Register your web domain

CNAME records use a domain prefix, such as blog or shop , to connect your domain to a different domain. If you need to add a domain prefix that connects to an IP address , simply add a subdomain .

Example: The most common CNAME is www , with the @ symbol entered in the Value field. This way, www.mycoolnewbusiness.com will load on the same page as the root domain mycoolnewbusiness.com .

1. Log in to your Hostrean Domain Portfolio. (Need help logging in? Find your password or username.)

2. Select an individual domain to access the Domain Settings page.

3. Select DNS to view your DNS records.

4. Select Add New Record , and then select CNAME from the Type menu.

5. Enter the details of your new CNAME record.

   • Name : The hostname or prefix of the record, without the domain, such as blog or shop . The Name must follow these parameters:

     • Periods (.) are allowed, but not as the first or last character.

     • Consecutive points are not allowed (…)

     • Cannot start or end with a hyphen (-)

     • Cannot include the @ symbol

     • Cannot be used by another registry

     • 63 characters in a row, not separated by a period (.) Example: 63characters.63characters.coolexample.com

     • 255 characters maximum

• Value : The URL defined as the host target. Enter @ to point directly to your root domain.

• TTL (time to live) : The amount of time the server should cache information before updating it. The default setting is 1 hour.

1. (Optional) Select Add more records to add multiple DNS records at once. If you change your mind, select Delete to remove records that haven't been saved yet.

2. Select Save to add your record. If you added multiple records at once, select Save All Records .

   • Domains with Domain Protection require additional identity verification. If you've had two-step verification (2SV) enabled for at least 24 hours, enter the code we sent via SMS or the code from your authenticator app. Otherwise, enter the one-time password we sent to the email address in your Hostrean account.

Most DNS changes take effect within an hour, but can take up to 48 hours to update globally.

Your domain lets people quickly know why you're online (and why you're awesome). Search and register the perfect domain now to attract more attention and visitors.

Select a question to see its answer

• How can I register a domain with Hostrean?

• What if the domain I want is already taken?

• What domains are available for registration?

• Why do some domains cost more?

• What's included in my domain registration?

• Are there any limitations or restrictions?

How can I register a domain with Hostrean?

Search for your domain on the Hostrean homepage using the domain search field. Once you find the domain you want and it's available for registration, add it to your cart and complete your purchase.

What domains are available for registration?

Hostrean offers hundreds of domain extensions for registration, and you may be familiar with some of the most popular extensions, such as .com, .net, and .info. But there are hundreds of other domains available for purchase, such as .design, .shop, and .today. These are known as gTLDs, or generic top-level domains, and refer to the extension at the end of a website address, such as .com, .org, or .net. Generic top-level domains can be purchased and used by anyone and are not restricted to a specific geographic region.

ccTLDs, or country code top-level domains, are unique to different countries, such as .uk for the United Kingdom, .jp for Japan, and .au for Australia. Some ccTLDs have residency restrictions, such as requiring registrants to reside or be located in a specific country or region. Other ccTLDs, such as .it for Italy, allow anyone to purchase them but require a trustee service if the registrant or domain owner is not located in a specific country or region. Finally, some ccTLDs can be registered by anyone, such as .co for Colombia or .ai for Anguilla, which have no residency requirements, allowing you to purchase .ai domains for use with artificial intelligence projects or businesses.

There are also rTLDs, or restricted top-level domains, such as .aero, .edu, .mil, .museum, .name, and .pro. These domains require the registrant to represent a specific type of entity or community. For example, the .name TLD is reserved for individuals, and .edu is reserved for educational entities.

Your online presence can be made up of different elements, including your domain name, website or hosted content, and email address. But what's the difference between these elements, and how does it affect your online presence?

Select a question to see its answer:

• What is a domain name?

• What is web hosting?

• What is email hosting?

• Why is the difference important?

What is a domain name?

A domain, like coolexample.com , is a human-readable series of letters and numbers that translate into an Internet Protocol (IP) address. When entered into a browser's address bar, a domain can direct an internet user to your website. You can think of a domain as the physical address of your home—the specific location, or piece of land, where you'll build your house.

To get there, you must register a domain through a domain registrar. A domain registrar is an accredited organization, like Hostrean, that facilitates domain registration for the public. The person who registers a domain is called the registrant. The registrant keeps a domain registered in exchange for a registration fee and risks losing the domain if the fee is not paid.

What is web hosting?

