| Reseller Help: General Domain Help : Renewals | |
| What is the .com and .net Redemption Period? | |
| How do I bring a domain out of REDEMPTION PERIOD status? | |
| What is an auth code? | |
| How do I renew a domain registered with OpenSRS? | |
| How do I perform gTLD renewals in bulk? | |
| Can I renew a domain when my account has insufficient funds? | |
| How can I set up reseller renewal reminders? | |
| When I set auto-renew, for what period will it renew? Can this be changed? | |
| When are the reminder emails sent? | |
| How do I set up registrant renewal reminders? | |
| How can I reverse a renewal? | |
| How do I set gTLD domains to auto-renew? | |
| How do I set a gTLD domain for NON - renewal? | |
| Is it possible for my clients to renew their own domains? | |
| How do I renew a single gTLD? | |
| How does the OpenSRS system handle bounced email renewal messages? | |
| Will the domain manage interface warn my clients about upcoming renewals? | |
Q:What is the .com and .net Redemption Period? | |
A:The Redemption Period is a 30 day hold period for expired domains which begins once a domain has been expired for 40 days without being renewed by the owner. The REDEMPTION PERIOD provides the owner with one last chance to recover the domain before it’s dropped and potentially re-registered by a new owner. The Redemption process is costly ($80USD), and Registrants should be encouraged to renew domains before expiry or during the grace period when a renewal can be completed for no additional cost. If you have a customer who wants to redeem a domain: In the RWI, click Domain Redemption and complete the Redemption Request Form which authorizes us to charge your Reseller account $80USD for the domain rescue. Note: The domain can only revert back to the original Registrant (original whois information), and it will take approximately 2-3 business days to complete the process. | |
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Q:How do I bring a domain out of REDEMPTION PERIOD status? | |
A:"The Redemption Period is a 30 day hold period for expired domains which begins once a domain has been expired for 40 days without being renewed by the owner. The REDEMPTION PERIOD provides the owner with one last chance to recover the domain before it’s dropped and potentially re-registered by a new owner. The Redemption process is costly ($80USD), and Registrants should be encouraged to renew domains before expiry or during the grace period when a renewal can be completed for no additional cost. If you have a customer who wants to redeem a domain: In the RWI, click Domain Redemption and complete the Redemption Request Form which authorizes us to charge your Reseller account $80USD for the domain rescue. Note: The domain can only revert back to the original Registrant (original whois information), and it will take approximately 2-3 business days to complete the process." If you have any questions about the Redemption period, please feel free to contact your Account Representative or sales@opensrs.org for the Account Management Team. | |
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Q:What is an auth code? | |
A:A transfer authorization code (auth code) is required when transferring any .ORG, .INFO, .BIZ, .US, .NAME and .CN domain name from one registrar to another. The transfer authorization code is created at the time of registration and can be obtained from the current registrar for the domain. The auth code can be found in the "Domain Extra's" section of the Manage Interface - https://manage.opensrs.net Resellers can also email the auth code to the admin contact email address listed for the domain. Simply log into the Resellers Web Interface, enter the domain into the "View Domain" field and click on the Query button. On the next page you'll find a link to send out the information. | |
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Q:How do I renew a domain registered with OpenSRS? | |
A:There are 3 methods: (1) Log into: http://resellers.opensrs.net/ Select "Search Active Domains". Select the domain to be renewed. The renewal dropdown box is at the bottom of the page, choose the number of years to add. Select "Renew domain". Remember that this will add the number of years you chose to any remaining time the Domain may have. (2) Use the Renewal Management link on http://resellers.opensrs.net/ All domains that are expiring in the next 60 days are listed in this section. You can manage domains at each of the stages and also configure the Emails that are sent out to your customers. Detailed info is available in the "Reseller's Guide to Domain Name Registration and Management". (3) Use renew.cgi This script comes with the latest version of the PERL scripts and needs to be configured just like the other CGIs. Detailed information is available in our documentation. gTLD domains have a registration maximum of 10 years. Any renewals past 10 years will be rejected. You may only renew domains that are currently in your RSP account. | |
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Q:How do I perform gTLD renewals in bulk? | |
