Record of WHOIS shows who is in charge for a domain name and other key information. In addition to the owner and contacts for a domain name, WHOIS records show the domain names status. Each domain record has at least one status code but multiple statuses are permissible. Status codes are useful to determine why your domain isn’t working, whether your domain is locked to prevent unauthorized domain transfers, and when a domain will be dropped. You can find out any domain’s status by performing a WHOIS lookup on the domain.

Domain name status codes vary by the type of protocol used by the official registry. There are two general registry protocols:

• Registry Registrar Protocol (RRP) Status
• Extensible Provisioning Protocol (EPP) Status

Registry Registrar Protocol (RRP) Status

There are eight different status codes or values in the Registry Registrar Protocol (RRP) developed by NSI/Verisign. The two largest registries (.COM and .NET) and some country code Top Level Domains (TLDs) use these status codes.

ACTIVE: The official Registry sets this status. An Active domain can be modified by the registrar and it can be renewed. The domain will be included in the zone if the domain has been delegated to at least one name server. This status is very common.

REGISTRY-LOCK: The official Registry sets this status. The domain cannot be modified or deleted by the registrar. The registry must remove the LOCK status for the registrar to modify the domain. The domain can be renewed. The domain name will be included in the zone if the domain has been delegated to at least one name server. This status is not that common and is sometime used in disputes or during Redemption.

REGISTRAR-LOCK: The sponsoring registrar sets this status. The domain cannot be modified or deleted or transferred. The registrar must remove REGISTRAR-LOCK status to modify the domain. You can typically change the Registrar Lock status through your registrar’s account management interface. The domain can be renewed and will be included in the zone. Status is very common. It’s used to prevent unauthorized transfers and often enabled by Registrar by default.

REGISTRY-HOLD: The official registry sets this status. The domain cannot be modified or deleted by the registrar. The registry must remove the REGISTRY-HOLD status for the registrar to modify the domain. The domain can be renewed. The domain will not be included in the zone. Not a very common status but use before a domain is set to delete and when a domain is subject to a legal dispute.

REGISTRAR-HOLD: The sponsoring registrar sets this status. The domain cannot be modified or deleted. The registrar must remove REGISTRAR-HOLD status to modify the domain. The domain can be renewed. The domain will not be included in the zone. Typically denotes non-payment, expiration, or a domain subject to a legal dispute.

REDEMPTIONPERIOD: The registry sets this status when a registrar requests that the domain name be deleted from the registry and the domain has been registered for more than 5 calendar days (if the delete request is received within 5 days of initial domain registration it will instead be deleted immediately). The domain will not be included in the zone. The domain cannot be modified or purged; it can only be restored. Any other registrar requests to modify or otherwise update the domain will be rejected. A domain will be held in this status for a maximum of 30 calendar days.

PENDINGRESTORE: The registry sets this status after a registrar requests restoration of a domain that is in REDEMPTIONPERIOD status. The domain will be included in the zone. Registrar requests to modify or otherwise update the domain will be rejected. The domain will be held in this status while the registry waits for the registrar to provide required restoration documentation. If the registrar fails to provide documentation to the registry within 7 calendar days to confirm the restoration request, the domain will revert to REDEMPTIONPERIOD status. The domain status will be set to ACTIVE only if the registrar provides documentation to the registry within 7 calendar days to confirm the restoration request.

PENDINGDELETE: The registry sets this status after a domain has been set in REDEMPTIONPERIOD status and the domain has not been restored by the registrar. The domain will not be included in the zone. Once in this status all registrar requests to modify or otherwise update the domain will be rejected. The domain will be purged and dropped from the registry database after being in this status for 5 calendar days. Once deletion occurs, the domain is available to be registered by anyone on a first come, first served basis.

Extensible Provisioning Protocol (EPP) Domain Status Codes

The .ORG, .BIZ, .INFO and .NAME registries use EPP (Extensible Provisioning Protocol) multiple domain status values unique to each registry. EPP domain status codes are typically more intuitive to understand than RRP codes. Each of the EPP Registries have slightly different terms, however given the statuses used are fairly clear – e.g. Client Delete Prohibited meaning you can’t delete the domain. Domains in EPP Registries have a normal operating status of “OK” or “Active.” Other additional status codes describe pending operations and restrictions regarding the domain. They are easy to understand without further explanation. There are about 22 different EPP Status codes.

In EPP, the word CLIENT typically refers to registrar in the RRP system (e.g. CLIENT LOCK is REGISTRAR-LOCK) while the absence of CLIENT or the use of the word SERVER usually refers to Registry (e.g. LOCKED or SERVER LOCK is REGISTRY-LOCK) .

The table below shows the EPP Domain Status and its equivalent RRP Domain status.

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