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Frequently asked questions

  • I am looking for a domain name registrant. Where can I look it up?

    The Whois is an easy-to-use tool for checking the availability of a .nl domain name. If the domain name is already taken, you can see who has registered it.

    On the page looking up a domain name you will find more information about what a domain name is, how the Whois works and how the privacy of personal data is protected. Alternatively, you can go straight to look for a domain name via the Whois.

  • I would like to transfer my domain name to another registrar. What is the procedure?

    To get your domain name transferred, you need the token (unique ID number) for your domain name. Your existing registrar has the token and is obliged to give it to you within five days, if you ask for it. The procedure for changing your registrar is described on the page transferring your domain name.

  • The details registered about me/my company are incorrect or out of date. How can I get them updated?

    To update the contact details associated with your domain name, you need to contact your registrar. Read more about updating contact details.

  • Why is my domain name in quarantine?

    When a domain name is cancelled, we aren't told the reason, so we can't tell you. You'll need to ask your registrar. The advantage of quarantine is that, if a name's cancelled by mistake, you can always get it back.

    One common reason is that the contract between you and your registrar says you've got to renew the registration every year. If you haven't set up automatic renewal and you don't renew manually, the registration will expire.

  • Ik heb een klacht over mijn provider/registrar. Kan ik daarvoor bij SIDN terecht?

    Wanneer je een klacht hebt over of een geschil met je registrar dan zijn er verschillende mogelijkheden om tot een oplossing te komen. Hierover lees je meer op pagina klacht over registrar. SIDN heeft geen formele klachtenprocedure voor het behandelen van een klacht over jouw registrar.

  • What conditions do I have to meet as a registrar?

    Would you like to be able to register domain names for customers or for your own organisation by dealing directly with SIDN? If so, you can become a .nl registrar. Read more about the conditions and how to apply for registrar status on the page becoming a registrar.

More frequently asked questions

Czech government to withdraw IPv4 support in 8 years

Sunset strategy announced to push IPv6 adoption

The Czech flag
  • Friday 24 May 2024

In 8 years' time, the Czech government intends to withdraw support for IPv4 access to online public services. From then on, people without IPv6 won't be able to reach the nation's IPv6-only sites. DNSSEC adoption is to receive a further boost as well. The moves are part of a raft of trade ministry measures announced earlier this year by Czech premier Petr Fiala.

Under a recent government decree, support for IPv4 access to Czech public services will end on 6 June 2032. Far from being a random choice, the date will be the twentieth anniversary of World IPv6 Launch Day, when the first true IPv6 services went live.

News that IPv4 support will be ending followed hard on the heels of another decree, requiring all Czech central government domains to be given gov.cz addresses. That will make the enforcement of IPv6 and DNSSEC policies much easier. [1]

Carrot and stick

Until recently, the focus was mainly on promoting IPv6 adoption. Here in the Netherlands, the Forum for Standardisation has brought pressure to bear by means of the 'use-or-explain' list), Joint Ambition Statements and the Internet.nl test portal. However, no absolute requirement to use IPv6 has been introduced anywhere.

As the registry for .nl, we have encouraged adoption as well. For example, we introduced a financial incentive scheme for IPv6 (part of the Registrar Scorecard programme) and we share expertise via the SIDN Academy and our website.

Tipping point

Now, though, it seems we've passed the IPv4-IPv6 tipping point. We first wrote about reaching peak IPv4 in a blog that appeared last autumn. That piece was prompted by a structural downturn in the price of traded address blocks, after years of steady increase. Last month, we posted a follow-up article prompted by Geoff Huston's annual surveys of IP address usage and BGP routes, which appear to confirm that peak IPv4 has passed.

The main technical implication of reaching the IPv4-IPv6 tipping point is that a different group of transition mechanisms should now take centre stage. As we move towards an IPv6-mainly world, it's time for old mechanisms such as dual stack with NAT and CGNAT to make way for more modern alternatives based on NAT64, DNS64 and 464XLAT.

Sunset

Our own belief is that market forces will oblige the internet to switch over to IPv6 in the coming years. The IPv4 address shortage is creating much greater issues in Asia and South America than it has caused in Europe. And it's in countries where the address shortage is most acute that IPv6-only sites – sites that can't be reached without IPv6 support – are likely to spring up first.

A sunset strategy, where the switch to IPv6 is actively enforced by major and/or critical online services withdrawing support for IPv4 access, has often been considered. The Chinese have experimented with IPv6-only (IoT) networks [1], for instance, while NARA in the US has created IPv6-only sites and (internal) networks [1]. However, as far as we're aware, the Czech announcement is the first example of a definite, generalised sunset strategy being implemented in practice [1].

What's more, the Internet Drafts published in 2016 and 2017 seeking to get IPv4 formally classed as an outdated or 'legacy' technology and to get all new development work on IPv4 halted never achieved RFC status. The Draft entitled Gap Analysis for IPv4 Sunset, which sought to get the community to investigate what would be needed for IPv4 to be actively phased out, similarly came to nothing.

Fait accompli

Although not everyone believes [1, 2] that the Czech government will ultimately go ahead and pull the plug on IPv4, internet users wishing to access Czech public services may be faced with a fait accompli. Ahead of the 2032 deadline, Czech government organisations will stop investing in IPv4 infrastructure or budgeting for dual-stack set-ups. After all, operating 2 IP networks side by side involves additional cost.

In the meantime, the Czech government will monitor the progress of its IPv6 strategy by means of annual surveys.

Countdown clock of the Czech government until the moment when IPv4 is said goodbye. The clock in the image shows 2,945 days, 4 hours, 28 minutes and 52 seconds.