How to use
- Enter a domain or complete URL such as example.com or https://example.com/path. DEA extracts and displays the normalized hostname.
- Start the lookup. DEA sends the domain to its server, which retrieves the applicable public RDAP response.
- Review registrar, status, event dates, and nameservers in the summary.
- Open the raw response when you need fields that are not included in the summary, and verify important dates with the registrar.
Examples
- Input
example.com- Output
A structured RDAP domain response with published handle, status, events, entities, and nameservers.
The exact values are controlled by the registry and can change.
- Input
https://example.com/path?q=1- Output
The lookup uses example.com and displays it as the normalized domain.
Paths, queries, and fragments are not sent to the RDAP service.
- Input
unregistered-name.invalid- Output
No RDAP domain result or an upstream not-found response.
Reserved, unsupported, or unregistered names may not have public registration data.
Understanding the result
Registrar identifies the sponsoring registrar when the registry publishes that relationship. Entity roles in the raw response provide the context for an organization or contact.
Status values such as clientTransferProhibited describe registry or registrar controls. Event entries label dates such as registration, last change, and expiration when available.
Nameservers are the authoritative DNS hosts reported in registration data. Entities describe roles such as registrar or registrant, but privacy policy can redact entity fields.
Secure DNS fields can indicate whether a DNSSEC delegation or zone is signed. Missing DNSSEC data means not provided, not necessarily unsigned.
RDAP uses HTTPS and structured JSON. WHOIS commonly returns free-form text, so RDAP fields are generally easier for software to interpret.
Common errors and limitations
- The registry or registrar decides which public fields appear. Privacy policies and data-protection rules can redact registrant names, email addresses, phone numbers, or addresses.
- Public RDAP services can apply rate limits, temporary errors, or access policies. Repeated automated queries may be rejected.
- Registration data may not update immediately after a registrar change, renewal, nameserver change, or domain transfer.
- A domain expiration event is not the expiration date of the website's TLS certificate, and RDAP availability varies by registry.
Frequently asked questions
- What is an RDAP lookup?
- It retrieves structured public registration data for an internet resource over HTTPS, usually as JSON.
- How is RDAP different from WHOIS?
- RDAP has a standardized data model, structured responses, internationalization support, and clearer HTTP status behavior. WHOIS is usually unstructured text over a separate protocol.
- Why is registrant information hidden?
- Registries and registrars may redact personal data to comply with privacy law, policy, or their public-access rules.
- Why can a domain return no RDAP result?
- The name may be invalid, unregistered, unsupported by the relevant registry service, temporarily unavailable, or blocked by an upstream rate limit.