From
registering the domain name to getting your web site
online
You
have selected a domain name, registered it and signed
up with a web host. What's next? Your web host has to
provide you with details about how to get your site
up and running. This information includes passwords
to get into your account, paths to directories where
your files should be uploaded, and most importantly,
what your domain name servers are.
Domain
name servers (DNS) provide the link between your domain
name (mywebsite.com) and your Internet Protocol (IP)
address. The IP address is a series of numbers like
this: 123.456.78.9. Every web server has a unique IP
address which, in the case of dedicated servers hosting
a single domain, is equivalent to the domain name. A
site hosted on a dedicated server will respond to either
123.456.78.9 or mywebsite.com by serving the requested
webpage.
Most
websites, though, are hosted on shared servers. This
means that one server is home to many different websites,
but they each have the same IP address. If you type
in a shared IP address you will get an error page or
will be redirected to the web hosting company's web
site. So DNS is necessary for websites on shared servers.
Domain names are the only way to request these websites
– they cannot be requested by IP address.
Configuring
DNS
When
you first purchase a domain name, it will be registered
on the DNS of the registrar. Until you arrange for a
web host, the registrar company will usually redirect
requests for your domain name to an error page or an
'Under Construction' page. Note that there is no time
limit between buying a domain name and finding a host.
Some people purchase domain names without ever intending
to build a website on them. Most people, though, buy
a domain name with the intention of using it. To do
that, you need to open an account with a web host and
prepare to transfer your site to their server. Part
of the process of preparing your site for publication
on the World Wide Web is to alert your domain name registrar
of the DNS of your new server.
A
DNS configuration looks something like this:
Primary
Name Server: NSA.NEWDAYDNS.COM (204.50.14.2)
Secondary Name Server: NSB.NEWDAYDNS.COM (204.50.22.2)
This
information is available from your hosting company either
in their informational package that they email to you,
or on their website. If you can't find the DNS it's
best to contact your web host and ask for it.
Once
you have the DNS information you can usually enter it
into your account on the website of your registrar.
If you have purchased your domain name from the hosting
company, they will usually make the necessary changes
for you when they set up your account.
When
the DNS is registered or modified (when changing web
hosts) it can take up to 24 hours for your site
to be accessible from everywhere in the world.
This is because domain names are registered in a distributed
data base that is maintained on thousands of computers
around the world.
Each
computer has a small part of the database in cache,
and if they receive a request for an unknown domain
that request has to be forwarded to another computer
until the information is found.
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