A common way to use a domain is to connect it to a website for users to visit. To operate a website, you must make your files and content accessible through a website hosting company. A website hosting company hosts and provides your website's files and content, allowing you to make your website content accessible to the world.

Your domain may be registered with a company other than your hosting company, so it's important to know where to manage each element. For example, if you need to change the contact information on your domain, you'll go to your domain registrar, but if you have an issue with an image on your website, you'll go to your host. Many people prefer to have all aspects of their online presence with one company for easier management, but others prefer separation for various reasons.

What is email hosting?

Email hosting is a service that stores your email messages and files on a server. These servers manage the sending and receiving of emails. You can use free email hosting providers like Gmail and Yahoo, or you can set up a custom email address with your domain.

Your registered domain, website hosting, and email hosting can all be with different companies. You can also keep everything with the same company, usually through a bundled option when registering a domain or setting up web hosting.

Why is the difference important?

Domains, websites, and email addresses are all parts of a larger online presence. Having a personalized email address and website depends on having a domain. Visitors reach your website by entering your domain in their browser's address bar and sending emails to your personalized address. You can have a domain without an email address or website, but you can't have an email address or website without a domain.

Knowing the difference between your domain, web hosting, and email is crucial for keeping track of your online presence. You need to be able to determine where a problem might be coming from, such as whether it's your email or your domain that's having issues. If you have your domain, web hosting, and email from different companies, you'll also need to know which company to contact to fix issues or manage your services.

Forward your domain registered with Hostrean and direct visitors to a different page when they visit your domain. Forwarding is useful if you've already built a website elsewhere or if you want to connect your domain to a social media page.

Note: HTTPS forwarding is now automatically applied to your domain when you set it up following these steps. With this new feature, there's nothing extra you need to do, and your domain forwarding will be more reliable and secure. Log in to your Hostrean Domain Portfolio. (Need help logging in? Find your password or username.)

1. Select an individual domain to access the Domain Settings page.

2. Select DNS , then Forwarding .

3. Select Add forwarding .

   • Domain : Add forwarding to your root domain, such as coolexample.com.

   • Subdomain : Add forwarding to your subdomain, such as subdomain.coolexample.com.

1. If you're setting up forwarding on your subdomain, select the subdomain you want to forward. We'll automatically update the subdomain's DNS if it already exists, or add the subdomain if it doesn't.

2. Choose http:// or https:// as the Destination URL . Note: This option applies to the destination URL, where your domain will be forwarded. For example, coolexample.com could be forwarded to https://mycoolnewbusiness.com or http://mycoolexample.com, depending on what you select.

3. Enter the destination URL that will forward your domain. We'll send visitors to this address when they type your domain in their browser's address bar, and you'll need to follow these guidelines.

   • The first and last characters must be a number or letter

   • Periods (.) are supported

   • Maximum 1,000 characters

   • Consecutive periods (…) are not supported

   • Underscores (_) are not supported

1. Choose the type of forwarding:

   • Permanent (301) : Sends users to the destination URL and requests that search engines display the new site's content as the domain's permanent location.

   • Temporary (302) : A temporary change that redirects both users and search engines to the new desired location for a limited period, until the redirect is removed.

   • Forwarding with masking : Sends visitors from your domain to the destination URL, but keeps your domain in the browser's address bar. It also allows you to insert meta tags to convey information to search engines. Note: Some websites do not support masking and may not display the destination website correctly.

1. (Optional) If you opted for Forwarding with Masquerading , select Next , enter details in at least one of the fields, and click Save .

   • Title : A short phrase (maximum 80 characters) that is displayed in the browser tab and in search results.

   • Description : A brief explanation (max 150 characters) about your website to display in search engine results.

   • Keywords : A list of keywords (max 500 characters) that describe the content and purpose of your website.

1. Click Save to apply your new forwarding settings.

   • Domains with Domain Protection require additional identity verification. If you've had two-step verification (2SV) enabled for at least 24 hours, enter the code we sent via SMS or the code from your authenticator app. Otherwise, enter the one-time password we sent to the email address in your Hostrean account.

We'll automatically update your domain to Hostrean's nameservers if they're not already with us. Most DNS updates take effect within an hour, but they can take up to 48 hours.

By transferring your domain to Hostrean, you guarantee the remaining time on your registration, and we'll add an additional year of registration for free. Not only will your domain be transferred, but our expert guides can also help you transfer your email and website to Hostrean. There are special instructions for transferring .uk , .ca , .eu , .es , .se , and .au domains to Hostrean.

Note: Domains cannot be transferred within 60 days of re-registration, transfer, or change of contact information if the current registrant has chosen to apply a 60-day lock when approving the changes .

