Click here

domain name

Domain names are used to identify one or more IP addresses. For example, the domain name microsoft.com represents about a dozen IP addresses. Domain names are used in URLs to identify particular Web pages. For example, in the URL http://www.pcwebopedia.com/index.html, the domain name is pcwebopedia.com.

Every domain name has a suffix that indicates which top level domain (TLD) it belongs to. There are only a limited number of such domains. For example:

  • gov - Government agencies
  • edu - Educational institutions
  • org - Organizations (nonprofit)
  • mil - Military
  • com - commercial business
  • net - Network organizations
  • ca - Canada
  • th - Thailand
  • Because the Internet is based on IP addresses, not domain names, every Web server requires a Domain Name System (DNS) server to translate domain names into IP addresses.

     

    See "Registering a Domain Name" and "Understanding Internet Governance" in the Did You Know...? section of Webopedia.
    See also "Countries and Their Domain Extensions" in Webopedia's
    Quick Reference Section.

    domain name


    Top Terms
    • 1

      Consumerization of IT

      Consumerization of IT is a phrase used to describe the cycle of information technology (IT) emerging in the consumer market then spreading to...

      Read more »

    • 2

      ERP - Enterprise Resource Planning

      Short for enterprise resource planning, ERP is business management software that allows an organization to use a system of integrated applications...

      Read more »

    • Click Here!

    Connect with Webopedia

    Did You Know? Archive »

    • Quick Reference Archive »