Knowledge base

This guide helps you choose a domain name on Infomaniak.

Number of Characters

An Internet domain name can consist of between 1 and 63 characters. This is the limit defined by the technical specifications of the Domain Name System (DNS). Longer domain names can be difficult to remember and type, which can affect their usability. Shorter domain names may already be in use or less descriptive.

Other Limitations

These limitations help maintain the integrity and efficiency of the Internet domain name system:

• Allowed Characters: Domain names can only contain alphanumeric characters (letters and numbers) and hyphens. Other characters, such as spaces or symbols, are not allowed.
• Naming Convention: Domain names must follow established naming conventions for Internet domain names. For example, a domain name cannot start or end with a hyphen.
• Availability: A domain name can only be used if it has not already been registered by another individual or company. Popular domain names can be difficult to obtain as they are often already registered. 

On our website, the range of 3 to 63 characters provides a good compromise between length and clarity. This limit and any other constraints will be specified during the steps of your order.

The expiration date of the domain name you transfer to Infomaniak remains the same (it's still the one that existed before the transfer) and is incremented by one year.

• except for .fr and .re, where the expiration date is the transfer date + 1 year
• except for .ch, where the existing expiration date is retained during the transfer, without any increment or change

Example:

• 20/05/2023 = creation of domain.xyz, so the expiration date = 19/05/2024
• 25/11/2023 = transfer to Infomaniak, so the new expiration date = 19/05/2025

• 20/05/2023 = creation of domain.fr, so the expiration date = 19/05/2024
• 25/11/2023 = transfer to Infomaniak, so the new expiration date = 24/11/2024

A domain name may be in one of several states:

"Active" or "OK"
The domain name is declared in DNS and the domain is active and unlocked. All administrative and/or technical operations may be performed.

"Registrar-Lock / Registry-Lock" or "clientTransferProhibited"
The domain name is declared in DNS. The domain is active but locked in order to protect it, against fraudulent transfer requests in particular.

"Registrar-Hold / Registry-Hold"
This status is set when the domain is expired (not renewed). The only possible operation is then renewal. Administrative and/or technical operations are not possible.

"RedemptionPeriod"
This status occurs if the domain has not been renewed. See this FAQ (click here).

"PendingRestore"
This status appears during a restore request. The registrar has 7 days to inform the registry of all information required for the domain to be restored.

"PendingDelete"
This status follows the RedemptionPeriod status after 30 days if no request is made to restore the domain. The name will be deleted within 15 days before becoming available to the public.


In the case of a .fr domain: 

"Active"
The domain name is declared in DNS (and is fully operational).

"Frozen"
The domain name is declared in DNS but no administrative and/or technical operation is possible. Possible reasons: see Article 6.1 of the AFNIC Charter.

"Bloqué"
The domain name is no longer declared in DNS; it is no longer operational and no administrative and/or technical operations are possible. Possible reasons: see Article 6.2 of the AFNIC Charter.

This guide details domain name monetization, typically done through domain parking while keeping the reseller's contact information hidden.

Domain Parking

Domain parking is a technique that involves registering a domain name without immediately using it for a website.

Instead, the domain name is "parked" and typically displays a parking page with advertising generated by an affiliate network.

The domain owner can then earn money through these ads as a source of passive income.

We allow this practice as long as it complies with online advertising and trademark laws.

What if you are the visitor?

Be cautious: some domain parking pages may appear similar to legitimate websites, which can lead to confusion for users looking to access a particular website, and others may be infected with malware, posing a cybersecurity risk to users.

This guide explains how to modify the DNS (Name Servers) of a domain name registered with Infomaniak.

Changing DNS

Changing the name servers (DNS) of a registered domain name allows you to control how that domain name is associated with online services such as websites, email servers, or other network services.

To modify the DNS of a domain name managed by Infomaniak:

1. open the Manager  manager.infomaniak.com)
2. go to Domain
3. click on the domain name concerned
4. click on DNS Servers from the left side menu
5. click on the Change DNS servers button
6. if your website is hosted by Infomaniak, check Infomaniak name servers
   Otherwise, check  Custom name servers

Batch edit

To change the DNS of multiple domain names in bulk:

1. open the Manager (manager.infomaniak.com)
2. go to Domain
3. click on the domain names concerned (1)
4. at the bottom of the screen click on the Modify DNS servers button (2)

Thank you for entrusting the management of your domain names to Infomaniak! As a reminder, the domain name is the address you enter in a browser to display a site like infomaniak.com.