Before you begin

To avoid any issues with your transfer, please follow these steps with your current registrar before beginning your transfer to Hostrean.

• Unlock the domain at your current registrar. This allows you to transfer the domain from your current registrar to Hostrean.

• Obtain the domain authorization code. The authorization code may also be called an EPP code, transfer code, or transfer key. Your current registrar can help you obtain the code.

• Confirm your domain's contact information. The administrator's contact information can be used to maintain contact during the transfer process.

Note: On June 15, 2023, Squarespace announced its intention to purchase domain registrations and related customer accounts from Google Domains. This is your chance to transfer your domains to the world's leading domain registrar, while also taking advantage of Hostrean's competitive pricing and world-class customer support. Read the information to prepare for the transfer of your Google domain to Hostrean.

Request domain transfer

Once you're ready, it's time to request the transfer and move the domain to your Hostrean account.

1. Go to Hostrean's transfer page and search for your domain.

   • If your domain is already registered with Hostrean, we will show you an account transfer option to move your domain to another Hostrean account.

1. Your domain should be unlocked. A green status bar will appear if we can confirm your domain is unlocked.

   • Click Update Status to update the unlock status, and we'll double-check that the domain is unlocked.

1. Enter your domain's authorization code. You can obtain the authorization code from your current registrar.

   • Did you enter the wrong information? Don't worry! You can edit the authorization code in your account later.

1. Click Continue when the unlock and authorization sections show green status bars.

   • If you click Update Status , you can proceed to the next step without having to select Continue .

1. Choose a Domain Protection option and select Add Protection . If you choose not to add Domain Protection, click No, thanks .

2. Complete the checkout process to officially begin the domain transfer.

Most domain transfers take five to seven days to complete. If we're unable to process your transfer, we'll send you an email, and you can check the status of your transfer at any time in your Hostrean account.

You can transfer a domain name from your account to another Hostrean account, both with Hostrean, as long as the domain is eligible. Domains are not eligible for transfer between accounts if a contact update is pending approval , if the domain expires within one day, if the domain has already expired, or if the domain is already pending transfer .

Domains transferred to another account will retain all current DNS settings, but any connected products, such as a website or email, will not transfer with the domain.

1. Log in to your Hostrean Domain Portfolio. (Need help logging in? Find your password or username.)

2. Select an individual domain to access the Domain Settings page.

3. In the Transfer section, select Transfer to another Hostrean account . Note: To continue with the transfer process, your representatives must be authorized to transfer access to the selected domains.

4. Enter the new account owner's email address and re-enter it to confirm.

5. (Optional) Enter the account owner's new customer number.

   • If you enter a customer number, the email address you enter must match the account email address for that customer number.

1. Choose Yes or No to determine whether you want the current contact information for qualifying domains copied to the new account.

2. Select Send transfer request .

   • Domains with Domain Protection require additional identity verification. If you've had two-step verification (2SV) enabled for at least 24 hours, enter the code we sent via SMS or the code from your authenticator app. Otherwise, enter the one-time password we sent to the email address in your Hostrean account.

The transfer has begun, and now the recipient needs to accept the domains into their account. Select View my transfers to check other pending transfers, or select View my domains to return to the Domain Portfolio.

Required: Remind the recipient to check their email and accept the domain transfer within 10 days. The account transfer will expire if the domain is not accepted within 10 days.

Manually renew domains before they expire on your account. First, check the renewal cost by customizing your domain's columns. If your domain has already expired, you can try to recover it .

1. Log in to your Hostrean Domain Portfolio. (Need help logging in? Find your password or username.)

2. Select an individual domain to access the Domain Settings page.

3. Click Renew Now on the Renew card.

4. Choose your renewal settings and click Continue .

   • Select the checkbox next to Enable auto-renew to automatically renew your domain.

1. Complete your domain renewal at checkout.

The updated expiration date will appear in your account within 90 minutes.

Protecting your domain with Hostrean is an essential part of managing your online presence. You already protect your website with an SSL, so why not protect your domain too? We have different levels of Domain Protection to keep your domain safe.

Domain Privacy is automatically added to all qualified domains registered with Hostrean. Domain Privacy automatically replaces the domain's contact information with data from our privacy partner, Domains By Proxy®. However, protecting your domain is more than just keeping your contact information private. To help protect your domain, Domain Protection prevents unauthorized domain actions, such as transfers or DNS updates, and prevents accidental expiration if your registered credit card expires.