WHOIS Sunset: Major Changes Coming to Domain Registration Data Access

[Dynaweb]

WHOIS (1982 - 2025)

A Quiet Farewell to a Digital Pioneer Born in the early days of ARPANET, WHOIS emerged as a simple yet revolutionary protocol that helped connect and identify users across emerging digital networks. For 43 years, it faithfully served the internet community, providing transparent domain registration information with remarkable consistency. From its humble beginnings at SRI International to becoming a global standard for domain lookup, WHOIS witnessed the internet's transformation from a small research network to a global communication infrastructure. It stood as a beacon of transparency, allowing anyone to discover the human behind a domain name. Now, as we approach January 28, 2025, WHOIS will quietly sunset, not with a dramatic shutdown, but with a dignified transition to RDAP. It leaves behind a legacy of openness and a foundational role in internet governance. Though technology moves forward, we pause to remember a protocol that connected us, informed us, and helped build trust in the early digital age. Rest in peace, WHOIS. Your work is done.

As we approach a significant milestone in the domain name industry, it's crucial for our HostNed community to be aware of the upcoming changes. On January 28, 2025, just days from now, ICANN will implement the WHOIS Sunset Date, marking the end of an era for how we access domain registration data.

What's Changing?

• WHOIS servers for generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs) will no longer be required after January 28, 2025.
• Many registrars are expected to shut down their public WHOIS servers on this date.
• The Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP) will replace WHOIS as the primary method for accessing domain registration data.

Why This Matters

This transition affects various aspects of domain management and verification:

• Domain owners may need to adapt to new methods for updating and accessing their registration information.
• Certificate Authorities will need to adjust their domain control validation processes, potentially affecting SSL/TLS certificate issuance.
• Services relying on WHOIS data for domain research, cybersecurity, and legal purposes will need to transition to RDAP.

What You Need to Do

• 1. If you're a domain owner, check with your registrar about their plans for the transition and any actions you need to take.
• 2. For those using WHOIS data in automated systems or workflows, start planning your migration to RDAP-based solutions.
• 3. Be prepared for potential changes in how you verify domain ownership or obtain SSL/TLS certificates.

Benefits of RDAP

While this change may seem disruptive, RDAP offers several improvements over WHOIS:

• Enhanced security features
• Standardized data format for easier processing
• Better support for internationalized domain names

Stay Informed

As a staple hosting provider since 2000, HostNed is committed to helping you navigate this transition smoothly. We'll perform updates transparently in the backend and provide updates as we approach the sunset date and assist with any questions you may have about how these changes affect your domains or services.

We encourage our community members to share their thoughts, concerns, or questions about the WHOIS sunset in the comments below. Let's work together to ensure a smooth transition to this new era of domain data management.