GENERAL
BILLING / REGISTRATION
HOSTING
TRANSFERS / RENEWALS
ACCOUNT INFORMATION
A domain name is the essence of your online identity. It is the address your customers use to find information about your products and services on the Web. Domain names allow Internet users to type in a name, such as
thewholeinternet.com,
to identify a numeric Internet Protocol (ip) address such as 209.25.170.84. The purpose of domain names is to allow users connected to the Internet the ability to find websites without having to memorize the long, numerical ip addresses that actually
locate the computers or servers on the Internet.
The cost to register a new domain name is $14.25 per year; renewals are $12.95 per year. We also offer a special whereby you may obtain a domain for only $7.75 when purchased with one of our economical
hosting packages (or
free
with the
ENTERPRISE PLAN). As long as you continue to pay the annual fee, the domain remains your property.
To check a domain name for availability, enter it into the search-box on our
Services or
Domain Services page.
If it is available, click the checkout button and begin the registration process.
The first time you register a name with
The Whole Internet
you'll need to set up an account with a username and password. This is how you will get access to your domains later.
You may specify any username and password, provided it has not already been taken by another applicant. If your username has been taken, it will be necessary to specify another username.
Continue with the registration process, and your name will be duly processed. You will receive a confirmation email at the address you previously entered. You will also receive all correspondence regarding your account via that email address. For
this reason, be sure to use your real email address. It will not be sold, traded, or used for any purpose whatsoever except to communicate with you regarding your account. Please refer to our
Privacy Policy
if you have any concerns, or
contact us with other questions.
In order to keep costs low,
The Whole Internet does not do paper billing for domain name purchases. All domain and hosting transactions are conducted online.
You can however, log on to your
Domain Management page and print a receipt from there for each of the domains you have purchased or transferred (click
Transaction History link).
When you attempt to purchase a domain, we initiate an authorization request against your credit card. This is not a charge, but a test to see if you have the funds available for the purchase. After the authorization returns a result of sufficient
funds, we attempt to register the domain(s). If the domain registration fails for any reason, there will be a void that accompanies the attempted charge. The net result is that there will be no charge that posts to your account.
There is still that authorization on your credit card however. This authorization looks like a charge, and will reduce your available credit, but will expire on its own within a few days in most instances. Some card systems though, retain
authorizations longer. You should contact your credit provider for their specific authorization policy.
It is for this reason that we recommend
contacting us if you experience difficulty registering a domain. If you continue to repeatedly submit, you will rack up a large number
of authorizations, and may run out of available credit or have your account funds frozen. You may even cause your credit card company to suspect fraud, resulting in them placing a hold on your card.
CVV2 is a security measure we require for all transactions. Since a CVV2 number is listed on your credit card, but is not stored anywhere, the only way to know the correct CVV2 number for your credit card is to physically have possession of the
card itself. All current US-issued MasterCard and Visa cards have a CVV2 number, while those in Europe and Asia will be joining the CVV2 program shortly. American Express uses their own version of security code, known as CID.
How to find your card security code:
On a Visa or MasterCard, turn your card over and look in the signature strip. You will find (either the entire 16-digit string of your card number, OR just the last 4 digits), followed by a space, followed by a 3-digit number.
That 3-digit number is your card security code (see below). The American Express CID is a 4-digit code which appears on the front of the card, just above and to the right of the main card number.
What is the card security code?
This is a security measure we require for all transactions.
NOTE: If your European or Asian card does not have a security code, enter 000 as your CVV2 number.
Visa & MasterCard
This number is printed on your MasterCard & Visa cards in the signature area on the back of the card. (it is the last 3 digits after the credit card number in the signature area of the card).
IF YOU CANNOT READ YOUR CARD SECURITY CODE, YOU WILL HAVE TO CONTACT THE ISSUING CREDITOR.
At this time it is not required to use the security code for American Express. If you have any other questions about your CVV2 number, please contact your bank or credit card issuer.
