You're probably going to say "from a reseller." Well, if they get it from a reseller, then how do they register websites? There has to be some kind of code or something to assign domains.

Thanks,

austinyb

In a (somewhat lengthy) nutshell:

There are three entities relevant to the domain name, there's the registrant, the registrar, and the registry.

The registry operates the database that stores all of the domain names and their server information. This information is pushed out to root zone servers so that the domain names can resolve. For .com and .net, the Registry is VeriSign, Inc. You can see who the registries for all the different types of domain names are at http://www.iana.org. The organization that decides who gets to operate the registries is the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).

The registrar is the company that registers the domain name in the registry database. Melbourne It and Network Solutions (as well as thousands of other companies) are domain name Registrars. They are accredited by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.

The registrant is the person that registers the domain name with the Registrar.

So, you want to buy a domain name, you provide your registrant information to the registrar as well as the domain name you wish to purchase. The registrar checks the registry to see if the doman name is available, and if it is they will register ir for you.

ICANN has an FAQ that is really useful to read before purchasing a domain name at http://www.icann.org/compliance/faq.html

There are a few large providers, Network Solutions and Melbourne IT are a couple of them. The names are checked against a whois database for availablty If the name is available, you can purchase it and then it is yours to move from host to host at will