.au Domain Name Management

Who is the authority for .au domain names?

.au Domain Administration Ltd (auDA) is the policy authority and industry self-regulatory body for the .au domain space. auDA carries out the following functions:

□ develop and implement domain name policy
□ license 2LD registry operators
□ accredit and license registrars
□ implement consumer safeguards
□ facilitate .au Dispute Resolution Policy
□ represent .au at ICANN and other international fora.

Visit the auDA website.

Domain Name Registration

Where can you buy a .au domain name?

There are two types of domain name sellers. It’s up to YOU to decide who you want to buy your domain name from and how you want it managed.

Buy from a Registrar

auDA authorises a number of companies to sell domain names in Australia. These are called ‘Accredited Registrars’. You can view a list of these on the auDA website.

Buy from a Reseller

Resellers are authorised by the registrars under a reseller agreement. Resellers (eg. your web developer) are often better at providing the sales and customer service functions for your domain names because they already have a relationship with you.

Creative Mode is an Authorised Reseller

Creative Mode is currently a registered reseller for Primus Telecommunications Australia and NetRegistry Australia. We are authorised to sell all .au 2LD domains and bound by auDA’s Domain Name Suppliers Code of Practice. You can find us on the auDA website here: http://www.auda.org.au/reseller_search.php

What is a free domain name transfer?

Changing from one domain name supplier to another is called a domain name transfer and it’s usually a free service! YOU decide who you want to buy your domain name from and who you want to manage it, so you can change who your supplier is at any time and your domain name expiry dates will remain unchanged.

How do I manage My Domain name?

Contact details MUST be kept up-to-date

To check if your contact details are accurate go to http://whois.ausregistry.net.au/ , type your domain name into the box and click the whois button. If the details shown there are not accurate then you need to get them updated asap. You must keep your contact details up-to-date so that you can be notified when your domain name is about to expire. You will need your domain name registry key to update your contact details. Your registry key is provided when you first register the domain name.

Renew your domain name every 2 years

When your registrar or reseller contacts you about renewal, you have the choice to renew for another 2 years or more. Usually this requires acceptance of terms and conditions and a credit card payment.

What happens when a domain name expires?

If your domain name expires:

□ your DNS (domain name system) record is removed
□ your website will not be accessible via your domain name
□ any email sent to your domain name will bounce back to the sender
□ the domain name enters a pending deletion status for 14 calendar days after the expiry date and then becomes available to the public for registration
□ if you choose to reactivate (renew) the domain during this time it can still take up to 24 hours to get your site and email back up
□ there is the chance that someone else will get your domain name!

Why transfer to Creative Mode?

Although there’s not a lot to domain name management once you know how, many customers still have out of date information on record and find the whole process confusing. Because we regularly manage other client services for you (such as website hosting) we are happy to also take care of the domain name registration. This just makes life easier because we can make sure all the contact details are up-to-date and put ourselves as the technical contact so if anything goes wrong we are authorised to sort it out for you ASAP.

Creative Mode offers excellent service and
more competitive pricing than most major registrars.