
Example:
ns1.cdn.biz
ns2.cdn.biz
From the explanation above, you now know that you need DNS assistance so that your domain and hosting can connect to each other. With this DNS, you can freely direct your domain to any service you want.
In order for you to better understand how to connect a hosting domain, the explanation below will discuss more deeply.
How to Use a Domain
If you already understand how domains work up to the type of domain, now you will get an explanation of how to use a domain. In the explanation below, what is discussed is how to use a domain to connect to hosting and other platforms such as Weebly and Blogspot.
Linking Domain with Hosting
To point your domain name to your web hosting service, you just need to point the domain nameserver to the intended hosting nameserver.
Nameserver directions can be done through DNS Management or your hosting service member area.
Here is an example of a technical tutorial directing a domain to webhosting -> How to Connect a Domain and Hosting
Even though the interface is different, what you need to pay attention to is the nameserver alignment settings.
If you already own a domain and want to change hosting service providers, you can initiate a domain transfer. To read the complete tutorial, you can visit our page on how to transfer a domain.
Redirecting Domains to Web Builder Services, Blogs, and Similar
If you want to point your domain to a blog service like Blogspot or a web builder like Weebly, you can point your domain using A record & CNAME.
Next we will discuss about WHOIS.
Have you ever wondered who owns a website? Or have you ever been confused about contacting the owner of a website because the owner did not include a clear contact address on his website?
To find out who the owner of a website is, you can see the Whois information. Want to know more about Whois? Let’s continue reading 🙂
WHOIS
Whois is a way to get information about a domain. This information can include details of the owner when the domain was registered, renewed, and the expiration date.
Whois can be seen through website-based whois tools such as whois.net, whois.domaintools.com, who.is, and through the command line.
whois domain function – whois protect function – whois protection function
If the domain owner does not want their information to be seen by other people, the “whois protect” feature provided by the domain provider can be used to protect personal data from being displayed when someone checks the domain via whois tools.
Even by knowing this whois information, you can check the active period of the domain you have to avoid the domain being suspended due to the expiration of its active period.
From the explanation above, you can consider which domain extension is the most suitable for your website. Besides that, you also have an alternative lin extension that can be used if the .com domain extension you want to register is already owned by someone else.
