Dynamic DNS updates
We now support dynamic DNS updates. This means that cable, DSL, or dial-up users can run a web site or other server from their home PC, even with a Dynamic IP address (using a DHCP server).
By using one of the following applications, every time you get a different IP your server will automatically update the IP in your domain name's DNS settings. Your domain name will be able to follow you wherever your IP takes you.

Please note that this feature requires DNS and IP skills. Making it work will require you to install a third party Dynamic DNS software and configure it. See below for some helpful FAQs.

How can your Dynamic DNS help?
We have added a Dynamic DNS tool to our name servers. With this tool, your computer can publish a new IP address whenever it changes.

What do I need to do?

1. Make sure the domain name is using OUR name servers.
2. The domain needs to have a password added for security. You'll find that setting at the bottom of you domain control panel - login - then click MANAGE DOMAIN on the side bar and click M Icon to manage domain and then click on Dynamic DNS link to set your domain password.
3. Choose a Dynamic DNS application listed on this page and install it.
4. Configure the application to use your domain name, its password, and point it to our update server: dynamic.name-services.com - use Specifications for ENOM Dynamic Dns server interface
5. TEST IT: Put the following (substituting real values and making sure the whole line is entered to your browser web address, starting with http and ending with your password ) into your browser:

   http://dynamic.name-services.com//interface.asp?
   command=setdnshost &zone=www.sampledomain.com
   &address=1.11.111.1&domainpassword=1111

   providing that you own domain name sampledomain.com
   and your domain password is 1111,
   this web browser command will set DNS record for
   www.sampledomain.com to IP address 1.11.111.1

   Explanation in more detail:

   Dynamic DNS test is easy to do through any web browser post

   here is a complete browser post :

   http://dynamic.name-services.com/interface.asp?command=setdnshost&
   zone=www.sampledomain.com&domainpassword=1111&address=1.11.111.1
   make sure to load all above into a single line in your browser, starting with http ... and ending with address=1.11.111.1 replacing the sample values with actual values of your own domain, domain password and IP address.

   We will explain this long line here so you can modify to your own domain testing

   http://dynamic.name-services.com/interface.asp?command=setdnshost
   remains always the same, you are just telling the dynamic DNS server you are updating IP address on A record

   &zone=www.sampledomain.com
   here we are telling the server to change IP address of a host name www for domain sampledomain.com
   if we had
   &zone=sampledomain.com
   then I would be changing IP address of the main A record for sampledomain.com ((denoted in our manage domain tables as @ ))
   if we had
   &zone=mail.sampledomain.com
   I would be dynamically updating IP address of host name MAIL for sampledomain.com domain

   &domainpassword=1111
   is self explanatory - in order for the server to accept updates you must give it that domain password

   &address=1.11.111.1
   is the new IP address I am assigning to www.sampledomain.com

   so you can try it for your domain,

   just load that long web address into address of your browser [[ remember to replace the sample data with actual data of your own ]], the DNS server will even respond if there are any errors and if no errors it will actually update your domain record which you can then verify and view if you go to Manage Domain interface in your control panel

   that is all dynamic dns does after it determines new ip address of the machine

   so unless the dynamic dns software is broken it will update the IP address through this post.

   naturally the host name must first exist in manage domain DNS host tables for it to be updated

Do I need Dynamic DNS software?
Yes, we would recommend it. What the software does is automatically checks the IP address of your computer and when that IP address changes, it does the update for you automatically by connecting to our dynamic DNS server interface sending it the command like
http://dynamic.name-services.com/interface.asp?command=setdnshost&
zone=www.sampledomain.com&domainpassword=1111&address=1.11.111.1
If you do not have Dynamic DNS software then you can still do all this manually - e.g. check your own IP address of your computer every few minutes and if it changes, load this post to your browser.... this is obviously too labor intensive and not very efficient - but possible and available if you wanted to do it that way. Dynamic DNS software automates this task so once you set it up it does all the work of checking if your IP has changed and updating it for you. Well worth the investment!

Do you provide support and help with setting up my Dynamic DNS software?
No we do not. The software is written by third parties and we do not have the expertise to support their product. You will need to contact the programmers who wrote the software you chose and ask them for support.

So what type of support can I get for Dynamic DNS service?
This page contains all info we have and we will update it as we come across additional software that was tested to work on our Dynamic DNS interface. If you experience outages in connecting to our Dynamic DNS server interface, e.g. loading this web address into your web browser
http://dynamic.name-services.com/interface.asp?command=setdnshost&
zone=www.sampledomain.com&domainpassword=1111&address=1.11.111.1
(naturally modified with your actual domain name, real IP address and password)
please open Support ticket in our Help Desk interface and we will be happy to re-test for you to assure the servers are up and functioning.

What if I'd like to create my own C++ application?
Here is a document you can look at to get started: UpdateIP.cpp.

What is an IP Address?
An IP address is like a telephone number. It allows one computer to "call" another computer over the Internet. When you loaded this web page, your computer used the IP of our web server to call it and ask for the page.

Why would having a Dynamic IP affect me?
It is easiest to use the telephone analogy to explain this. Assume that you have a telephone number that changes every day. This doesn't keep you from calling all of your friends. Since your friends don't know your new phone number from day to day, it is much harder for them to call you. For the same reason, if you have a dynamic IP, and are trying to run a web server, people can't get to it.

What is DNS?
DNS stands for Domain Name System. It is like a big phone book that allows your computer to look up the IP address of other computers (usually web servers). When you type the address "www.google.com" into your web browser, your computer uses DNS servers to look up the IP address of the google web server. Once it has the IP address, your web browser can contact our server and ask for the web page.

What is a Dynamic IP?
Some Internet service providers do not assign permanent IP addresses to their customers. This means that your computer's address can change at any time. This is called a dynamic IP. Having an IP address that changes occasionally does not affect most users. It does, however, make it hard to host a web site on your computer.

Do I have a Dynamic IP?
If you are like most home Internet users and have a connection using a modem, DSL line, or cable then you probably have a dynamic IP address. In the case of a DSL line or Cable modem, some ISPs will allow you to pay extra for an address that does not change. This is called a "Static IP".