Understanding a Domain Name Structure

EffiMedia
6 min readFeb 9, 2022

Understand in detail the elements inside a Domain Name

Domain names are like physical addresses
Photo by Sean Patrick from Pexels

Understanding the importance of domains, and subdomains, as well as the variances between them, is critical to a consistent website management strategy. We’ve put together this comprehensive guide to assist you to understand what is domain names and the factors that influence your ability to acquire a domain name and run a website.

What is a domain?

A website or blog is a virtual property, similar to a physical business, and it requires an address to be located. This location is located on a domain. As a result, it contains the registration, name, and location of the website, which are all represented by the webpage address.

On the internet, science addresses, like those of other computers, are mostly managed by an IP addressin system. For instance, “Google.com” points to the IP address “216.58.216.164”. A name is generally easier to recall than a big string of digits. As a result, a domain name is a convention that was created to address this little problem.

On the internet, like other computers science, addresses are basically handled with an IP addressin system. “Google.com,” for example, resolves to the IP address “216.58.216.164.” This convention is generally too difficult to memorize, so a name is generally easier to recall than a big string of digits. As a result, a domain name is a convention that was created to address this little problem.

Domain names are unique, there are no two that are identical, on the internet. You will be capable to identify the domain as “yoursitename.com”

The components of a domain name are numerous. Each piece of this alphanumeric string is used to organize the web address, making it easier for computers and internet users to find websites.

Now that we know that, let’s look at the following address and see how it’s structured. It will be simple to comprehend the significance of each element once you understand how this framework works:

1- Protocol — in this case: HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) is the internet protocol used. There are also other protocols like HTTPS, FTP, and so on.
2- Host or Hostname: www.youtube.com
3- Subdomain: www.
4- Domain name (Domain): youtube.com
5- Top-Level-Domain (a web-address suffix): .com (also known by the shorthand TLD)
6- The Path: A path will usually refer to a filename or folder (directory) on the webserver.
7- Parameter and value: Parameters are initialized by the “?” inside the URL.
In our example, the parameter name is “v” and its value is “QhcwLyyEjOA”

What is an URL?

The term “URL” stands for Uniform Resource Locator and refers to the full string of letters and symbols that make up a web address. To put it another way, each element of a web address is a part of the entire URL. Then, an URL can be defined as the sum of all the separate elements that assist web servers in directing your computer to a website.

What is a Protocol?

A protocol, is a set of rules, for routing and addressing packets of data so that they can travel across networks and arrive at the correct destination. So, a protocol on the internet search for resources such as HTML documents. It is the foundation of any data exchange on the Web and it is a client-server protocol, which means requests are initiated by the recipient, usually the Web browser.

A protocol is a set of rules for routing and addressing data packets across networks so that they can reach their intended destination. As a result, a protocol searches the internet for resources such as HTML documents. It is the foundation of any data interchange on the Internet, and it is a client-server protocol, meaning that requests are started by the recipient, which is commonly the Web browser.

The protocol informs the website how the data from a given webpage should be transferred onto your browser. It will be found at the very beginning of a URL. In most cases, it’s represented as https://.

Host or Hostname:

The hostname is what a device is called on a network. Alternative terms for this are computer name and site name. The hostname is used to distinguish sites within the internet. In addition, websites can be found by others through the hostname, which enables data exchange within a network, for example. Hostnames are used on the internet as part of the fully qualified domain name. Let's continue our example with “www.Google.com”, here “www.” is the hostname. This is the conventional, albeit not-mandatory name for the web servers.

What is a subdomain?

A subdomain is an additional component of your primary domain name, as the name implies. A subdomain is a section of your website that operates under the same primary domain name as the rest of your site. Subdomains are used to organize and navigate to various sections of your main website. You can have as many subdomains as you need within your main domain to access all of your website’s pages.

An example, lets say your primary domain name is “myfisrtsite.com,” you can add a subdomain to that domain called “blog.myfirstsitecom.”

What are Top-Level Domains?

Top-Level domains are also referred to as domain suffix, TLD is the trailing portion of the domain. For example, when visiting Google.com, “.com” is Computer Hope’s TLD. The original and most used TLD are:

.com, .gov, .org, .net, .mil, .edu, and .int.

Your Top Level Domain is the suffix at the right of your site name.

What are Second-Level Domains?

In simple terms, a second-level domain is the name just to the left of the domain suffix, the .com or .net.In our example of the “google.com” domain name, there are two parts of the domain name. First is “google,” which is referred to as the SLD (second-level domain).

The SLD is the first point of interaction with your website for internet users. It’s the most crucial portion of a URL because it’s the most memorable.

Many people are confused about the term second-level domain. They don’t know where it’s located within the overall domain name. Remember it this way, the SLD is your site name.

What is the URL Plath?

The path is the section of the URL that identifies the specific resource in the host that the web client wants to access.

For example, /software/htp/cics/index.html.

Takeaway

Domain names are unique. The second-level domain is the most important element to take into consideration. It will define your virtual address on the internet. As any physical property, it is rented, not sold. So, before you register your dream second-level domain, you need to take into consideration that you need to maintain it, otherwise, there is a high chance you lose it.

Where to Get your Domain?

Now that you are aware of the importance of a domain name and its structure, I introduce you to the top 10 “Domain Name Registrar” available in the market today. Remember, You can buy your domain name from any one of these registrars, and it will work the same. The only thing separating these companies from each other is their service’s ease of use and the other features they include with the domain, such as email service, WhoIs protection, as well as the quality of their nameservers. You can explore their offers pros and cons and choose the services based on your needs.

Hostinger — Most Affordable Hosting Plans Overall
Bluehost — Best Web Host for Beginners
DreamHost — Most Affordable Month-to-Month Plan
HostGator — Best for Lean or Minimal Needs
GreenGeeks — Best Eco-Friendly Hosting
SiteGround — Best for Making Your WordPress Site Speedy & Secure
A2 Hosting — Fast & Reliable Shared Hosting
InMotion — Best VPS Hosting
WP Engine — Best Managed WordPress Hosting
Nexcess — Best for scaling and growth

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EffiMedia

EffiMedia is a full-service and content management solution’s provider that helps entrepreneurs in the digital transformation journey.