Hosting plans are available, either separately or in combination with a domain name purchase. Please visit our
hosting division site for further details.
Or, if you have a free site (such as a member site with AOL or Road Runner), you can point your domain to it by using our
Domain Forwarding option.
You have several options to change the hosting of your domain.
The first option is the most direct. You contact your hosting provider, and obtain your new host's DNS (Domain Name Server) information. Once you have their DNS info, you may return to our
Domain Services
page and update your DNS records online. Access the Manage Your Domains area using your previously established username and password. Click the appropriate
Nameservers link (there will be one for each domain associated with your account), and then enter your new DNS information.
Some hosts will not allow unique domains to point to your site. In that case, you'll need the second option, our Domain Forwarding service… available for hosted or parked domains with any of our
hosting plans, and included at no additional charge with any domain purchase.
You can use a www URL: http://www.yourcompany.com/examplesite.html, or a host URL (i.e., ip-address): http://12.34.567.89
Both options require 24–48 hours to take effect.
Your host should have provided you the primary and secondary DNS information. This information will usually take the following form:
Primary Hostname: ns1.examplehostname.com
Primary IP: 123.45.67.8
Secondary Hostname: ns2.examplehostname.com
Secondary IP: 123.45.67.9
Login to the
Domain Management page using your previously established (at time of registration) username and password. If you have forgotten one or both, you may enter the email address you submitted at the time of registration, to have your information emailed to you.
After you log in, you will see links to the actions you can perform. Click the
Nameservers link. You will be able to see the current nameserver info listed. On the next screen, you will be able to enter the hosting information your host has provided you. Replace the current servers with the new server info, and click the "Save" button. Your new DNS information will be automatically entered, if it is verified to be valid.
It will take a couple of days (24–48 hours) for your change to propagate Internet-wide.
URL/Domain Forwarding is available as a service from
The Whole Internet and is a function of the
management control panel.
Access the Manage section through our Member Login with your username and password, and select the
Domain Forwarding link. There is no additional charge, and no banners placed on your page as a result of using this service.
You can use a www URL: http://www.yourcompany.com/examplesite.html, or a host URL (i.e., ip-address): http://12.34.567.89
It will take a couple of days for your change to propagate Internet-wide. Your domain will be hosted on our servers, and will pull up the webpage you specify. Therefore, you cannot specify Meta tags or other domain information. Your name will be in the address bar of the browser at all times ( your "real" Web address will be hidden).
You may change your forwarding destination at any time through the management control panel. Simply log back in to the Manage section, select the Domain Forwarding link, and update your Web address. Click "Save" to complete the update.
If your domain was registered with another registrar, you can transfer it to us and select TheWholeInternet.com as your new registrar.
The cost to transfer a domain is just $12.95, which also adds a free one year extension to your registration term. For example, if your domain name expires in November 2011, upon successful transfer, the new expiration date will be November 2012.
To begin, select the
Transfer Domain / Registrar link on our
Domain Services page. If you have an existing account with us, enter your username and password. If you have never used our services before,
click
New User Registration, and set up an account with a username and password. This is how you will gain access to your domain once the transfer is complete.
You will receive confirmation of your request immediately. Also, within 24 hours, the administrative contact listed in the WHOIS record will be asked to verify the transfer request. Please make sure that the admin contact's email is up-to-date before submitting a domain name for transfer.
In the admin approval email, there will be a link to click on, and a code to cut and paste. Once you've approved the transfer, your prior registrar may email you their own confirmation letter. Read it carefully and follow the instructions. Once you've approved the transfer with them, your name should migrate to our system within 5-7 days.
FOR THIS REASON, WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU BEGIN THE TRANSFER PROCEDURE AT LEAST TWO WEEKS PRIOR TO THE EXPIRATION DATE.
The information currently contained in your domain will remain the same prior to, during and after the transfer. Once the domain has successfully transferred to our system, you may begin using the online management system to make any changes you like.
