What is a server's domain name for ?

[SecondSight]

Hello ! :)

When I want a new server secured and configured, there is something the technicians always ask me and I don't understand what it is for...


Thank you ! :)

Please let us know what is the main domain name of the server you would like setup as the main dns/hostname.

What is it for ? My server already has a name which looks like ns4875.myhostingcompany.com. Why should I give it a domain name ? Is this really important ?

[rct2·com]

They can really give it any name you like. It *might* be important to you that it has the same name as before. It's normally passed on by any mail server programs running on your server for example. If external spam filters have 'trusted' your server name, it's useful to keep it.

However, if you were on shared hosting, the server name will already exist, and you won't be able to use it again.

As you point out, if the server name included the name of the previous hosting company, neither company is going to be happy if you want to move it.

[Mark H.]

What you quoted in italics is the nameserver's name. You probably have another one set to ns4876.myhostingcompany.com as well. This is used for DNS resolution.

The actual *server* name has to be something else. But, like the nameserver, it can be related to the overall Domain you want to run the server on, if that's what you want.


You said "When I want a new server secured and configured", so I'm assuming you've leased a new dedicated server and are transferring existing site(s) to it? If so...

server.mydomain.com is valid and commonly used. But you can use *almost* any prefix you want, i.e server, host, bling, blah, dazzle, etc. There's at least one restriction on the prefix that I can't quite remember off the top of my head, and *I THINK* involves using a number as the first digit.

Just let the tech know what prefix you want to use for the server name itself, and you should be good to go there.

Some extra info you may find useful:

If your new server is using WHM/cPanel in a default configuration, you'll access WHM using http(s)://chosen-prefix.myhostingcompany.com:2086(2087), cPanel with http(s)://www.myhostingcompany.com:2082(2083), and your site visitors will likely use http(s)://www.myhostingcompany.com/ to view your website or Forum.

If you decide to continue using the same nameservers as before, you often CAN do this though not always. You may want to define new ones in any case. It will take a couple days to propagate all the site moves anyway, so now would be the time to do it if you want to. DNS lookups which now use ns4875.myhostingcompany.com and ns4876.myhostingcompany.com, will start using your new nameservers after the change has propagated.

Hope that helped.

[rct2·com]

I'll add to that the PLESK Control Panel

http(s)://chosen-prefix.myhostingcompany.com:8443

[Mark H.]

Thanks for adding that, I've never used PLESK.

I'll add one more: Direct Admin.

The suffix port is 2222 by default, so: http(s)://chosen-prefix.myhostingcompany.com:2222 would get you to the DA control panel.

[.Ian]

[quote name='tired of being rct2dotcom' date='28 September 2009 - 08:58 PM' timestamp='1254167918' post='1861847']
I'll add to that the PLESK Control Panel

http(s)://chosen-prefix.myhostingcompany.com:8443



Or usually www.yourdomain.com:8443 will also work.I know we configure our Plesk servers to do that, which is the default I believe.

[rct2·com]

For each domain on the server yes, but for the overall server 'root' PLESK account I think it uses the server name (or IP address).

[.Ian]

sorry, yes you are correct - too used to just giving limited access LOL

[SecondSight]

[quote name='RainbowViper' date='28 September 2009 - 03:52 PM' timestamp='1254167561' post='1861843']
What you quoted in italics is the nameserver's name. You probably have another one set to ns4876.myhostingcompany.com as well. This is used for DNS resolution.

I only have this one and no others : ns4876.myhostingcompany.com.
I can also use it to access my server, just as if I typed the IP in my browser, but in both cases, I get a kind of green page and it's written "Great Success !
Apache is working on your cPanel® and WHM™ Server" etc.

[quote name='RainbowViper' date='28 September 2009 - 03:52 PM' timestamp='1254167561' post='1861843']
server.mydomain.com is valid and commonly used. But you can use *almost* any prefix you want, i.e server, host, bling, blah, dazzle, etc.

Just let the tech know what prefix you want to use for the server name itself, and you should be good to go there.
I don't own the myhostingcompany.com domain, so I don't know if I can change the prefix... I did once, it didn't work and anyway, the myhostingcompany.com people were not happy at all with what I tried to do...

[quote name='RainbowViper' date='28 September 2009 - 03:52 PM' timestamp='1254167561' post='1861843']
If your new server is using WHM/cPanel in a default configuration, you'll access WHM using http(s)://chosen-prefix.myhostingcompany.com:2086(2087), cPanel with http(s)://www.myhostingcompany.com:2082(2083), and your site visitors will likely use http(s)://www.myhostingcompany.com/ to view your website or Forum.

Yes I can access CPanel and WHM by typing something like ns4876.myhostingcompany.com:2086 or 2082.

As for my websites, I have domain names, for instance http://www.bellepierre.info.


All this is really not clear at all... I'll keep things like that, for a moment and I will contact the hosting company and ask them what I should do.

Thank you ! :)

[rct2·com]

[quote name='SecondSight' date='03 October 2009 - 04:52 AM' timestamp='1254541920' post='1863097']
As for my websites, I have domain names, for instance http://www.bellepierre.info.


All this is really not clear at all... I'll keep things like that, for a moment and I will contact the hosting company and ask them what I should do.

Thank you ! :)


In CPanel WHM you now need to add the domain http://www.bellepierre.info . CPanel will create folders and files on the server for this domain, and adjust Apache steering files on the server to tell the server about the doamin and allow the server to 'serve' the domain.