A:Bulk renewals are performed through the Resellers Web Interface. In the Order management section, you will find the Renewal Management link near the bottom of the section. If you click on the Renewal Management link you'll come to the Renewals Views screen. The sixth link down is the Bulk Renew Names link (it is clearly marked). Simply click on the Bulk Renew Names link and enter a list of names in the text box provided, then press the submit button. You may also set the ‘autorenew’ flag to on while processing renewals in this manner. | |
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Q:Can I renew a domain when my account has insufficient funds? | |
A:If you attempt to process a domain renewal, or a domain that is set to auto-renew reaches the 30 day mark and renews, but you don’t have sufficient funds in your account to complete the transaction, the transaction will fail. If you are using the RWI renewal functionality, an appropriate error message will appear on the screen. If the renew request comes through the client or as the result of the auto-renew flag, an error message is displayed to the end user, and an email is sent to the Technical Contact email address that we have on file for you to remind you to add funds to your account. For payment related inquiries, please contact payments@opensrs.org If you have any questions about this order please contact support@opensrs.org. Note: This is the only circumstance where a renewal order error will send an email to the Reseller. | |
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Q:How can I set up reseller renewal reminders? | |
A:Resellers may configure the OpenSRS renewal system to send out email reports of names coming up for renewal. These options can be configured in the Renewal section of the RWI, under ‘Configure daily RSP renewal reminder email’. The following annotated tables are representations of the RWI; please review them to understand how this feature can be configured. Configure daily Reseller renewal reminder email Use this section to enable/disable renewal email reminders to yourself. Note that the period for Reseller renewal messaging has been extended to 90 days, however some interfaces still reflect the 60-day period. Your options here are: Send upcoming renewal report email messages to yourself daily, even if there are no domains expiring within the next 90 days. Send upcoming renewal report email messages to yourself daily, only if there are domains expiring within the next 90 days. | |
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Q:When I set auto-renew, for what period will it renew? Can this be changed? | |
A:The period for Auto-Renew can't be changed currently. The normal Auto-Renew period is one year, but .UK renews for two years. Auto-Renew functionality is not available for .TV and .CN. | |
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Q:When are the reminder emails sent? | |
A:a) Reminder emails are sent to the registrant 90, 60, 30, 5, 0 days before the domains expiry b) Reminder emails are sent to the reseller at 90, 60, 30, 1, -40 c) The registrant either contacts the Reseller and orders a domain renewal, or requests the renewal online through the Resellers renewal scripts d) Once the domain is renewed, an email confirmation is sent to both the registrant and the Reseller | |
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Q:How do I set up registrant renewal reminders? | |
A:You can configure the OpenSRS renewal system to send customized messages to your clients once their names approach their expiration date. The default ‘send to’ email address is the Registrant’s Admin Contact. If the Admin Contact address is different than the Billing Contact address, a message will be sent to both contacts. The Reseller sets the message body and the From and Reply–To addresses. Configure these options in the Renewals section of the RWI, under ‘Configure daily end user renewal reminder email’. | |
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Q:How can I reverse a renewal? | |
A:A renewal transaction is final, and cannot, under any circumstances, be cancelled. Please be sure that you fully understand this before you attempt any domain renewals. We have no means of retrieving money from the registry for domain years purchased through renewals, and so we cannot refund Resellers who renew names in error. | |
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Q:How do I set gTLD domains to auto-renew? | |
A:Generally, domain renewal becomes an issue once a domain name is approaching its expiry date however, one feature that should be considered upon registration or transfer is the ‘auto-renew’ feature. The registrant (or the Reseller) may now opt to put a name on Auto-renew. All names with the Auto-Renew feature enabled will be automatically renewed 30 days before the domain would have otherwise expired. The auto-renew feature is an excellent safety net for domains that absolutely must not be allowed to expire. Note: Resellers must be sure to maintain an account balance capable of sustaining autorenewals; an auto-renewal transaction will not succeed if there are not sufficient funds in your Reseller account balance. Any name with the auto-renew flag on will renew 30 days before the scheduled expiration. If the flag is applied between 30 and 0 days to expiration, it should be applied within 2 days of the expiry date depending on when the