When using an application server like Yunohost, you want your server to be accessible, it needs to be found. And whether you are using your own hardware, or using a virtual private server, your system needs to be found. Since every system om the internet has an address provided by the internet service provider, the IP address, this is not very convenient, so you will have to get a domain name that you can easily refer to. This domain name will point to the IP address, so after registration of the domain name, you may not need to use the IP address anymore.

This server, for instance, can be found via the URL https://wiki.myfed.space. I came up with this name, but it needs to be registered on the internet to be usable. The authorities that make it possible to register a domain name are Registrars. And there are plenty of those.

The IP address is the real address entry point to any service or resource on the internet. The public IP address are provided by internet service providers, it is not possible to pick one for yourself. Traditionally we have IP addresses in the format of IPv4: 123.123.123.123, for quadrupals with the value of 000 to 255. Lots of exceptions in the IP Addresses. Chances are that your home router gives out local IP addresses in the range of 192.172.xxx.xxx. These are not accessible on the internet, only local in your home or office. The number of IPv4 addresses is limited and with the growth of all konds of (smart) devices, tyhe number is too small. That's why IPv6 was designed. And where you might be able to remember your personal IPv4 address, remembering IPv6 addresses is something else. You can't and that's why you need a domain name.

Buying a domain name is not buying it, you have to renew on a regular basis and you have to pay the registration fee. If not, you will lose your domain name. You will not, however, lose your server or your data, since they are not directly connected to your domain name. You can of course buy a package deal, but beware, in that case you may not be the 'legal' owner of your domain name.

Registrars are authorized to register domain names in the domain name system. You can choose any registrar of your liking and they offer lots of different TLDs. At least choose a registrar that can supply you with the TLD you want. Here some tips for finding a registrar.

And the registar makes it possible for you to connect your domain name to the IP address of your resource. And depending on the functionality, you can also add all your desired subdomains and IPv4 and IPv6 addresses, as wel as other relevent attributes, like certificates, email registratration data etc.

The URL is what you type in the address bar of your browser. It consists of multiple parts, separated by dots. From right to left you will find: The TLD, the Top level domain, in case of this wiki it is .space The domain name, in this case myfed.space the subdomain, wiki.myfed.space

In internet terms you might say that Top Level Domains are like the main part of the postal code of an address. When visiting a .bank TLD you could expect to find a banking site, for .com you may expect a commercial entity and for .nl a Dutch language site may not surprise you (although many of these .nl sites ar in English too). I chose the TLD .space for this site. Two reasons: it doesn't mean a lot and it was not too expensive for my purposes. Some domain names are very cheap, like .xyz, or .org, others cost a lot of money, like .ai, used for internet hype purposes…

Within a TLD domain names are unique. So myfed.space is the only myfed in the space TLD. There can be more myfeds… The short domain names are very sought after, so they are expensive. And that means that people may try to benefit from this popularity by buying a nice domain name to sell it to someone who really want it. If, however, the domain name part is a registered commercial brand, the brand owner may have a claim to the name.

My myfed.space in fact means my federation space, my personal spot on the fediverse.

This site is a wiki, so for this site I chose wiki.myfed.space. There is also social.myfed.space and mail.myfed.space. The sub domain typically indicates the purpose of the site. And you can pick and choose any sub domain to your liking.

And when all is done, the domain is bought… setup your domain name: The DNS settings

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