What is meant by domain name and how does it work? If you are a beginner, then you may have heard that you need a domain to make a website and without a domain name, it’s quite impossible to make a website.
However, many newcomers who want to create a website are confused because they do not have enough knowledge about domain and hosting. If you are just starting out, then all these different terms may sound too technical for you to create a website.
In this article, we will explain what a domain name is and how it works and our goal is to help you understand domain names and how to choose the right domain name for your website to grow your business online.
So let’s get started.
What is a Domain Name?
A domain is when you type a website address in your browser’s tab to browse a specific website.
To put it more simply, if your website is a home or store, then the domain is the address of your home or store.
On the other hand, we mean by internet is a vast network that is connected to each other by a worldwide network of wires and every computer in this network can communicate with each other.
Each computer is assigned a specific IP address that identifies a specific computer on the Internet. The EP address is a series of numbers. This is how IP addresses are usually viewed:
27.147.190.194
To solve these big problems Domain names were invented. Domain names are easier to remember than IP addresses, so now if you want to visit a website, you don’t have to type the IP address in the browser tab, instead of typing IP address you can just type the domain name of the website in the browser’s tab to visit the website.
Say for example if you want to visit our website, then you can type pcgn.com
How Domains Work Exactly
Let us now discuss in detail how domains work. That is, what actually happens when someone types any domain name in their browser? How can they only access your website and not someone else’s website?
To understand this, we must first have a clear basic idea of how the Internet works, or you will not understand.
We already know that the Internet is nothing more than a huge web of computers where each computer is connected to each other through a network and the computers have their own IP address.
We use domain names so that we do not have to remember the IP address. Even then, to associate an IP address with the correct domain name, you need a place where those relationships are stored and it’s like a map pointing people in the right direction.
In the case of domains, this map is called DNS which stands for Domain Name System. In short, DNS is a set of specialized servers whose job is to associate the correct IP address with the correct domain name, so that we can reach a specific website by typing a domain name.
When someone opens their Internet browser and types your domain name into their browser tab, the browser sends a request to DNS. DNS will then automatically find the IP address associated with the domain name and send it to the specific computer where the exact file containing your website is located.
For example, if your website is hosted on Siteground, then its name server information will look like this:
ns1.siteground.net
ns2.siteground.net
The hosting of the company you are using, these name servers are actually computers operated by that hosting company. Now your hosting provider will forward your request to the specific computer where your website is stored.
Then, it will bring all the content or data of your website and send that data back to the browser which means your website will be visible to the visitors who have typed your domain name.
Now you know what a domain name and its structure are, how it works. Has everything been clear to you so far or do you have any questions about the domain? If so, please let us know in the comments.
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