This guide explains how to transfer your domain name that you already own, from one Registrar (Registrar, or Registrar, competing company) to another, in this case  Infomaniak .

Prerequisites

1. verify that the domain is transferable according to certain criteria: 
   • active domain
   • domain created or already transferred for at least 60 days
   • email addresses of the owner and  valid  administrator and technical contacts
   • domain to be transferred unlocked at the current Registrar
2. obtain from your current Registrar the transfer authorization code (or authcode) for the domain name to be transferred (help below)
3. note and keep the technical information relating to the DNS zone UNLESS it is already that of Infomaniak or if you are only going to work with Infomaniak for your Web needs. Examples :
   
   • your domain.xyz domain name currently already includes the ns11.infomaniak.com and ns12.infomaniak.com DNS THEN you have nothing to do except choose our DNS when you are asked during the transfer:
     
   • your domain.xyz domain name currently includes the ns1.monregistrar.com and ns2.monregistrar.com DNS AND you will only work with Infomaniak for everything related to messaging, web hosting, etc. THEN you don't have to do anything except choose our DNS when asked during the transfer:
     
   • your domain.xyz domain name currently includes the ns1.monregistrar.com and ns2.monregistrar.com DNS AND you are only moving the domain name while continuing to work with different services other than Infomaniak THEN carefully note the information contained in your current DNS zone (A records, CNAMEs, etc.) as we cannot guarantee that your current DNS zone will persist where it currently resides (check with your current registrar) and choose not to use Infomaniak DNS:
     
   • and if you don't know which DNS your domain name is currently using, query it via https://infomaniak.com/whois

Obtain the transfer code from your Registrar

You must request and obtain the transfer authorization code from your current Registrar. Example:

• 1&1 (1and1)
• Gandi
• Amen
• Online
• GoDaddy
• namebay
• OVH
• Swizzonic (switchplus)

Special cases

• .BE domain names
• .LU domain names

Domain transfer to Infomaniak

1. order the domain name to transfer to Infomaniak
2. if requested, activate the toggle button to use the Infomaniak DNS as soon as the transfer is complete (read above if necessary)
3. enter the transfer code when you will be asked during the order (to do this, connect to the registrar (registration office) which currently manages your domain name

Transfer multiple domain names to Infomaniak

1. connect to the registrar that currently manages your domain names
2. obtain from your current registrar the transfer codes (or authcode)  for the domain names to be transferred
3. order domain names all at once from Infomaniak, via this transfer wizard
4. indicate domain names and transfer codes or import a CSV file with the list of domains and their transfer codes (in two columns)
5. during the transfer, choose whether or not to apply the Infomaniak DNS entries at the end of the transfer (see above) so in summary:
   1. you will have to deactivate the toggle button if your domain names are linked to services (emails, web) external to Infomaniak
   2. you will need to activate the toggle button if your domains are linked to services found on the destination Infomaniak account
      

Administrative deadlines

The length of time it takes to transfer a domain name is influenced by two factors:

• The terms of the registry of the extension. For .FR, Afnic defines, for example, a transfer period of 8 days.
• The conditions of the Registrar you wish to leave (eg Hostinger). The latter has the possibility of opposing the transfer during the transfer period defined by the register. It can also automatically accept the transfer and speed it up.

This guide is intended for users who wish to manage Glue records at Infomaniak.

If for example you manage your DNS from an independent platform, a configuration that allows you to provide personalized DNS that your customers configure at their registrar, you will need to add "glue records" to your domain (add servers names for your domain - ns1.domain.xyz which points to a specific IP - and then point this same domain to its own name servers).

The glue records correspond to the IP addresses of a NS (name server). Before being able to use their domain name for an NS, this record must therefore be created.

Example: make the domain name domainexample.ch point its NS to ns1.domainexample.ch, but this has never been registered yet or points to the wrong IP address.