If your domain will not transfer because it has expired, or if your registry has it locked until you renew it, you do have a couple of options. One is to pay the registrar their fee to renew it for a year, and then continue the transfer. The other is to
allow the name to be released, and then try to re-register it. We do not recommend the second option under any circumstances.
It is entirely possible that someone else will get your domain before you have a chance to reserve it. Additionally, it is the policy of some registrars (most notably Network Solutions) not to release the domain no matter how long it has been expired.
If you want the domain, you'll have to pay them at some point.
We therefore recommend that you do renew the name with your prior registrar for one additional year. Then, you can continue the transfer process to our system. You lose nothing by doing both. You'll get a one year renewal from your prior registrar,
and then we will add one MORE year onto the end of your term.
If you have already paid for a domain transfer, and it has been denied by your registrar, you can keep the transfer active, and as previously mentioned, continue the transfer after you have cleared your hold status at your prior registrar.
Should you choose to cancel the transfer however, we'll be happy to refund your money (though your credit card would only have been debited if you had already successfully completed the transfer confirmation, using your emailed Authorization Key).
Contact Us… all we need is the domain name you're trying to transfer.
If your link returns a value of "invalid key" after you paste the approval code in, this is most likely a result of multiple emails being sent out. The latest version of your admin approval email makes all older versions obsolete, and any key
from these old emails will not function properly. If you receive an invalid key warning, check for a later email in your inbox. If not there, request a new one by clicking the "Re-send Admin Approval Email" button in the
Domain Management Control Panel.
If the link you're clicking on for transfers returns this response: "Warning, your ID is invalid. Contact technical support," then the remedy is to have the entire link contained in the browser window.
Some email programs have a "page-wrap" feature that breaks our link into two parts, like this:
If you wish to verify and approve the transfer(s), visit the following link:
https://secure.onlineaccess.net/trans.php?
email=somebody@domain.com&key=ti&FID=7852&secID=
For convenience sake, let's break this down:
If you wish to verify and approve the transfer(s), visit the following link:
linkpart1
linkpart2
You will have to copy (CTRL-C) the first part of the link (which begins with "https:" and ends with "?" in the case above) and paste (CTRL-V) into the address bar your browser window. Do not hit GO or hit the Enter key yet. Return to the email and copy the second
part of the link on the line below the first one (which begins with "email" and ends with "=" in the case above) and copy it into the address bar of your browser window, after the first part of the link you pasted there earlier.
In your browser window then, the address you need to go to is:
linkpart1linkpart2
You can use the Check Transfer Status tool to manage your domain transfer away from your previous registrar to our system.
Access the Domain Management Control Panel with your username and password, and select the Check Transfer Status link. Your domain transfers will appear. Some will require no intervention from you (marked in green). Others (marked in yellow)
may require you to resubmit an admin approval email if the domain has not been approved for transfer with us. Or, you may resubmit a domain for transfer to your prior registrar if it has been approved on our end, but your prior registrar denied the transfer.
If a domain appears in red, its status cannot be determined automatically. Please contact us for help with these domains.
A domain that has successfully completed transfer will appear in blue.
Some of the most common reasons for your prior registrar denying the transfer include:
• Not answering their confirmation email in time
• Not answering their confirmation email in the proper format
• The domain is expired or otherwise locked due to nonpayment
If you have forgotten your username and/or password for the domain you registered, you can request it via email.
Go to the
Domain Manager Login page. There is a "Forgot Your Password?" section, where you may enter your email address. We will email your username and password immediately.
IMPORTANT: Depending on your mail system, it may take some time to receive, usually no longer than 15 minutes. You must enter the email address you used at the time of registration. If you have forgotten the username and password, AND your email
address is incorrect or out of date, you will have to provide the last 4 digits of the credit card used to register the name. Also provide the new, correct email address so that we can update your info and send your username and password.
If you have forgotten your username and password, AND your email address is incorrect or out of date, AND you cannot verify your credit card information, you will be asked to provide proof of ownership and identity.
