Transferring a Domain

The following is a detailed overview of the recommended steps involved in transferring your client's domain into your control.

Run WHOIS Lookup
A WHOIS lookup is a report that shows the public registration information for a given domain. You can run a WHOIS lookup from plenty of places. We like the way Network Solutions does it, so we use them (http://www.networksolutions.com/whois).

The WHOIS lookup will tell you most everything you need to know about a domain to help you manage/transfer it: Where it's registered, to whom, for how long, who handles DNS for the domain, etc.

Here are the key bits of information to document when running a WHOIS:

1) Sponsoring Registrar - the registrar is the organization the domain was registered with. GoDaddy, NetworkSolutions, Register.com are examples. You'll need to know this since managing the domain settings happens with the registrar.

2) Domain Contacts - The contacts on file are who the current registrar will notify when transfers or other changes are requested for the domain so it's important to know who's on file.

3) DNS Servers (or Name Servers) - This is who currently holds the authoritative DNS records for the domain. DNS records basically point traffic for the different services related to the domain like web traffic and email traffic. Without DNS you can do nothing.

4) Expiration Date - As the title explains, this is the date the domain will expire. This is usually not a big deal, but it never hurts to make sure an expiration isn't looming.

Change Domain Settings
Next log into the current registrar's control panel to make changes to the domain. You'll need the username and password from client. If they don't have it (which is most often the case), you will have to go through the username/password recovery process. This can vary from registrar to registrar, but usually involves sending a verification email to the email address(es) on file. If email address is no longer accessible, you will have to submit paperwork to the registrar from the client that prove you own the domain. This is usually a photo ID and a statement on company letterhead.

What if the client didn't register their domain?
It's not uncommon for a third party to have registered the client's domain and the client have no access to it. If this is the case, you and your client need to get in touch with the person/company who registered the domain and ask them to:
1) give you access to their domain control panel so that you can make the changes listed below, OR
2) make the changes listed below for you so that you can transfer the domain away from them.

Unlock domain
To transfer a domain, it must be unlocked. The control panel should give you the ability to unlock the domain somewhere in the properties area.

Find Authorization Code
To request the transfer of a domain, you have to know it's authorization code. The control panel should show you this somewhere in the properties of the domain.

Update Contacts
Change contacts to valid email boxes, preferably you or us so that the transfer emails come directly to us and we don't have to rely on the customer to get them and forward them.

Document DNS Records (if applicable)
If DNS is being hosted with Registrar, note current configuration, so that records for services that will not be moving can mimicked in our DNS if needed.

Request Transfer
Transferring the domain typically takes a week and is done via email. Basically, you make the transfer request through the new registrar, then the current owner gets notified and asked to approve this transfer. If approved, the domain moves to the new registrar and a year is added to the renewal time of the domain.

To make this happen, log into your Registrar control panel for the new registrar. There will be a place where you can request a transfer. They'll ask you for the domain and the authorization code. They might also ask you to set options for updating the domain contacts...do so as you wish. When asked what to do with the DNS settings LEAVE DNS AS IS unless the current DNS servers will no longer be available to you when you move the domain (like in the case where the current registrar is managing the DNS). This will keep things in tact until you're ready to setup DNS elsewhere.

When you receive the confirmation email that the domain is complete, you can go on to the last step.

Move/Setup DNS
In your DNS control panel, setup the domain and input the appropriate records. If DNS was hosted with registrar, setup the records to match what they have now. You do it this way because a transfer of the domain to our registrar will negate the records residing at old registrar, and you don't want their current services to stop just because they move their domain in preparation for new site. At launch time, you'll log into your DNS control panel change the records that exist there to take them live.

If DNS is hosted with a different DNS provider (usually a web host, but could be a generic DNS host), setup DNS for when the site goes live. at launch time, you'll log into the Registrar control panel and change the DNS servers (name servers) listed to your new DNS servers and the new records will be ready and waiting.