Introduction

If you have not yet considered moving from DNS to ENS then you don't know what you are missing. Other systems such as the DNS are hierarchical and centralized which does not provide you the privacy you need. With DNS, ICANN has the ability to control root registry.

The DNS is very vulnerable as there are many root servers and backup servers that target the DNS servers hence if you use the DNS server your data is at risk of falling in bad hands. When the DNS becomes vulnerable, it is difficult to troubleshoot due to its distributed nature and clients in turn will not be able to connect to their local network.

If you are into cryptography, clearly DNS is not the right route to take, you should consider ENS which is decentralized and a much better option.

ENS

The Ethereum name system is a form of DNS but is based on the Ethereum blockchain system. The ENS unlike the DNS has a central database which is the ENS registry that does mapping from domain names to resolvers. The owner of a domain has the power to update the resolver address as well as create and delegate subdomain names.

In order to get any information about a domain, you have to get to the resolver address which you go through the registry. The resolver address is what will give you information about the domain. It operates just like DNS in that it allows resolvers to do implementation and delegate authority within the hierarchy of names only that it has no concept of zones. The main objective of the ENS is to decentralize the DNS while still making sure there are readable names.

The ENS unlike the DNS does not deal with registration of domains rather one can choose a name with an .eth domain that they can use when one need to send payments to them.

Since Ethereum is mainly based on smart contracts, ENS is also based on smart contract on the Ethereum blockchain hence there is no chance of insecurity of the DNS system. You will get your names the way you intended them to be. With the ENS, there is a fair distribution of both infrastructure and governance and hence anyone has a chance of registering their domain through an auction process that is initiated by the blockchain.

Users are obliged to wait for the availability of the name then bid on the name again and reveal the results. Just like many other auctions, the highest bidder wins the name then is given a contract of one year according to the smart contract system of the Ethereum network.

When one wins the bid of the name, they can add more data, create subdomains, lease the domain, sell or do what they please with another smart contract. In order to register a name however, you are obliged to use an Ethereum browser or an app that can turn your browser into an Ethereum-enabled one.

When dealing with blockchain, cryptographic addresses are rather long and are a mixture of numbers and letters which may look complicated. It looks way different from the normal IP addresses and may not be human-readable, that is where the ENS comes in, it makes the IP addresses human readable and you can use any domain name you want. The ENS makes it easy to use as users have the ability to send money to human readable names which makes it easy for people who are not so familiar with cryptographic language.

Apart from using the domain name for receiving payments, The ENS helps protocols such swarm and IPFS content hashes and other identifiers to access distributed sites by name. This will give users the ability to browse and access files while at the same time having access to metadata about names such as ABIs for contracts and who is information for users.

Advantages of the ENS

As much as the DNS is decentralized, it is still vulnerable and faces the risk of the system being hacked which can make the central registry to be accessed. For ENS, there is more security and privacy as there is no central party to attack. Even if there could be a chance of the system to be hacked, there is no chance that the registered names will be redirected to a different address. This makes it more secure as compares to the DNS making it work as it was originally meant to.

The ENS has helped to bridge the gap between the Ethereum eco system and mainstream and helps to avoid typos in Ethereum addresses.

The auction process of ENS helps the original owners of domains to use the domains and prevent s the reselling the names for a profit that is very bound to happen. It ensures equity and fairness.

How to get a domain name from ENS

There is a process that one should use in order to get a domain name from ENS. Since it is a rather long process and many may find it complicated, there are companies like PeerName that are specialized in that and will do the auction for you and help you get your domain name registered. They will also give you guidelines that will make the process a breeze. As seen, there are many advantages of using the ENS hence it is totally worth investing into it.

Normally, registration of a name and updating the address are both blockchain transactions and hence they require gas and that is why a fee of ether is charged. Resolving names on the other hand can even be done offline and hence does not use gas hence no charges of ether.

The pricing of ENS is different from the ones in DNS. This is because the price of the domain names is determined by the auction and the number of bidders at the time. For example there is a minimum cost of there is only one bidder available.