sandie89
09-22-2010, 08:42 AM
Hello,
Wondering if anyone can help me please, I brought brought 2 domains, one I renewed but didn’t renew hosting with that name I then brought a new domain, which I did buy hosting with the name. I got told by this hosting company I use I could link up the old domain name with the new domain one, so that when people type in the old domain it would automatically transfer them to the new domain. The hosting company I use web-mania isnt very helpful! Is this something I can do? Can I do something using the web-mania account control center?
Brillig
09-27-2010, 05:04 PM
Can you still control the pages that are on the old domain?
weegillis
09-28-2010, 04:07 PM
It appears you wish to 'redirect' traffic from the old domain to the new? Are you planning to abandon the old?
Search this forum for '301 redirect' to locate threads pertinent to this topic and your understanding will increase tenfold.
As to @Brillig's question, you've purchased the rights to a domain, what else came in the deal? You do realize that we only 'rent' domain names, right?
Wikipedia: ICANN (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICANN)
We need to clarify what you have in your hands, broken down into the respective parts that are typically associated with a domain:
1. domain name
2. domain parking
3. domain hosting (FTP, e-mail, e-commerce, etc.)
4. webs
Which of the above are included in your purchase of the old domain?
>> 1. Who made the original application to the registrar (through a registry)? (a) The person who sold the rights to you. (b) A hosting company.
In the case of (a) there is less likely a transferability issue so you can transfer the domain hosting if you wish. Transferring hosting won't effect SERPs since they point to domains, not IP's. Your new hosting package may be more to your liking, or you may wish to have only one hosting bill each month/quarter/year. Perhaps you don't wish to deal with the 'old domain' hosting company. The reasons will be your own to move or stay. (Some might suggest it would be an asset to have the domains on two different hosting servers so their IP addresses are different.)
In the case of (b) you may not have a transfer option. They registered the domain, possibly as part of the hosting package and in the fine print it probably reads somewhere that the domain cannot be transferred to a new host.
This is the first real issue to contend with so you know where you stand. Who is responsible for renewing the old domain? (a) You, the new registered admin; or, (b) the hosting company.
>> 2. Loosely speaking, a Parked Domain is a redirect, and has no web server associated with it, only a namespace. If you cannot or do not wish to transfer the old hosting but do not wish to maintain a site there, either, you may have the option of parking the domain. The hosting company puts a permanent redirect to your chosen domain and you pay a small annual fee (typically). As long as you keep the domain name renewed and keep paying the hosting company, the domain name will always point where you set it.
>> 3 & 4. If the package includes a hosting account, what if any are your obligations? Are you bound by a contract? Did the account and access transfer to you officially or does the original account holder still have administrative access?
Is there a live site mounted already? Does it have any traffic? Is it in the SE indexes (for more than just domain name)? This is really what @Brillig is asking, and assuming there is a site, you do have FTP access.
An existing site may complicate things in one respect, since the parking option is a bit out of range for the time being. You may wish to install back links in the old pages (providing there is some relevance) or install META redirects (read up on the best practices) from these to similar pages on the new domain (old contact us > new contact us, and so on).
If the site is not doing well and you don't wish to further develop it, FTP access gives you the option (possibly) of configuring redirects in an .htaccess file on the old domain. Redirect pages that appear in SERPs, test that the redirects work, then you can physically remove all the folder/pages of the old site. They will never be missed; their content might be, though, so tread lightly and thoughtfully, what ever you decide).
OP, can you provide more details, please?