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The Basics - Domain Name Services
A domain name is a name used to locate and display a Web site. An example of a domain name is example.com. The top-level domain (TLD), or domain name extension, is the .COM, .NET, .ORG, etc. portion of the domain name.
A domain name is simply an easy to remember name that refers to an IP address. An IP address, or Internet Protocol Address, is an address written in dotted decimals (such as 204.171.64.2) that helps a computer determine what Web site to display.
The relationship between domain names and IP Addresses can be explained by using an analogy. Imagine that an IP Address is a phone number and the domain name is "speed dial" listing in a cell phone. You do not need to know the person's phone number to contact the person. All you need is the name of the person in your speed dial listing.
Domain names and IP addresses work the same way. You do not need to know the IP address of a particular Web site. You simply need to know the domain name. When you type in a domain name in a Web browswer, you are telling the browser to retrieve the Web site that is associated with a particular IP address.
Usually, domain names have a yearly registration fee associated with them, which varies according to the domain name registrar used. pair Networks' domain name
registrar, pairNIC, offers one-year .com, .net, .org, .biz,
.info, or .us registrations for $19. The cost per year of the domain name registration decreases if you register a domain name for a longer period of time (up to five years).
To register domain names with country-code extensions such as .US (United States of America) and .CN (China), you may be required to have a residence, or at least a presence, in that particular country. Other country-code extensions such as .WS (Western Samoa) can be registered by anyone.
You can register domain names ending in .COM, .NET, .ORG, .BIZ, .INFO, .US, .CN, and .WS using pairNIC, our domain name registration
service.
You can also use our domain name registration tool below:
You have the ability to register a domain name when you are signing up for a new Web hosting account. If you are a current pair Networks customer, you can register a domain name via our Web hosting control panel, the Account Control Center (ACC). Simply log into the ACC, visit the Domain Name Management section, and follow the instructions on registering a domain name. If you want to add this domain name to your Web hosting account, registering a domain name via the ACC allows you to easily set up your domain name with your pair Networks Web hosting account.
You are free to use other domain name registrars if you'd like. Here are the steps to follow:
- Sign up for a Web hosting account with pair Networks.
- Log into the Account Control Center, and click Domain Hosting Management (after your account has been activated).
- Click "Add"
- Select the "Add Domain Name Records for a Domain Name to be Registered Later" option, and fill out the page. You will receive name server information for this domain name.
- Use this name server information when you register the domain name at your domain name registrar.
Dedicated IP domain hosting refers to the process of adding a domain name to your Web hosting account that has a unique IP address associated with it. The first domain name on a Web hosting account must use Dedicated IP hosting. You can add additional domain names on a single pair Networks hosting account and can choose to either use Dedicated IP, Shared IP, or Parked domain hosting.
Domain names that use Dedicated IP domain hosting have their own unique IP address, and there is a one-time set-up fee of $5 plus a $1 per month fee. You can save money on domain name set-up fees by adding multiple domain names to an account at one time (see our current domain name specials).
If you wish to use SSL certificates, Virtual FTP, or FrontPage Server Extensions, you must choose the Dedicated IP hosting option when adding a domain name to your Web hosting account. The domain name must be registered with a domain name registrar before you can use it with your hosting account.
Shared IP domain hosting is the process of adding a domain name to your Web hosting account and sharing the IP address with another domain name on your account.
Choosing this domain hosting option allows you have a separate Web space for your domain name but without the option of having a unique IP address associated with
your domain name. The Shared IP domain hosting option has a $5 set-up fee associated with it but no monthly fee.
You can upgrade your Shared IP domain name to a Dedicated IP domain name or downgrade it to a Parked domain name.
A Parked domain hosting refers to a adding a domain name to your Web hosting account that points to the same Web site as the domain name on which it is "parked." For example, you can park "example.net"
on the domain name "example.com." If someone types the parked domain name "example.net" into a Web browser, it will point to the same Web site that "example.com"
points to. The Web browser's address bar will display the parked domain name and will not display the domain name on which it is parked.
A Parked domain name shares the IP address of the domain name on which it is parked. You can park a domain name on domain name using Shared IP domain hosting. You cannot park a domain name on another Parked domain name.
Because Parked domain names do not have a unique IP address, there is only a $5 set-up fee and no monthly fee for Parked domain names. It is possible to upgrade a
Parked domain name to a Dedicated IP domain name or to a Shared IP domain name. There is no cost associated with upgrading the domain name; however, if you choose
the Dedicated IP domain hosting option, you will still have to pay the $1 per month fee.
If you are a current pair Networks customer, you can upgrade your parked domain name by following the steps below:
- Log into the Account Control Center
- Click "Domain Hosting Management"
- Click "Manage"
- Select the domain name you wish to upgrade or downgrade
- Click "Modify Domain Name Settings"
- Select the upgrade option and click "Modify Domain Name Settings"
A subdomain is a subset of a domain name (subdomain.example.com). A subdomain can use either Dedicated IP, Shared IP, or Parked domain hosting. If you wish, you can create and add a "pairsite.com" subdomain via the Account Control Center (e.g. example.pairsite.com). Please note that some "pairsite.com" subdomains are already reserved.
We have created a separate Knowledge Base Support page for this topic. Please click here for a complete answer.
No, you do not. You can host as many domain names as you'd like on any pair Networks hosting plan.
You can control many aspects of your pair Networks hosted domain names through our Account Control
Center. You can park domain names, upgrade domain names, register new domain names, and more. If you are a current pair Networks customer, and you register a domain name via our ACC and add it to your pair Networks hosting account, we will waive your domain hosting fees. Please note that if you choose the Dedicated IP domain name option, you will still have to pay the $1 per month fee.
If you wish to make modifications to your domain name and are not able to, or are not sure how to do it via the Account Control Center, please contact our friendly Support Team at support@pair.com.
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