Through A record

This method consists of creating a record A (address) for ns1.exampledomain.ch pointing to the IP of the NS. This will have the effect of registering the IP with the registry. You can then add ns1.exampledomain.ch which will be recognized and redirected to the correct NS.

Via Glue records button

This way of doing things allows you to create, but also modify, existing Glue records:

1. open the Manager (manager.infomaniak.com)
2. go to Domain
3. if necessary click on the domain name concerned
4. in the left side menu click on Servers DNS
5. click on the button Manage glue records
6. click the Add Server
button
7. enter the name of the server to add and its IP address
8. click on the Validate
button

Important Notes:

• Adding an NS does not automatically add it to the DNS zone. It is necessary to manually update the DNS zone of your domain.
• For some extensions (in particular .fr), the addition of glue record is subject to a different procedure. Please contact support if you are in this situation and tell us which record you want to set.

This guide explains how to add, modify or delete specific entries (records type A & AAAA, MX, TXT, etc.) inside a domain name DNS zone.

Prerequisites

• Have a domain name with Infomaniak or at least a DNS zone

Add a record (simple mode)

To configure domain-related services and enable proper resolution of domain names to corresponding resources (like external websites, third-party mail servers, etc.):

1. open the Manager (manager.infomaniak.com)
2. go to Domain
3. if necessary click on the domain name to modify
4. click on  DNS Zone in the left side menu
5. entries currently in place are listed in the  Simple Mode table
6. click on the blue Add Entry button
7. under Type choose the desired recording type
   
8. under Source leave empty or fill in a possible sub-domain concerned
9. under Target fill in the information obtained from your external supplier or any other useful indication
10. leave the TTL indicated (learn more about propagation time)

Edit an existing record

1. open the Manager (manager.infomaniak.com)
2. go to Domain
3. if necessary click on the domain name to modify
4. click on  DNS Zone in the left side menu
5. entries currently in place are listed in the  Simple Mode table
6. click on the action menu ⋮ to the right of the record to modify
7. click on Edit to access the editing page
   
8. save your changes

Delete an existing recording

1. open the Manager (manager.infomaniak.com)
2. go to Domain
3. if necessary click on the domain name to modify
4. click on  DNS Zone in the left side menu
5. entries currently in place are listed in the  Simple Mode table
6. click on the action menu ⋮ to the right of the record to modify
7. click on Delete to access the editing page
   

DNS diagnosis

A tool available on your Manager allows you to easily correct certain problematic records.

Expert mode

To edit the DNS zone in expert mode, which allows you to restore a previous version of the different records, click here.

For each domain name registered with or transferred to Infomaniak, you can benefit from 10 MB of web space as well as a free email address which gives you access to Mail (Infomaniak webmail).

This guide explains how to order and use the Starter web hosting and Email Service included with each domain name.

Order/Enable the Starter Email Service and web hosting

1. open the Manager (https://manager.infomaniak.com)
2. go to Domain
3. click on the domain name concerned
4. under Associated products at the bottom of the dashboard, click on the Order a hosting button
5. at the bottom of the order page, select the Starter plan
6. follow the instructions displayed to complete the order

To create your free email address

• The procedure is as follows: https://faq.infomaniak.com/1993

To use the 10 MB of web space

1. open the Manager (https://manager.infomaniak.com)
2. go to Web hosting
3. click on the domain name concerned

In the left-hand side panel:

• under My sites > Page editor, you can edit the home page using the online editor
• under FTP, you can configure an FTP account to manage the content of your html web hosting by FTP if necessary

Thank you for letting us manage your domain names.

This guide will help you to quickly get to know how to use the key features of your new product.

What do you want to do?

1. Domain Privacy: protecting your personal information in Whois
2. Renewal Warranty: protect your domain against theft or loss
3. link a domain not managed by Infomaniak to an Infomaniak WEB hosting
4. link a domain not managed by Infomaniak to an Infomaniak MAIL hosting
5. edit the records (A, MX, Web, Email etc. record) of a domain registered with Infomaniak for example to link a domain managed by Infomaniak to a hosting  not managed by Infomaniak
6. use the free services (email and 10 MB of web space) linked to a domain managed by Infomaniak
7. add a synonym domain (alias) to a domain

If you have a query, please check our knowledge base before contacting our support team.