Strictly speaking, it is a name (See domain name below). But in common usage we are often referring to the most basic part of a group of domain names (e.g. alamlak.com being the domain behind the names www.baremetal.com and ftp.baremetal.com and http://alamlak.com/ ). In this sense it is more like an address (123 some street) for an infinitely expandable house (so you can just keep adding suite numbers :-). What is a domain registration?
A domain registration is a 'right to use' for a given domain. Usually registrations cost money, and are sold by the year. What is a domain registrant?
A registrant is the organization that has purchased a domain registration. What is a domain registrar?
A registrar is an organization that sells domain registrations. Usually registrars have a contract with a registry, and often are certified by an organization. Some Registrars use resellers (like OpenSRS), so it may be hard to know who the registrar is. Some registrys sell direct, so the registrar and the registry may be the same organization. What is a domain registry?
A registry is the single organization that co-ordinates the domain registrations for a given top level domain (e.g. .com, .com.kw, or .info). How is a domain registered?
Generally, the organization that wants to register a domain ( which might be an individual), contacts a registrar or visits a registrar's website, requests a particular domain name, provides some contact information, provides some other information (which may include a chosen password, and/or DNS servers, and usually payment information like a credit card number).
The Registrar then sends the appropriate information/request to the registry to complete the registration.
What is a WHOIS record?For most domains, much of the contact information provided during the registration process is put into a public whois record.
(The .com domains are one extreme, with full info for the registrant, plus admin, technical, and billing contacts. At the other extreme is .co.uk which provides registrant name, the name of the registrar and the DNS servers.)
What are the domain contacts?They are the people you contact if you have questions about the domain or trouble accessing it.
Just as importantly, the admin contact is the authority allowed to make changes to the domain, and the billing contact (if there is one) is where the domain expiration messages go to
What is a WHOIS record?DNS servers are what actually makes a domain name work. By work I mean that they convert a text label to the information like IP addresses that the Internet is based on. (See 'What is a domain name'.)
This is not to say that they handle e-mail, or serve web pages. Instead they direct web surfers and e-mail messages to the correct computers.
What is involved in making a domain "work"?By "work" I am assuming that you mean setup a web page at your domain name, or enable e-mail addresses at your domain name.
The short answer is that most people simply hire a hosting service to look after their needs, which means you simply need to get the DNS servers for the domain set to the DNS servers that the hosting service operates, and they do everything else.
The long answer is that you need to get a computer (#1) configured to handle your e-mail and/or serve your web pages. You also need to get a computer (#2, a DNS server) configured to answer DNS lookups and refer requests to the first computer.
Can I register an expired domain name?If you have used who is search you may have noticed a domain name that has expired that you would like to register. Unfortunately, until the domain name is deleted from the main registry database you will not be able to do so. The amount of time between expiration and deletion varies registrar by registrar, but generally there is a 45-76 grace period before the domain name is deleted.
Most registrars allow a grace period after a domain name expires for the registrant to renew it. That grace period can be as short as one to two weeks or as long as one year in some cases. If the current registrant does not renew it within the allotted time frame, then that domain name should become available. The actual grace period is different for each individual registrar. Once they release the domain name, you will be able to register it through us. How do I change the DNS servers, the admin contact etc?
Generally, you go to the website of the registrar you registered the domain with.
For names registered through Baremetal.com, use the 'Manage Domain' link on the 'Domains' men