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Spardra
February 9th, 2010, 12:07 AM
Alright, so I am new to the forums but not so new to Linux. I have had Ubuntu installed for about maybe 6 months? I mean that isn't long but of course that isn't new either right? I have Apache,MySQL,PHP,Pure-ftpd,SSH and a bit more to run a web server installed. My question is... Can I host a domain without paying for it using Ubuntu? Now I know you can purchase a domain name and use bind9 to host that domain but is it possible to get a domain name without paying for it? Something like example.com,example.net,etc(note:example would be changed of course).

If it's possible could someone tell me how, and if not then how do other websites create and host domains for you. I am sorta wanting to create my own hosting service but for friends at a very cheap price. Thanks!

FuturePilot
February 9th, 2010, 12:10 AM
Probably not a TLD, but you can get something free from a service like DynDNS like mydomain.tld.com

Spardra
February 9th, 2010, 12:17 AM
Yeah at the moment I have one of those, but was looking into trying to get an actual domain name. But if not $9.99 a year isn't that bad. Just trying to get everything for free... Haha

kernelhaxor
February 9th, 2010, 01:17 AM
You can't get a .com or .net for free ..
Godaddy or other sites that offer domains are domain name registrars ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name_registrar ) .. they are accredited by ICANN ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Corporation_for_Assigned_Names_and_Number s ) .. they are like middlemen between you and ICANN .. so you'll have to buy it from them ..

samantha_
February 9th, 2010, 01:22 AM
the cheapest Ive ever encountered is Namecheap.
They also give free SSL certs w/ every domain.

Hwæt
February 9th, 2010, 01:24 AM
Yeah at the moment I have one of those, but was looking into trying to get an actual domain name. But if not $9.99 a year isn't that bad. Just trying to get everything for free... Haha

If you don't mind pop-ups, you could always go for .tk (http://www.dot.tk/). It's free, and it's a top level domain. However, it gives you pop-ups and a quite slow loading time if you don't shell out some cash.

Really, I'd recommend FreeDNS (freedns.afraid.org/). I used to use them back when I had a site. They give you free subdomains, but they have some subdomains that really look like top level ones. For example, they have us.to, which looks like it could actually be a top level domain.

If you want a cheap top level, go for something less popular, like .biz or .info. .info is usually the cheapest when I go browsing for domain names out of curiosity.

Good luck!

Hwæt
February 9th, 2010, 01:26 AM
They also give free SSL certs w/ every domain.

Thanks for the tip. I now know to avoid all sites that have SSL certs from namecheap. That's just a horrible security model, and an easy way to make your certs look like non-reputable garbage.

jpeddicord
February 9th, 2010, 01:38 AM
If you don't mind pop-ups, you could always go for .tk (http://www.dot.tk/). It's free, and it's a top level domain. However, it gives you pop-ups and a quite slow loading time if you don't shell out some cash.

Really, I'd recommend FreeDNS (freedns.afraid.org/). I used to use them back when I had a site. They give you free subdomains, but they have some subdomains that really look like top level ones. For example, they have us.to, which looks like it could actually be a top level domain.

If you want a cheap top level, go for something less popular, like .biz or .info. .info is usually the cheapest when I go browsing for domain names out of curiosity.

Good luck!

+1 to FreeDNS; managed to snag jacob.us.to for use.
If you're going for a full TLD, I've gotta recommend name.com, solely because they have an active customer support team on twitter/getsatisfaction/etc. Fairly cheap as well.


Thanks for the tip. I now know to avoid all sites that have SSL certs from namecheap. That's just a horrible security model, and an easy way to make your certs look like non-reputable garbage.

I'd say it's quite a convenience, really. It's not like they're EV certificates, just basic-level certs to provide basic encryption.

Mehall
February 9th, 2010, 02:25 AM
visit the lovely people at http://co.cc who give out (generally) free .co.cc domains, like mine: http://www.mehall.co.cc