[dns-operations] go daddy refuses to register NS not otherwise associated with go daddy controlled domains

[Joe Abley]

On 2012-09-11, at 20:36, George Michaelson <ggm at apnic.net> wrote:

> On 12/09/2012, at 10:27 AM, Mark Jeftovic <markjr at easydns.com> wrote:
> 
>> I don't understand this, they are saying they will only do this for
>> domains under their management, implying that this domain isn't.
> 
> Yes. I am saying that using their GUI, to manage a domain which is managed with them, they limit NS to
> 
> 1) in-baliwick, defined in a hosts.txt file they control and expose a UI to
> 
> 2) any NS already in use by you, in any domain, under godaddy control
> 
> 3) any grandfathered in NS, but I cannot verify if this remains true if you drop them from the record of any domain.

The registry requirement is that a host object exist before a domain object is linked to it (this is the NET registry we're talking about; other TLD registries can be and are different). Further, a host object with a nameserver whose name is subordinate to the registry (in this case, ends in NET) needs to have address records associated with it, and is sponsored by the registrar who sponsors the domain the nameserver is subordinate to.

This is easier to explain with examples. To link the domain QUIRKAFLEEG.NET (sponsored by GoDaddy) to the host object A.NS.EXAMPLE.NET (sponsored by Network Solutions):

 - request that Network Solutions create a host object A.NS.EXAMPLE.NET (with addresses)
 - request that GoDaddy link the domain object QUIRKAFLEEG.NET to the host object A.NS.EXAMPLE.NET

These requirements exists for all NET registrars. Exactly how different registrars expose this requirement to customers can vary wildly, however.

This is not very easy to explain, even to people who are technologists, so it seems slightly unfair to apportion all the blame for the situation on any particular registrar (particularly one whose business model is all about hiding complicated details and making things easy for non-technical customers). The point of the registry/registrar model is that if you don't like how one registrar deals with the ugliness, you can always choose another (eventually, in some cases, as you saw).


Joe