How to change nameserver IP with GKG/NetworkSolutions

I needed to change my nameserver's IP numbers. It took a little bit of calling and searching and irc'ing before I figured out what was going on.

So I figured I would feed this little document into Google, so that everyone might have an easier time migrating away from NetworkSolutions.

Cheers,
Paul Woutrs

Q: My nameserver changed IP number, how do I change this with GKG?

A: You need to change the object associated with your nameserver. Once you change that, all domains that use this nameserver object will automaticly be updatedm regardless of the Registrar you used for registering the domains that use that nameserver.

Q: What is a nameserver object?

A: This nameserver object only provides a trnaslation of "NS.EXAMPLE.COM" to an IP number and has absolutely nothing to do with the domain "EXAMPLE.COM".

Q: What is the difference between a nameserver object and my domain's nameserver entry?

A: InterNIC maintains nameserver objects neccessary for "glue records". Glue records are A records in the parent zone. These are needed because NS records (eg ns.example.com) are usually within the zone it servers the information for (eg example.com). So to find ns.example.com, you check who is NS for example.com, and find you must look for ns.example.com, so you check who is NS for example.com......You're looping. So the .com zone file contains an NS and A record for ns.example.com.

Q: How can I see my nameserver object?

A: The nameserver object is "owned" by your nic handle, but has its own host handle. To make things worse, you can't query whois.internic.net for this information. I think the record is stored on whois.networksolutions.com, but that might be because my own nameserver objects were all created when there was only one Registrar in the world, NetworkSolutions. For example, if we want to check the handle for the nameserver of exmaple.com (A.IANA-SERVERS.NET), we do:
whois -h whois.networksolutions.com 'host A.IANA-SERVERS.NET' [No name] (A122-HST) Hostname: A.IANA-SERVERS.NET Address: 192.0.34.43 System: ? running ?
So we see it's handle is A122-HST.

Q: How can I change my nameserver object?

A: Remember, only the Registrar who created the object has access to change it. If you created the object through GKG< you can use their "account and domain manager" button and choose "DNS_Modificaton". If you created this in the dark ages when NetworkSolutions was the only Registrar in the world, use: https://www.netsol.com/cgi-bin/makechanges/itts/host

Q: So even if I move all my domains from NetworkSolutions to GKG, I still have my nameserver object registered with NetworkSolutions?

A: Yes :(

Q: But I moved all my domains away from NetworkSolutions to GKG so I didn't have to deal with NetworkSolutions anymore. How can I "migrate" these ojects to GKG?

A: I guess using the above url, you can DELete the nameserver object and later let GKG recreate it. But you might lose your domains for a few days if you do this for all your nameservers at once. Another option is to create a new nameserver object (eg ns42.example.com) and point it to the IP of your ns.example.com, and then "change" the nameserver from ns.example.com to ns42.example.com. (If you ever wondered why objects like ns7 exist, now you know)

Q: Do I need to do this once for all all my domains?

A: No. If NS.EXAMPLE.COM is in use as nameserver for both EXAMPLE.COM and ANOTH align=leftEREXAMPLE.COM, then that entry is automaticly updated as well.

Q: My nameserver changed IP number, how do I change this with GKG?
A: You need to change the object associated with your nameserver. Once you change that, all domains that use this nameserver object will automaticly be updatedm regardless of the Registrar you used for registering the domains that use that nameserver.

Q: What is a nameserver object?
A: This nameserver object only provides a trnaslation of "NS.EXAMPLE.COM" to an IP number and has absolutely nothing to do with the domain "EXAMPLE.COM".

Q: What is the difference between a nameserver object and my domain's nameserver entry?
A: InterNIC maintains nameserver objects neccessary for "glue records". Glue records are A records in the parent zone. These are needed because NS records (eg ns.example.com) are usually within the zone it servers the information for (eg example.com). So to find ns.example.com, you check who is NS for example.com, and find you must look for ns.example.com, so you check who is NS for example.com......You're looping. So the .com zone file contains an NS and A record for ns.example.com.

Q: How can I see my nameserver object?
A: The nameserver object is "owned" by your nic handle, but has its own host handle. To make things worse, you can't query whois.internic.net for this information. I think the record is stored on whois.networksolutions.com, but that might be because my own nameserver objects were all created when there was only one Registrar in the world, NetworkSolutions. For example, if we want to check the handle for the nameserver of exmaple.com (A.IANA-SERVERS.NET), we do: whois -h whois.networksolutions.com 'host A.IANA-SERVERS.NET' [No name] (A122-HST) Hostname: A.IANA-SERVERS.NET Address: 192.0.34.43 System: ? running ? So we see it's handle is A122-HST.

Q: How can I change my nameserver object?
A: Remember, only the Registrar who created the object has access to change it. If you created the object through GKG< you can use their "account and domain manager" button and choose "DNS_Modificaton". If you created this in the dark ages when NetworkSolutions was the only Registrar in the world, use: https://www.netsol.com/cgi-bin/makechanges/itts/host

Q: So even if I move all my domains from NetworkSolutions to GKG, I still have my nameserver object registered with NetworkSolutions?
A: Yes :(

Q: But I moved all my domains away from NetworkSolutions to GKG so I didn't have to deal with NetworkSolutions anymore. How can I "migrate" these ojects to GKG?
A: I guess using the above url, you can DELete the nameserver object and later let GKG recreate it. But you might lose your domains for a few days if you do this for all your nameservers at once. Another option is to create a new nameserver object (eg ns42.example.com) and point it to the IP of your ns.example.com, and then "change" the nameserver from ns.example.com to ns42.example.com. (If you ever wondered why objects like ns7 exist, now you know)

Q: Do I need to do this once for all all my domains?
A: No. If NS.EXAMPLE.COM is in use as nameserver for both EXAMPLE.COM and ANOTH align=leftEREXAMPLE.COM, then that entry is automaticly updated as well.

Hopefully, reading this helped you migrate away from NetworkSolutions.
Paul Wouters
Xtended Internet