Manage your domains

How to manage your domain names using the government DNS Management Portal, transfer non-.govt.nz domains to the government DNS nameservers, and get support.

Domain Name Service (DNS) Management Portal

The government DNS Management Portal makes it easy to manage your domain names 24/7. You can:

  • apply for a domain name
  • manage the zone data for your domain names hosted on the government nameservers
  • update WHOIS data for all your domain names
  • de-register a domain name.

DNS Management Portal

Access the Portal

To get access to the Portal you’ll need to:

  • understand and assess the risks outlined in the Service Security Certificate
  • choose who in your organisation will sign up to get access to the Portal
  • provide the Domain Name Service Team with details for each user, or for the person who will manage user accounts for others in your organisation.

Note: Accounts must be named users, and must not be shared.

To learn more about security certification and get access to the Portal, contact the Domain Name Service Team.

User roles

There are 2 user roles in the Portal:

  • AGENCYSUPER (super user)
  • AGENCYUSER (agency user).

All users:

  • can manage zones and request domains
  • should have a good understanding of the Domain Name System (DNS), and related technology.

Super users:

  • can create and edit other users
  • should be permanent employees of your organisation.

Help using the Portal

On-boarding

The ‘On-boarding to the DNS Management Portal guide’ covers how to set up your account and on-board the rest of your team.

Set-up overview

The following domain and zone management instructions, by Liverton Security, offer a quick overview of setting up a new domain or zone in the DNS Management Portal.

Manage your zones with the DNS API

A secure Application Programming Interface (API) is available via the DNS Management Portal for managing your zones.

You can use the API to make automated updates or delegate access to your zones on a per-domain basis.

To enable API access for your organisation, contact the Domain Name Service Team to talk about setting up one of your users as an API administrator.

Transferring domains to the government domain nameservers

If your government organisation is using non-.govt.nz domains (like .co.nz) or has .govt.nz domains hosted by other DNS nameservers, they can be migrated onto the government DNS nameservers.

This allows you to manage both non-.govt.nz and .govt.nz domains in the same place and have the same security benefits, like Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC).

Renewals

Domains renew automatically, so there’s no risk of them being forgotten about or released for open registration.

How to transfer

To transfer non-.govt.nz and .govt.nz domains, contact the Domain Name Service Team.

For non-govt.nz domains, you’ll need to provide:

  • the zone file
  • the domain’s Unique Domain Authentication Identifier (UDAI)
  • a time and date to make the change.

For .govt.nz domains, you’ll need to provide:

  • the zone file
  • a time and date to make the change.

Check contact details

This is also a good time to make sure the contact details for these types of domains are correct. For example, make sure that the domain is properly registered on behalf of your organisation, and not under the name of an employee or vendor.

International domains

While the government DNS Management Portal can provide services for all domains within the .nz space (such as .nz, .co.nz, .org.nz, and so on), international domains like .com or .org are not supported.

Support

Liverton Security manages the government DNS Management Portal. They can help you use the Portal and give you advice on making DNS changes, as well as perform bulk changes.

This support is available 24/7, however charges apply outside of business hours.

Business hours: 8.30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

Charges

You will not be charged for the following services:

  • domain nameserver hosting
  • access to the DNS Management Portal
  • help and advice regarding the Portal during business hours.

If you need urgent support or manual changes made outside business hours, Liverton Security will charge your organisation directly.

  • Hourly rate: $145
  • Fixed rate: $12 for each change.

Contact Liverton Security

You can contact Liverton Security by phone on 0800 536 7999 (NZ only).

They will ask for your security question to authenticate your identity. If they cannot authenticate your identity, you’ll be referred to the Domain Name Service Team at the Department of Internal Affairs.

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