DOMAIN ACCOUNT HELP
How to Update Domain Contact Info, Get an EPP Code and Unlock a Domain
Locked out of your domain, need a transfer code, or getting suspension notices? Here are the steps for every situation we see, from a simple email change to proving ownership when the original contact is gone.
Galleria 713-703-3030 | Kingwood 281-852-8253
START HERE
I know my domain login. Where do I go?
Updating domain information is easy when you can log in, and difficult when the contact on file cannot be reached. Start with the easy path.
Change contact information. Log in to the domain manager and update the registrant, admin and technical contacts. If your contact info is correct but you forgot the password, you can have it emailed to the contact on file.
Get your Auth or EPP code. The code is under Domain Extras in the domain panel. A registrar asks for this code to prove you approve a transfer.
Unlock the domain. In the domain panel, look for the word locking and turn the lock off. Leave it on at all other times. The lock is what stops someone else from moving your domain.
Not sure which domain account you have, or whether it is with us? Our domain management page links to the right login.
LOCKED OUT
What if I cannot reach the admin contact?
This is the call we get most. The domain was registered years ago by a former employee, a partner or a web designer, and their email no longer works. Here is how to fix it.
Step 1. Find out who is listed. Look up the domain with a public lookup tool such as ICANN Lookup. Note the registrant and admin contact. Many records are now privacy protected, so if you see a privacy service, call us.
Step 2. If you can reach that person, we will need a copy of their government issued photo ID emailed to info@verticalweb.com with the request, for example: please update the email address from x to w, signed by the admin.
Step 3. If you cannot reach that person, you will need to prove you are legally eligible to own the domain. Check whether your name or your company’s name appears as the registrant or admin contact. Then submit government issued photo ID, or government issued paperwork for your company showing you are eligible to act on its behalf.
SPECIAL CASES
What documents do I need to prove domain ownership?
Beth Guide warns about that last one in nearly every class. She sees owners whose web development company or designer owns the domain, and the owner does not. A domain is like a piece of property. If the deed is in someone else’s name, getting control back is slow and painful. Check yours today while everyone is still on good terms. Learn more about how we register domains in your name on our domain name registration page.
THE CASE FOR VERTICAL WEB ON DOMAIN ACCOUNTS
We untangle domains other companies abandoned
VERIFICATION
What is domain verification and why was my domain suspended?
ICANN, the international governing body for domains, enforces a rule that every domain must have real and valid contact information. When a renewal notice is sent or you update your contact details, the registry checks that the email works. If it bounces, you have 15 days to update your information. After that, the domain is suspended at the registry level, well beyond what the registrar can reinstate without verification.
The fix is to update the admin email in the domain manager and click the link in the verification email that arrives. The steps are listed above. We know this is frustrating, but keeping contact information current is part of owning a domain. The program was designed after 9/11/2001 to keep people safer, and strict enforcement began in early 2015.
A suspended domain takes your website and email down with it, even if it is fully paid. If your domain has actually expired, the clock is different. Read what is the process for domain redemptions to see where it stands.
TRANSFERS
How do I transfer my domain to Vertical Web?
Unlock the domain at your current registrar, request the EPP code and confirm the admin email is one you can read. Then contact us with the domain name and code. You approve the transfer by email, and the domain moves, usually with a year added to the registration.
Transferring the domain does not move your website or email by itself. Those follow the DNS. If you are moving hosting too, we handle both together so nothing goes dark. Domain registration is free with annual hosting on our web hosting plans, and you can see everything we offer on the web hosting and domains page.
Moving a domain
Domain transfer step by step: auth code, domain lock and WHOIS
A domain transfer moves your domain from your current registrar to a new one. The process is the same at almost every registrar, including GoDaddy:
- Check the WHOIS information. Make sure the registrant email is one you can read, because the transfer approval goes there.
- Turn off the domain lock at the current registrar. The lock exists to stop unauthorized transfers.
- Get the auth code, also called the authorization code or EPP code, from the current registrar. At GoDaddy and most others, it is in the domain’s settings near the transfer option.
- Start the transfer at the new registrar and enter the auth code.
- Approve the email the registrar sends, then wait for the transfer to finish.
Two rules trip people up. ICANN transfer policy blocks a transfer for 60 days after a domain is registered or transferred, and a change to the registrant can trigger the same 60 day lock at many registrars. Plan contact changes and transfers in the right order. Also, keep your DNS and name servers the same during the move so your website and email stay up. If your hosting is with us, call before you start and our support team will walk through it with you. To move a domain to us, see domain management.
QUESTIONS
Domain account questions we hear
Log in to the domain manager. The Auth or EPP code is under Domain Extras in the domain panel. If you cannot log in, have the password emailed to the contact on file, or follow the ownership steps on this page.
Log in to the domain panel and look for the word locking. Turn the lock off, request the EPP code and give it to the new registrar. Turn auto renew off at the old registrar only after the transfer completes.
ICANN requires real and valid contact information on every domain. If a renewal notice or contact update email bounces, you have 15 days to fix the information before the registry suspends the domain. Update the admin email and click the verification link to restore it.
If you cannot reach that person and do not have the password, you will need to prove you are legally eligible to own the domain. That usually means government issued photo ID or business paperwork showing your name or company is on the domain record.
Yes. You will need to provide a death certificate and documentation showing that you are entitled to the domain, such as estate paperwork.
When the contact can approve the change by email, it is usually quick. When documents are required, domain issues are often reviewed by a supervisor, so allow a few business days. Our domain department is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central.
Many registrars apply a 60 day transfer lock after a change of registrant, and ICANN policy blocks transfers for 60 days after a new registration or transfer. Update contacts and transfer in the right order.
Still stuck on a domain?
Domain issues are often complicated, and many need a supervisor to review. Call 281-852-8253 or email info@verticalweb.com and we will walk you through it.
Galleria 713-703-3030 | Kingwood 281-852-8253 | info@verticalweb.com