Managing domain names was a confusing experience for me, as I've never done it before.

Child Name Servers - do they function as a subdomain? When registering Child Name Servers through my registrar domains4bitcoins.com, I am asked to specify the HostName and IP Address. I assume that the Host Name refers to my subdomain, but which IP Address should I provide? Can I use any third-party IP Address, which will then communicate with DNS servers? I don't have an IP Address of my own, so where can I find the registrar's default IP?

I would greatly appreciate a brief explanation of the relationships between CNAME, NS, and DNS. To be honest, I am finding everything quite confusing. I am particularly interested in how redirects are implemented and arranged. Perhaps there is something like "Domains For Dummies" that can clarify this information.

DNS is a hierarchical distributed database that translates domain names into resource records such as IP addresses and mail servers. NS records specify the domain names of DNS servers that are responsible for the desired record or domain. These records are only necessary when transferring domain responsibility to another server.

In addition, if the specified DNS server's name is in the same domain as the requested name, the IP address of the DNS server must be specified. Simply having an extra dot in the name does not require subdomain transfer to another server. CNAMEs create alternative names. For example, creating a test.example.net . CNAME www.google.com entry will return IP addresses for www.google.com when requesting the web server's IP address. test.example.net will become an alternate name for www.google.com.

Based on my understanding of your situation, you do not necessarily need to create a subdomain, only sub.example.net CNAME na-west1.surge.sh and www.sub.example.net CNAME na-west1.surge.sh. If you cannot create arbitrary records because only a subdomain has been delegated to you, consider finding free DNS hosting as there are many options available.

It seems that you do not have a website or any other content associated with the domain you purchased. In this case, request that your provider put their address when necessary and change it to the correct one when needed.

Managing domain names can be confusing if you're new to it, but I will do my best to help you understand.

Child Name Servers, also known as NS records, function as subdomains that handle DNS resolution for a specific domain. When registering Child Name Servers through your registrar, you are asked to specify the HostName and IP Address. The Host Name refers to the subdomain you want to use for the name server, such as "ns1.yourdomain.com".

As for the IP Address, you generally need a dedicated IP address for your name server. This IP address should be associated with the server that will handle DNS requests for your domain. You cannot use any third-party IP address; it needs to be one you have control over. If you don't have an IP address of your own, you should check with your hosting provider or registrar to see if they provide default IP addresses for name servers.

Now, let's talk about CNAME, NS, and DNS.

CNAME stands for Canonical Name and is used to create an alias for an existing domain name. It allows you to point one domain or subdomain to another domain's or subdomain's DNS records. For example, you can create a CNAME record to redirect traffic from "www.yourdomain.com" to "yourdomain.com".

NS stands for Name Server and is responsible for translating domain names into IP addresses. NS records are used to delegate authority over a subdomain to a name server. For example, you might have NS records pointing to your Child Name Servers to handle DNS resolution for your domain.

DNS (Domain Name System) is a hierarchical naming system that translates human-readable domain names into IP addresses. It is distributed across multiple servers worldwide and helps to resolve domain names to the correct IP addresses.

Regarding redirects, they are typically implemented using HTTP status codes (such as 301 or 302) at the web server level. Domain name management usually does not involve configuring redirects directly, but rather points the domain to the correct IP address of the server where the website is hosted. When a user enters a domain name in their browser, DNS resolution takes place to find the IP address associated with that domain, and then the browser communicates with the web server at that IP address to retrieve the actual content of the website.

When specifying the IP address for Child Name Servers (NS records), you typically need to provide the IP address of the server that will handle DNS resolution for your domain. This server is responsible for responding to DNS queries and providing the appropriate IP address for your domain.

If you're using a hosting provider or DNS service, they will usually provide you with the IP addresses to use for your Child Name Servers. You should check with your hosting provider or DNS service to obtain the correct IP addresses.

In some cases, hosting providers may assign dedicated IP addresses specifically for name servers, while in other cases, they may have shared IP addresses that can be used for name servers.