When it comes to domains, everything takes time. Whether you’re waiting five minutes for a DNS record to propagate or 65 days for an expired domain to become available, there’s a lot of numbers to keep track of, and a lot of misinformation on the web about how long everything takes. To set the record straight, we had our tech team compile and verify the following list.
Changes to domain records
While everyone wishes changes to their DNS configuration appeared worldwide instantly, the sad truth is that DNS can be slow to update. How long will it take for your changes to apply?
Time it takes for a brand new DNS record to resolve worldwide:
0-5 seconds.
When you add a new DNS record via Porkbun’s Domain Management console, it almost always resolves everywhere moments after you click “add.”
Time it takes for a change to a Porkbun-hosted DNS record to update worldwide:
five minutes.
Unlike new records, modifications to an existing record take some time before they’re live everywhere. In order to save bandwidth, DNS servers will continue to serve out a “cached” or saved version of your old configuration until the “TTL” of those records runs out.
TTL is short for “Time To Live” or the maximum number of seconds a DNS server should ever cache your records. We say should because some DNS servers ignore the TTL and cache for longer. Porkbun DNS allows a minimum TTL of 300 seconds, or five minutes. According to our tests, records set with a TTL of 300 propagate to about 50% of the Internet after one minute and 95% of the Internet after five minutes. To check the propagation of a DNS record change, you can use a DNS propagation checker such as https://www.whatsmydns.net/
Max. time for a brand new domain to become accessible worldwide:
48 hours.
New registrations can take a while to propagate out through DNS, although usually most name servers will see the new domain within a few hours. Porkbun informs the appropriate registry of your new domain immediately, but it can take some time before the registry makes that information public. This may be why your recently-purchased domain might not receive web requests or emails for some hours after registration.
Max. time for a change to your Authoritative Nameserver to apply worldwide:
48 hours.
Similarly, if you change your Authoritative Nameservers in Porkbun’s Domain Management console, this change can take 48 hours to fully propagate across the Internet. Porkbun immediately submits any Authoritative Nameserver changes you make to the appropriate registry, but after that it’s pretty much out of our hands. To check the Authoritative Nameserver propagation, you can use a DNS propagation checker such as https://www.whatsmydns.net/ and select “NS” as the record type.
Max. time for a domain to transfer from one registrar to another:
five days.
ICANN policy allows for transfers that take less than five days, but it’s entirely up to the old (aka “losing”) registrar as to how long to delay the transfer. Some registrars always wait the full five days in an attempt to cut down on domain hijack attempts, for instance when the domain owner’s email account is breached.
The five day maximum is set by ICANN’s rules:
“Failure by the Registrar of Record to respond within five (5) calendar days to a notification from the Registry regarding a transfer request will result in a default “approval” of the transfer.”
source: https://archive.icann.org/en/transfers/policy-12jul04.htm
When you purchase a transfer, Porkbun sends a confirmation email to the domain’s administrative contact. The five day countdown begins when the transfer is confirmed by clicking the link provided in that email, not at the moment of purchase.
Domain expirations
Another area where there are a lot of hard-to-remember dates is the timeline of what happens after a domain expires. If you allow a domain to pass its expiration date without renewing it, your domain faces deletion. It’s easy enough to lose track of an upcoming domain renewal, which is why we recommend Porkbun users turn on auto-renew and attach a credit card to their account. But in case you didn’t and your domain expires, there’s still some leeway built into the system.
Length of Porkbun’s “Auto-Renew Grace Period”:
30 days.
This begins the moment your domain expires. There’s two subsequent grace periods that can occur after a domain expires. This is the one you want to be in. During this first grace period, you can renew a domain without incurring an extra redemption fee on top of your renewal cost.
ICANN grants registrars the leeway to set the Auto-Renew Grace Period at anywhere between 0-45 days, so be warned that other registrars might immediately skip this period and charge you a redemption fee the minute after your domain expires.
From ICANN’s rules:
Once your domain has expired, it will be in Auto-Renew Grace Period (for 0-45 days), followed by a 30-day Redemption Grace Period. At the end of the Redemption Grace Period, you will not be able to renew your domain name. Your domain name will be released for registration by third parties. Source: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/expired-2013-05-03-en
How long Porkbun-registered domains will continue to resolve DNS requests after a domain has expired:
10 days.
We understand that lapses in registration happen, so our servers will continue to respond to DNS requests for the first 10 days of the Auto-Renew Grace Period to prevent service interruptions if there’s a few days’ lag before you renew your domain.
Length of the “Redemption Grace Period” for all registrars, including Porkbun:
30 days.
This 30 day window kicks in right after the end of the Auto-Renew Grace Period, so for domains registered at Porkbun, this 30 day window begins the 31st day after your domain has expired and extends to the 60th day.
During the Redemption Grace Period, you can no longer renew your domain for free. Instead, you can “redeem” (get back) your expired domain for an additional fee. Porkbun sets this fee at $120 in addition to the normal renewal price, which you’ll still need to pay. If your domain has been expired for more than 30 but less than 60 days, contact support@porkbun.com to agree to the $120 fee and begin the redemption process.
At the end of Porkbun’s Redemption Grace Period, it will have been 60 days since your Porkbun-registered domain expired. Your domain will enter “Pending Delete” status.
Length of the “Pending Delete” period following the Redemption Grace Period:
five days.
Once your domain is marked Pending Delete, there’s no turning back. All you can do is wait five days at which point your domain is released to the public and anyone can register it.