We will first need a written request to provide access to the domain. Accompany this request with a valid photo ID (passport, drivers license, etc). If the domain is registered to a company, we will need the signatory page from the Articles of
Incorporation (corporation), Statement of Information (LLC) or similar, depending upon company structure. All of this information is required for security reasons. If you cannot provide any or all of this information, you will not be able to obtain
access to this domain. Please fax all of this information to 775-593-5734. Include your contact information (email and telephone), so that we may verify the information's validity.
Login to the
Domain Management page using your previously established username and password for the account containing the domain you wish to make a nameserver change on.
Click the
Nameservers link. You will be able to create new nameservers, edit current nameservers, or delete current nameservers. The nameserver you wish to create must be a domain in this account. Click the
Add Name Server link to create new nameservers.
Next, you will choose your new server hostnames (e.g., NS1.THEWHOLEINTERNET.NET and NS2.THEWHOLEINTERNET.NET). You may (optionally) fill in the IP addresses that you wish to associate with your new hostnames. You must use 2 unique static IP addresses
— no other servers may already use the IPs. After each nameserver submission, click the Continue button.
If your information is valid, your nameservers will be sent to the central database. It will take 24–48 hours for your nameservers to propagate.
You can renew your domain you registered at or transferred to TheWholeInternet.com for up to 10 years.
Login to the
Domain Management page using your previously established (at time of registration) username and password. If you have forgotten one or both,
you may enter the email address you submitted at the time of registration, to have your information emailed to you.
You will initially be presented with a list of your registered domains, along with links to all of the actions that you can perform. Check the box next to each domain you wish to renew and then click the "Set checked domains for renewal" button. Alternatively, you may toggle Auto Renew for all, none, or each domain individually.
Choose the renewal term for each domain as well as any other options desired. Remember, you can renew for up to 10 years; if your domain will expire in 3+ years, you will only be able to renew 6 additional years. Click the Done button when you are satisfied with your selections.
If you have not previously established payment information, you will be asked for it at this time. Otherwise, you will be presented with a Summary page. Click the "Buy Now" button to finalize the renewal.
If you do not wish to renew any of your domains, and you do not want to receive renewal emails, you can stop the emails from being sent, and your domain will expire at the end of it's term.
Login to the
Domain Management page using your previously established (at time of registration) username and password. If you have forgotten one or both,
you may enter the email address you submitted at the time of registration, to have your information emailed to you.
You will see links to all of the actions that you can perform; one of the them is
Disable Renewal Notices. Click that link, and check the box next to each domain you wish not to renew. Click the Continue button.
You will be prompted for confirmation, as this action means your domains will be released at the end of their term. Click the "Yes" button to finalize the disabling of your chosen domains.
We often receive requests to casually change the registrant information, since it is the only aspect of a domain that cannot be accessed through our online management system.
Some people wish to update their address that has changed, or the company name, which has been bought out. Others want to remove their ownership information for security purposes.
Changing the registrant information requires a higher level of security, since it affects the ownership of a domain. You should also be aware that it may affect your ownership adversely. For example, should someone file a
WIPO claim to this domain, one of the ways ICANN will resolve the dispute is to immediately terminate a disputed domain if the information provided is known to be false. For further information, please refer to the ICANN
Registrant Rights and Responsibilities document.
Should you wish to go ahead with your change of ownership, we will require some actions from you, in order to assure good faith on your part, and reflect security concerns on our part The steps for changing the registrant are as follows:
-
You should change your administrative, technical or billing contacts (at least one of these) over to the information you wish us to use, in order for the change to be accurate. We will cut-and-paste your information directly from the contact you specify.
-
Submit your request to change the registrant information via our Contact page. Provide the domain name, your username and password, and the contact info we are to use.
We may ask for verification from the registered contact for this domain.
Use the
Ownership Change link in the Domain Management control Panel to sell your domain to a buyer, or to change the registrant info for your domain registered with, or transferred to, TheWholeInternet.com.
