How long does it take for my new domain to become active?
This is a question that we have been asked time and again by our customers for the last 10 years. So we thought it would be nice to address this on our blog where not only our customers, but the public in general can obtain information about this.
Each new domain name has something called an extension like .com, .net, .org, .in, .us, .co.uk, .biz, .info and the like. The database for each domain extension is maintained by a company called Registry. Now different registries handle information about domain names differently. There are certain registries like the .com and .net registry which maintain only limited data about the domain name in its database eg. the domain name, the registration and expiry dates, the name server information. Other information about the registrant is maintained by the registrar who registered your domain name. We refer to such registries as thin registries. Other registries like .org, .biz and .info maintain complete information about the domain name in its database. Such registries are referred to as thick registries.
Typically from the time the information about your new domain is added to the registry’s database, it takes about 12-24 hours for your domain to become active and start receiving emails / web traffic. However, most providers try to play safe and still commit time frames of 24-72 hours for a complete propagation over the Internet. Our practical experience however shows that domain names for thick registries start resolving faster as compared to domain names for thin registries. This time frame of how soon the domain becomes active actually depends on the DNS policies of the ISP which is sending traffic to your domain name. ISPs in the remote locations usually cache DNS entries for longer periods to speed up Internet access for their customers. However, decent ISPs usually either do not cache DNS entries at all or refresh their DNS server once every 1-2 hours. So you can actually start receiving traffic on your new domain name practically within 1-2 hours from the time the registration is completed. However, please allow around 24-48 hours for a full propagation.
And by the way, we forgot to mention. All the discussion above is valid only when the hosting account for your domain is setup at the same time when your domain name is registered.
