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Domain name, hosting, files: who owns your website?

A website is three separate things: the domain name (yourbusiness.be), the hosting (the computer that serves the site) and the site files. The most important is the domain name: it is your address, the one on your business cards and your Google profile. It should be in your name, or come back to you unconditionally if you leave.

By Jules Rouilly · Updated on

The three parts of a website

  • The domain name: rented yearly from an accredited reseller. For a .be, the registry is DNS Belgium. Whoever is registered as the holder controls it.
  • Hosting: the service that stores the site and sends it to visitors. It can change without your customers noticing, as long as the domain name stays the same.
  • Files and content: the design, text and photos. Depending on the tool used, they are easy to retrieve, or locked into a platform.

The most common trap

A provider registers the domain name in their own name to save time. Everything works, until the day you want to switch provider, or they stop trading. Getting the name back can then take weeks, and meanwhile your address, your email and your Google links are at stake.

How to check where your site stands

  1. 01

    Look up your domain in WHOIS

    For a .be, DNS Belgium’s WHOIS search shows, among other things, the reseller managing the name. The holder’s details may be hidden to protect privacy.

  2. 02

    Ask your provider in writing

    Who is the registered holder of the domain name? Can you get the transfer code on request?

  3. 03

    Re-read your contract

    What happens at the end: domain transfer, handover of files, timescales, any fees.

Five questions to ask before you sign

  • Will the domain name be in my name, or transferred free of charge if I leave?
  • Do I get the site files, and in what format?
  • Is there a minimum term, and what does cancelling cost?
  • Who pays the yearly domain renewal, and what happens if it is forgotten?
  • If your business closes, how do I get my site back?

Switching provider in practice

For a .be, you ask the old reseller for the transfer code, then the new provider starts the transfer. The site can be rebuilt or moved before the switch so there is no downtime. If old page addresses change, they must be redirected so you do not lose your place on Google: that is what we do in a redesign.

Our rule at Cliko

We buy and manage the domain name and hosting so you do not have to deal with it. But the domain name stays yours: at the end of the contract it is transferred to you and you receive the site files. You are not locked in. See also hosting and maintenance.

Frequently asked questions

My provider refuses to transfer my domain. What can I do?

Start with a written request with a deadline. For a .be, DNS Belgium publishes its rules and dispute procedures on its website. Keep a record of every exchange.

Do I also need to own the hosting?

That matters less: hosting can be changed. What counts is being able to get back the domain name and the files.