Domain Registration

Bit the Chipmunk, AWS Expert published on October 13, 2024

5 min, 875 words

Hiya, Bit here! Let’s take a quick scamper through how domain registration works — both in general and specifically within Amazon Route 53.

This topic may sound basic, but it’s a common foundation question on the exam, especially when evaluating public DNS architectures or troubleshooting domain resolution.

🏗️ 1. How Domain Registration Works (Refresher)

When you register a domain, you’re essentially reserving a name in the global DNS namespace — like bits-guides.com.

Here’s what happens under the hood:

Step	What Happens	Key Concept
1. Choose a Domain	You pick a unique name under a top-level domain (TLD), like `.com` or `.net`.	Registrars are authorized by ICANN or regional registries to sell domains.
2. Provide Contact & WHOIS Info	You supply owner, admin, and tech contact data.	Required for ICANN compliance (may be private if WHOIS privacy is enabled).
3. Specify Name Servers	You point your domain at authoritative name servers that hold your DNS zone data.	These NS records are published to the TLD registry.
4. DNS Propagation	The TLD registry updates the root servers.	Takes time (usually minutes to hours) before your domain resolves globally.

🧠 Exam tip: Domain registration is distinct from hosting DNS records. Registering a domain only reserves the name — you still need a DNS service (like Route 53) to manage records.

☁️ 2. How Domain Registration Works in Route 53

Amazon Route 53 can act as both your domain registrar and your DNS service, but these are separate roles.

Role	What It Does	AWS Feature
Registrar	Manages ownership of the domain.	Route 53 Domain Registration
DNS Service	Stores records and answers DNS queries.	Route 53 Hosted Zones

a. Registering a Domain

You can register a new domain directly from the Route 53 console. When you do, AWS automatically creates a public hosted zone for that domain and pre-populates it with the correct NS and SOA records.

Supported TLDs are listed here: Route 53 domain registration pricing.

b. Using an External Registrar

If your domain was registered elsewhere, you can still:

Create a public hosted zone in Route 53.
Update your registrar’s NS records to point to the Route 53 name servers.

🧩 Exam Clue Example:

“A company registered its domain with GoDaddy but wants to use Route 53 for DNS management.” ✅ The answer: Create a hosted zone in Route 53 and update the registrar’s NS records.

🔁 3. Domain Transfers and Delegation

Once a domain is registered, ownership and DNS control can be moved or delegated. Understanding the difference is critical for exam questions.

a. Domain Transfers

Transfers are about ownership — who manages the registration.

Scenario	What Happens	Key Point
Transfer In	Move your domain from another registrar to Route 53.	Brings ownership under AWS billing and management.
Transfer Out	Move your Route 53 domain to another registrar.	Route 53 releases the domain; DNS hosting is unaffected.

💡 Exam Tip: A domain transfer doesn’t delete or move your hosted zone. DNS service stays live unless you remove it.

b. Domain Delegation

Delegation is about DNS resolution control — who answers queries for subdomains.

Scenario	What Happens	Example
Subdomain delegation	You create a new hosted zone for a subdomain and reference its NS records in the parent zone.	Delegate `api.bitsguides.com` to a different account or team.
Cross-account delegation	You share DNS responsibility between AWS accounts by creating hosted zones and NS records manually.	Common in multi-account environments.
Public-to-private split	You use separate hosted zones for public and private records of the same domain name.	“Split-horizon DNS” setup.

🧩 Exam Clue Example:

“The operations team wants to manage dev.example.com separately from example.com.” ✅ Answer: Create a new hosted zone for dev.example.com and add its NS records to the parent zone.

🧭 4. Domain Lifecycle and Ownership

Domains don’t last forever — they’re leased. On the exam, you might see questions about expiration, transfer, or renewal.

Stage	What It Means	Route 53 Behavior
Active	Domain is registered and resolving.	Auto-renew enabled by default.
Expiration grace	Domain expired but can still be renewed (usually 30 days).	Route 53 emails owner before expiration.
Redemption	Domain deleted but can still be restored for a fee.	Manual recovery required.
Pending transfer	Domain is being moved to or from Route 53.	DNS continues to work until transfer completes.

🧠 Exam tip: Domain registration transfers are management-level — they don’t affect hosted zone data. Your DNS records remain in Route 53 unless you explicitly delete the hosted zone.

🌍 5. Route 53 and WHOIS Privacy

By default, Route 53 supports WHOIS privacy protection for most TLDs. This hides registrant information from public WHOIS lookups — useful for compliance and spam reduction.

💡 Exam angle: Know that WHOIS privacy is managed per domain and doesn’t affect DNS behavior or availability.

🧠 Exam Summary — Key Takeaways

Concept	What to Remember
Registrar vs DNS host	Route 53 can do both, but they’re separate services.
Name servers	NS records define where DNS queries are answered.
External registrar integration	Update NS records to point to Route 53 when using an outside registrar.
Lifecycle	Domains expire and can be renewed or transferred.
WHOIS privacy	Hides owner info, no effect on DNS resolution.

🌰 Bit’s Final Nut of Wisdom

“Registering a domain just gives you the name. Hosting it in Route 53 gives it a home.” 🏡