Generally, the buyer (or new registrant) uses the link, and enters their information. The seller's information is automatically derived from the domain. The fees to change ownership are $35 for a standard turn-around (10-14 days), and $199 for a rush job (1-2 days)… plus a renewal fee, if the domain is about to expire.
A form will then be generated that the buyer (or new registrant) signs and then delivers to the seller. The seller must also sign the document, get it notarized, and deliver it to us. The most common method of transmission is via fax: +1 775 593-5734.
This process is necessary because a domain has been ruled to be property, like a house or car.
Contact Us if you have further questions about the ownership change procedure.
Changing the admin, billing and technical contact information can be accomplished via the Management control panel.
To begin, visit the
Manage Domains area of our website. Enter your username and password. If you have forgotten your username and password, you can enter the
email address you used at the time of registration to receive your username and password via email.
Once you're in the Management system, click the
Contacts link. You can edit any of your contact handles here, or create new contacts. If you have multiple domains registered, you can set the contact information globally or separately for each one. Once you have selected your domain(s), click the Continue button.
Choose what information you'd like to update — Admin, Owner, Billing and/or Technical, and click Continue again. You may choose any of the contact handles you have set up in our system.
Click the Continue button to finalize the change. Our system will update immediately. However, it will take 24–48 hours for the information to propagate Internet-wide.
You may use contact information of your choice for a domain. Many people are reluctant to use their personal information, especially if the domain name may be objectionable to some.
This is technically a violation of the Terms of Service, which state that correct contact information must be provided. However, we will not take action against you solely for that reason. We appreciate security concerns, and allow you to provide whatever information you like.
Should your site be objected to though, we will attempt to contact you. If your information is false, and we cannot contact you to respond to any complaint, your domain may be deactivated.
A better alternative is to use our
SecureWhois® service, accessible from the
Domain Management Control Panel under "Services." For a nominal additional cost,
this service allows you to stay totally "within the rules" yet totally anonymous. For an example of how your listing would appear, perform a whois lookup for
hnc-survivor.org.
Changing your default account information can be accomplished via the
Domain Management Control Panel.
To begin, enter your username and password. If you have forgotten one or both, you can enter the email address you used at the time of registration, to receive your username and password via email.
Once you're in the Management system, if you wish to change your password, click the
Change Your Password link. You'll be asked for your current password, as well as your new password twice. NOTE: Once you hit the "Change Password" button, your change is finalized.
If you wish to change the default account information click the
Update Account Information link. You'll be able to update the email address for your account, your default registrant & contact info, your default nameservers, and your default credit card information.
The easiest way to create a new account is to go direct to our
New User Registration page.
If you have multiple accounts, you can merge all of your domains into one account.
Simply
contact us with the domain name, username and password for the current account, and the username of the account you want us to transfer the name to.
We will transfer all of your domains into the account with the name you've specified.
It may take up to two business days for updates made online at
The Whole Internet to be seen elsewhere on the Web, including hosting information. This is standard Internet propagation time.
Additionally, some registrar's WhoIs databases are not compatible with others. You may wish to use a central WhoIs lookup, as one registrar may not carry another's info.
Your best bet is always to look up a domain at the registrar of record.
WHOIS databases are specific to each registrar. It will show in the
InterNIC central database 24–48 hours later, but might not ever display in another registrar's database.
That doesn't mean someone else can register the name; the name record is still taken, but it might not show you as the owner.
Country-specific WhoIs data is available from
IANA.
Expiring domains at
The Whole Internet are released for public availability upon expiration. Please remember when checking a domain's expiration date that the format is Month/Day/Year (MM/DD/YYYY).
Domains that expire at another registrar are subject to their own policies. Generally, you need to allow at least 30 days from the time of expiration before release. Some registrars have adopted the policy of not releasing domain names.
For a registrar's specific release policy, you should contact the registrar that owns the name. You can find out who is the registrar for a specific name by entering the name into the central database search engine at
http://www.internic.net/whois.html.
