OT: Domain Registration

[martin mccann]

On Tuesday 25 April 2006 12:44, martin at orbweavers.co.uk wrote:
> Hi All,
>
>    I know this is off topic, but I can't think of a good place to ask this
> where knowledgable people will answer, and this list usually has a high
> tolerence of ot but technical questions (plus I will be using a FreeBSD
> server, so it is not _entirely_ OT :)
>
>    I'm looking to setup my server as a domain name server. I already have
> it setup for internal use, but last time when I tried to have the
> internet at large using it, I had real trouble explaining to my ISP
> that I wanted my server as the main domain controller, the best they
> could do was pointing www.domain to my server. They wern't even
> able/willing to point the mx record directly to my server, it goes
> through their relay first.
>
>    It has done the job so far, and there is really no reason why I can't
> manage with this, but I am getting a new domain and would like to get
> it all sorted out the way I would like (my main justification for
> hosting it myself is the flexibility to add on sub-domains and such,
> but the real reason is that I am a control freak and like to tinker).
>
>   I assume what should happen is
>
>       - I buy a domain from registrar X
>       - X sets that domain to point to my dns server as the master server
>       - X hosts a secondary dns server
>       - I can then add subdomains to my domain which will directly
> propagate on the internet, set the various MX and ilk to whatever I
> want etc. without having to contact a 3rd party
>
>   My further assumptions are
>       - The secondary server will either update from my server directly OR
> I will need to contact X to add anything new for me.
>
>   My questions are -
>      a) Are my assumptions correct?
>      b) What would be the best way to explain this to a phone drone?
>      c) Can anyone recommend a good registrar that will be able to set
> this up with minimum fuss (and cost)?
>      d) Are there any good reasons not to do it this way (remember, this
> is not a mission critical setup, and its main purpose is to tinker)
>
>
> Regards,
> Martin McCann
>

Thanks for all the input - I decided to go with the suggested registrar 
gandi.net, I picked my domain, and paid the 14 euros fee. It set up 
automatically with its own dns servers and pointing to its own hosting 
address. After that, it was a very simple process of logging in, entering  my 
server as the primary dns server, plus its suggested secondary, and after a 
period of time (less than 8 hours) voila, it is all working. I now have 
everything working the way I want and it took very little effort.

I need to do a few more checks to make sure I havn't overlooked anything, but 
it all looks grand atm - if you are looking for a no nonsence, just give me 
what I want type of setup, I would highly recommend them. I'm now going to 
transfer my origional domain over to them and get that setup to my tastes 
too. I think I may also consider taking a backup of my server setup ... :) 

Thanks again, 
Martin