Whose name is your domain registered under?
One of the most common problems we run into is a domain registered not to the company but to a former employee, a relative, or the agency that built the site years ago. Nobody notices while everything is fine. But when that person can't be reached, renewing the domain, changing a DNS setting or moving to another provider turns into a serious problem.
One of the first things we do as part of maintenance is check the registration details of your domains and your registrar account. If needed, we plan the transfer of ownership and the management account to your company.
.com.tr and other extensions
Domains ending in .tr, Türkiye's country-code extension, are now managed through TRABİS, the national .tr domain registry, via accredited registrars. Registering both the .com.tr and the .com version of your name is a simple way to keep anyone else from using your brand. One becomes the main address and the others redirect to it.
DNS records — managing traffic behind the scenes
DNS records tell the internet where your domain should point. Several different records work together on a single domain:
- The
Arecord shows which server hosts the website. - The
MXrecord determines which server receives your email. TXTrecords carry email security settings such as SPF, DKIM and DMARC, along with verification codes.- A
CNAMErecord points one address to another.
A single wrong DNS change can stop your email while the website keeps running. That's why we save a copy of the existing records before every change and keep a log of what was changed. For the email side, see our business email service.
Why is an SSL certificate critical?
SSL (technically called TLS today) encrypts the data between the visitor and your site. Browsers flag pages without SSL as not secure, and with an expired certificate visitors hit a full-screen warning. On form and payment pages, that effectively means business stops. For forms that collect personal data, an encrypted connection is also a basic security measure for KVKK compliance (KVKK is Türkiye's Personal Data Protection Law).
Free, automatically issued certificates are short-lived and need regular renewal; paid certificates last longer. Whichever you choose, renewal should be automated and expiry dates should be monitored.
Checklist
- Are your domains registered in the company's name and with a company email address?
- Are renewal dates on the calendar, and is auto-renewal turned on?
- Do you have an up-to-date copy of your DNS records?
- Does SSL cover all subdomains, and is its expiry monitored?
- Does the site load only over https?
Frequently asked questions
What happens if our domain expires?
Your website and email stop working. The domain can be renewed within a certain grace period, but if you wait too long someone else can register it. That's why tracking renewals is a core part of maintenance.
Is a free SSL certificate enough?
For most corporate websites it provides all the encryption you need. In special cases that require organization validation, a paid certificate is worth considering.
For the big picture, head back to the hosting and maintenance page or get in touch with us.