A domain name is the address people type to reach your website, such as yourcompany.com. It points visitors to wherever your site is hosted. It is easier to remember than the numeric address of a server, and it stays the same when you move the site to another host.
What is a domain name?
DNS links the domain name to the server that hosts the site. Your domain is also the base for your email addresses and your SSL/TLS certificateAn SSL/TLS certificate proves your website is really yours and scrambles the data between visitor and site. It shows as HTTPS and a padlock in the address bar., so it is one of the most important assets of an online business.
A domain name is read from right to left. The last part, such as .com or .nl, is the top-level domain. The part before it is the name you register, and anything in front of that is a subdomain, such as shop in shop.yourcompany.com. You register a name through a registrar, which records you as the holder and charges a renewal fee, usually per year or for a longer term.
The name itself does not contain a website. It is a pointer. DNSDNS is the internet's phone book: it looks up a domain name, such as yourcompany.com, and tells browsers which computer holds that website. links the name to the server where the site is stored, and that server is rented from a web hostingWeb hosting is the service that keeps your website's files on a computer that is always online, so visitors can open your site at any time. provider. Three separate things work together: the name, the DNS settings and the hosting.
What your domain name means for a PHP or WordPress site
Because the domain is independent from the hosting, you can change where the site lives without changing the address. That is what makes a migration possible without visitors noticing. The only change is a DNS record that points the name to the new server.
Two things go wrong often. The first is control: the domain is registered by a former web agency or freelancer, and nobody at your company has the login. The second is timing: the registration expires because the invoice went to an old email address. In both cases the site and your email can disappear at once, even though nothing is wrong with PHPPHP is a programming language that builds your web pages on the computer that hosts your site, just before they reach the visitor. WordPress runs on it. or the server.
WordPressWordPress is free software for building and editing a website in your browser. It is written in PHP, so it builds each page when someone visits. also stores the domain in its settings and in the database. When the address changes, those stored values must be updated, or the site keeps linking to the old one.
Checking your own domain
Look up three things. Who is the registrant, and is that you? When does the registration expire, and is automatic renewal on? Where do the DNS settings live, at the registrar or with the hosting provider or another service?
Write the answers down in one place along with the logins. It takes ten minutes and prevents most of the painful domain emergencies.
When to act
Act now if the domain is registered to someone who no longer works with you, or if the renewal date is close and nothing is automated. Act before any move: a new host, a new domain or a rebuild needs a plan for the DNS change, a fresh certificate and redirects from every old address. Our PHP migration service handles that sequence on a copy first, so the switch to the new server is a small step.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a domain name and web hosting?
The domain name is the address; hosting is the place where the site's files live. You register a domain with a registrar and rent hosting from a hosting provider. They are often bought together but they are separate things.
Who owns my domain name?
The registrant listed with the registrar owns the registration. Check that your own company is named there, not an agency or a former freelancer, and that the contact email still works.
What happens if my domain name expires?
The website and any email on that domain stop working, and after a grace period the name can become available to others. Turn on automatic renewal and keep the payment details and contact address current.