auto-renew job processes the renewal. Just to be safe, if a domain is close to expiration and you turn the auto-renew flag on expecting it to be auto-renewed the very next day, renew the domain manually in case the auto-renew job runs late. Afterwards, the auto-renew function will see that a manual renewal has been performed and won’t apply an extra renewal year. Names can be set for auto-renewal any of the following ways: a) by the Reseller or Registrant during registration (client or RWI) b) by the Reseller after clicking on the domain name from either the View Active Domains view or one of the renewal views c) by the Reseller from one of the renewals views d) from the Bulk Renewal Tool in the RWI, while processing renewals e) via manage.cgi if you are using the Full Access client scripts and have enabled this functionality (see the Perl Client Manual for details) Please note: Domains set to auto-renew will not receive reminder emails! | |
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Q:How do I set a gTLD domain for NON - renewal? | |
A:NOTE: Names can only be set for ‘non-renewal’ individually To flag a domain for NON- renewal: 1) Log into the Reseller's Web Interface (RWI) 2) Query the domain from the Domain Management section 3) In the Change Domain Renewal Settings section of the Domain Management screen that appears when you have queried the domain, click on "Let Domain Expire (without further notification) NOTE: A domain set for non-renewal will be deleted 40 days after the domains expiration date. A domain can be taken off ‘non-renewal’ status by clicking on the domain name from the View Active Domains or Renewals tables, and selecting either: Names can only be set for ‘non-renewal’ individually, while looking at the domain record linked from the View Active Domains view or one of the renewals views. NOTE: A domain set for non-renewal will be deleted 40 days after the domains expiration date. A domain can be taken off ‘non-renewal’ status by clicking on the domain name from the View Active Domains or Renewals tables, and selecting either: a) Normal Notification b) Auto-Renew This feature is useful if you know that your client is not interested in renewing a domain name, and you want to prevent the system from including them in any automated emails sent to your clients. This feature is useful if you know that your client is not interested in renewing a domain name, and you want to prevent the system from including them in any automated emails sent to your clients. | |
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Q:Is it possible for my clients to renew their own domains? | |
A:Renewals are mostly handled on the server-side of the OpenSRS system; however, there is a new feature in the client code that extends renewal functionality to the end user through the scripts. Resellers must enable this feature in the opensrs.conf file; once done, an end user can visit a URL and request a domain name renewal. NOTE: It is important that you build some kind of payment processing into your scripts if you enable this feature. For full instructions on configuring this option, please refer to the OpenSRS PERL Client Manual Version or the OpenSRS Protocol Specification. | |
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Q:How do I renew a single gTLD? | |
A:Domain names can be renewed in the Renewal Management section of the RWI: 1) Log into the RWI 2) Choose the "Renewal Management" link near the bottom of the "Order Management" section 3) From the "Renewal Management" section you can choose to view domains coming up for renewal in 90 - 61 days, 60 - 31 days, or within the next 30 days. You may also view deactivated or expired domains. and domains set to either auto-renew or auto expire. 4) Once you've chosen a set of domains to view, you can choose to set a domain to auto-renew (if auto-renew isn't already set up for the domain in question), or you can renew manually, by clicking on the appropriate checkbox. Finally, you can chose the renewal term (from 1 to 10 years). 5) Select the method of renewal (auto renew or maunal), and the renewal term (1 to 10 years) then click on the "submit" button. | |
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Q:How does OpenSRS system handle bounced email renewal messages? | |
A:If the renewals system sends an email to an invalid administrative contact email address, the bounced message is collected by OpenSRS and sent to the technical contact email address configured in the RWI. Resellers can then act on these bounced messages to ensure that their clients are aware that their domain is coming up for renewal. | |
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Q:Will the domain manage interface warn my clients about upcoming renewals? | |
A:When a registrant logs into the Manage Domain they will be informed whether any of the names in their OpenSRS profile are due to expire within 60 days. The notice will appear at the top of the screen. Further, the manage.cgi can be configured to allow you to offer renewals to your customers directly through your Manage Domain interface. For more information on how to do this, please consult the latest version of our Perl Client Manual | |
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