Help me get my domain back.

December 16, 2005 7:50 AM

Help me get my domain back. My domain name expired. My spam filter ate the renewal messages so I never saw them. Simple as that. I'm scrambling to fix the problem but I'm having big problems reaching an actual human at namecheap.com (the domain registrar I used) to renew. To make things worse, I run a small ISP so this affects over 1000 people directly. What can I do? I have backup domains but that switch would be very painful for my customers.
posted by phildog to Computers & Internet (20 answers total)

How long ago did it expire? I was under the impression that it was held for *x* number of days for you to renew it after it expires.
posted by antifuse at 7:56 AM on December 16, 2005

So... did it expire and someone else bought it?
posted by stopgap at 7:56 AM on December 16, 2005

Have you called them or are you just emailing? I don't see a phone number on their site (figures...), but there is a number listed in their whois info: 661-310-2107.
posted by Gator at 8:01 AM on December 16, 2005

Response by poster: Gator - I tried that number and left a message--no word yet. I tried whois and calling that # before posting to mefi :-)

Stopgap - I don't know yet and it is unclear right now how to find that information.

antifuse - It expired on 12/14. DNS switch kicked in today so I didn't notice until today.
posted by phildog at 8:12 AM on December 16, 2005

When you log into namecheap.com, do they offer any renewal options there? I know with other registrars I have used, they have a simple web-base process to renew the domain.
posted by Your postings will be signed with this name at 8:22 AM on December 16, 2005

You relied on them to remind you, and you run an ISP? If you get this back you had better set up a system to remind yourself. They also have an auto renewal option. That might be good for you, but I would still set a reminder to yourself to make sure it happens. Also, for important business emails you should have a separate account that you do not give the email address to anyone likely to spam you, you do not post it on the internet etc. That way you can run it without a spam filter. Why can't you just log in and renew? In addition to emails and phone calls you might send an overnight letter to their address. Good luck.
posted by caddis at 8:23 AM on December 16, 2005

If it's a .com, you've got 30 days' grace before someone else can buy the domain.
posted by scruss at 8:30 AM on December 16, 2005

Also, for important business emails you should have a separate account that you do not give the email address to anyone likely to spam you, you do not post it on the internet etc.

And then you provide the data to WHOIS. Riiiiight...
posted by grouse at 8:36 AM on December 16, 2005

Response by poster: caddis - no, I didn't rely on them for anything. I thought it was set to autorenew like all my other domains, and it wasn't. But yes, I was stupid and will create a new system so this doesn't happen again. And I'm not able to log in and renew, I get this message: The domain is not accessible at this time due to the following reason: 'Domain Expired'. If you think that the reason is incorrect, please contact support.

scruss - if true, that is fantastic news. I hope you are right.
posted by phildog at 8:37 AM on December 16, 2005

If it's expired, can't you simply register it with another registrar? [/possible dumb question]
posted by NekulturnY at 8:43 AM on December 16, 2005

I tried whois and calling that # before posting to mefi

Well, you didn't specify what methods of contact you've been trying.

That said, have you tried contacting the owner, Richard Kirkendall? He seems to post on a lot of Web hosting forums and gives out his email address as [e-mail].
posted by Gator at 8:52 AM on December 16, 2005

scruss is right, unfortunately some registrars will take advantage of your need -- mydomain.com demanded hundreds of dollars to re-register one I let slip. It wasn't crucial so I just let it go and re-registered after the grace period was up (which doesn't sound like an option for you).
posted by o2b at 9:04 AM on December 16, 2005

Once expired, you can't re-register it with a different registrar until it's in "good standing" or released from the registrar.

If you can't order it, and it's locked, you haven't lost it yet. You do have to hussle to make sure it doesn't get away though.

Microsoft once allowed their domain to expire, so don't feel too bad.
posted by inthe80s at 9:16 AM on December 16, 2005

I let my wife's domain slip and thought I was toast as there was much spammy link crap on the page. I went to my hosting provider and paid for another year's worth and the site was back up in a day. I'm not sure if this was due to the 30 days grace that scruss mentioned.
posted by jikel_morten at 9:19 AM on December 16, 2005

There's a lot of good inforamtion here: How to Snatch an Expiring Domain
posted by camworld at 10:07 AM on December 16, 2005

What I've discovered is: when you cannot get someone to return your phone calls or emails nothing works better than a well thought out letter.
posted by pwb503 at 10:17 AM on December 16, 2005

Response by poster: Thanks for all your responses guys. I was able to renew my domain at namecheap.com by clicking the "Reactivate Domains" link. *me* removes dunce cap.

Note to namecheap UI designers: when you click the "Renew Domains" link, you should probably add a message that says to try "Reactivate Domains" if there are no domains currently up for renewal. People who have just lost their domain aren't thinking clearly when they look at your pages. Panic is not a pretty thing.

Also namecheap.com, if you offered phone support for $50 per incident I would have happily paid it to clear this up. This is a revenue opportunity for you.

Now comes the agonizing 48ish hours while I wait for DNS to propogate.
posted by phildog at 10:31 AM on December 16, 2005

DNS propogation used to take 48 hours. Now, you should begin seeing your domain resolve on some servers in minutes, with the majority resolving correctly in under two hours. Good luck!
posted by richardhay at 10:35 AM on December 16, 2005

phildog, for a business domain I would highly recommend a multi-year registration, say 5 to 10 years, if you can.

Then find some way to remind yourself separately. And make an annual domain status check part of your end-of-year routine.
posted by dhartung at 9:42 PM on December 16, 2005

Switch to EasyDNS and you’ll never have shit like this happening again. They have never done me wrong and have always been reachable by phone. They were particularly adept at getting me disentangled from the gore-stained talons of Network Solutions.
posted by joeclark at 2:42 PM on December 18, 2005