Getting Started with Domain Import

The OpenSRS Storefront Domain Import feature allows you to take domains in your OpenSRS Reseller account and “import” them into your OpenSRS Storefront, enabling them to be directly managed and paid for by the Registrant using the Storefront End-user client.

• Once a domain is imported into your Storefront, complete control for that domain is given to the Registrant as listed in the domain Whois. They can change DNS (if the domain uses shopco.com name servers), view and update Whois information, control domain locking and they can also retrieve the domain’s transfer auth code.
• As the Reseller, you retain full access to manage the domain, DNS, and other settings for imported domains through the “Log in as customer” feature in the Storefront Manager.
• All billing for imported domains going forward is handled by Storefront and the End-user is billed directly for things like renewals and add-ons like Contact Privacy through your Storefront.

When you might want to import a domain:

• If you are currently managing domains on behalf of your customers and you wish to give them complete control over their domain, DNS and related functions like privacy, domain lock and WHOIS updates, then the Domain Import feature allows you to transfer control over to your customer so they can manage their domain themselves.
• If you are currently billing for things like domain renewals manually or as part of a service plan but wish to have your customers billed for renewals directly, then the Domain Import feature lets you move the domain into Storefront and billing for renewals and new domain registrations is handled directly.

When you might not want to import a domain:

• If you don’t want to give your customer complete control over their domain, including DNS, WHOIS updates, access to transfer Auth codes and domain lock settings, then you should not import their domain into the Storefront. You can continue to support your customers as you do today.
• If you want to continue to handle billing for things like renewals and add-on services like Contact Privacy, they should not import the domain into Storefront. When domains are imported into Storefront, billing for renewals will be done through the Storefront, billing your customer directly.

How it Works

Consult a help document that shows Domain Import step by step.

At a high level, the Domain Import feature uses the data in the Owner contact in the domain’s Whois to determine ownership of a domain and then associates that domain with an End-user account in your Storefront.

For each domain that you enter to be imported, the Domain Import feature will:

1. First check to see that the domain is found in the your OpenSRS Reseller account ,and also not already managed in your Storefront.
2. Then ensure that the domain is in an active or expired status. Domain Import won’t import domains that are pending transfer away, pending transfer in or domains in redemption.
3. Assuming that the domain can be imported, it will retrieve and parse the Whois information for the domain to determine ownership. Note that the Import feature uses the “Owner” contact for this as that contact is the generally considered to be the owner of the domain.
4. The tool will look for an existing Storefront End-user account with an account email that matches the WHOIS owner contact email before proceeding.
   

   If a Storefront End-user account is found that matches the domain, the Import tool will associate the domain with that existing account.

   If a Storefront End-user account is found that matches the domain is not found, the Import tool will create a new Storefront End-user account using information from the domain WHOIS including the email address, first and last name and other information and then assoociate the domain with that End-user account.

5. Finally, the tool will send a branded email to the End-user to let them know them that the domain was added to their account.

   For existing End-users, the email will let them know that a new domain was added to their account along with a username reminder and a suggestion that they log in to their account to review.

   For newly created End-users, the email will let them know that a new domain was added to their account and contains further information on how to access their new account (including a log in link). It also provides next steps including suggesting that the user log in to add payment information and review their account information.

Remember that once the domain is imported and associated with an End-user, domain management and renewals are handled through your Storefront. The End-user can log in to their account and manage the domain including DNS (if you use shopco.com DNS), billing for renewals, and other domain management functions like Whois updates.

Storefront will bill the End-user directly for any renewals and your share of the transaction will be paid to your connected Stripe account like any other transactions in your Storefront.

Caveats

• You should consider Domain Import to be a one-way process. It’s not currently possible to “undo” an Import.
• The account into which the domain is imported is entirely determined by the email address in the Whois for the domain, and specifically in the Owner contact. It’s very important to review the WHOIS data prior to initiating the import to ensure that the domain ends up in the appropriate account. If you need to change the data in the Whois, you should do this in the RCP prior to initiating the Import process.
• Once a domain is imported, the End-user has full access to manage the domain which includes changing name servers, updating DNS, editing Whois, enabling and disabling domain lock, and retrieving the transfer authorization code. The End-user will also pay for things like domain renewals directly through Storefront.
• Remember that you can still manage the domain yourself, if needed, by using the “Log in as Customer” function of Storefront Manager.

If you have any questions about Domain Import, reach out to OpenSRS Reseller Support. You can also review documentation for a step-by-step guide on how the Domain Import feature works.

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