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DynDNS.com Acquires EveryDNS

funfail writes in with the news that, five days ago, EveryDNS was sold to DynDNS.com. From the announcement and e-mail from EveryDNS's founder, David Ulevitch: "Since starting EveryDNS in June of 2001 while a freshman in college, my goal has always been to provide simple, reliable and secure DNS services to the Internet community. I'm proud to say that we've lived up to that mission and delivered robust DNS services to over 400,000 domains. Nearly 9 years later, it's now time to put the service in more capable hands and I'm happy to announce that I've found a great home for EveryDNS. I have sold the EveryDNS service to Dyn Inc., the operators of the immensely popular DynDNS.com service." EveryDNS has been one of the most popular free (or one-time donation) DNS suppliers. From the FAQ at the link above: "Will the service remain free? While we don't 100% have the answer to that yet, we will not be making any changes to the service you are currently receiving for the foreseeable future. We will be discontinuing signups in the near future but existing accounts will remain active and fully functional."

125 comments

  1. As a current free DynDNS user... by clone53421 · · Score: 1

    How much of a difference was there between the service offered by EveryDNS and what’s in the free package from DynDNS?

    --
    Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    1. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by athakur999 · · Score: 4, Informative

      EveryDNS is more like the "custom DNS" feature in DynDNS which uses their servers to provide nameservers for your own domain. DynDNS's custom DNS service is $30/year if you aren't hosting with them, while EveryDNS is/was free.

      --
      "People that quote themselves in their signatures bother me" - athakur999
    2. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by The-Pheon · · Score: 1

      EveryDNS is more like the "custom DNS" feature in DynDNS which uses their servers to provide nameservers for your own domain. DynDNS's custom DNS service is $30/year if you aren't hosting with them, while EveryDNS is/was free.

      ThatIP only charges $10/year for the same "custom DNS", and now started doing dedicated ipv6 nameservers too!

    3. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by Mr.+DOS · · Score: 1

      And ZoneEdit is free for the first five domains. AFAIK, they're not doing IPv6 yet, though.

            --- Mr. DOS

    4. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by Curunir_wolf · · Score: 1

      Thanks P and GP. I've been relying on EveryDNS for about 5 years now. They have a great service and I've happily donated to keep it running. My little home server doesn't do much, but it wouldn't do anything useful without this service. It's something I never have to think about because a little script on the server detects whenever my ISP decides to change my IP address, and updates the EveryDNS host automatically.

      Good to know there are alternatives when/if DynDNS starts trying to gouge me. I hope they are as useful and easy to work with.

      --
      "Somebody has to do something. It's just incredibly pathetic it has to be us."
      --- Jerry Garcia
    5. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by raju1kabir · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I've found ZoneEdit to be frustratingly quirky. Getting new domains working is a PITA and always takes an extraordinary amount of time. The interface is clunky and weird. The name servers seem to work, but EveryDNS was such a pleasure to use by contrast that I'd long ago moved everything off ZoneEdit.

      --
      "Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all other countries because you were born in it." -- GBS
    6. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by Mr.+DOS · · Score: 1

      The interface is horrendous, and very occasionally won't even load (you'll auth then sitting there waiting for it to pull up the domai- sorry, zone list), but I find that it's quit reliable once everything's set up alright.

      It's gotten better recently, too - I set up a new domain last night, and it took maybe five minutes, most of which was me humming and hawing about how I wanted it.

            --- Mr. DOS

    7. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      if you register with joker.com they give you DynDNS services free.

    8. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by sbeckstead · · Score: 1

      Quite a lot. I went to EveryDNS after DynDNS began charging for everything I wanted to do.

    9. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      All I want is a non-changing address that is easy to remember, and a subdomain off of one of DynDNS’s domains is good enough for me.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    10. Re:As a current free DynDNS user... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It should be noted that as of January 14, 2010 DynDNS charges $30 USD per domain/per year under their Custom DNS services. EveryDNS was completely free, with the option of donating.

      DynDNS paid for EveryDNS so I cannot see this service remaining free. I expect to have to start paying $30/domain per year sometime in the next 6 months. You should start planning where you are going to move your DNS service as soon as possible.

      Maybe someone will pick up where EveryDNS leaves off and offer 'free' DNS again to the internet community, it sure would be nice :)

      Cheers!

  2. Easy answer by flibuste · · Score: 2, Informative

    "Will the service remain free? "

    As a former DynDNS user, I can assure everyone that the answer will be NO in the not-so-distant future. They've already done it. DynDNS has stopped offering services for free and became overly expensive...suddenly...overnight...or so.

    This is actually not good news. Something that used to be nice (aka "cool") and free (aka "beer") is now sold to people who stopped caring about services to go for....oh...PROFIT...I forgot that...

    1. Re:Easy answer by radtea · · Score: 3, Funny

      we will not be making any changes to the service you are currently receiving for the foreseeable future.

      Yeah, and I bet they are telling the soon-to-be-former employees of EveryDNS that they don't have any staffing changes planned "for the forseeable future" either, the "forseeable future" for the average PHB being about 4 seconds.

      --
      Blasphemy is a human right. Blasphemophobia kills.
    2. Re:Easy answer by bakawolf · · Score: 2, Informative

      uhm, i'm pretty sure they still do...as I use it and http://www.dyndns.com/services/dns/dyndns/ says they still do

    3. Re:Easy answer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      WTF are you talking about. My free domain name through dyndns still resolves fine and they still offer free DNS on their front page. Put the crack pipe down.

    4. Re:Easy answer by Idbar · · Score: 3, Informative

      I've had a DynDNS account for more than 5 years now and they haven't charge me for their dynamic dns service yet. Where did you learn that, and how did you arrive to that conclusion?

    5. Re:Easy answer by Dahamma · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I have had a great experience as a dyndns user. I paid $30 for each of 2 customdns domains when they were still flat rate, and now I am grandfathered into them forever... can't beat that :)

    6. Re:Easy answer by plague3106 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      DDNS is still available for free, and you can sign up. I don't recall them ever offering anything else for free.

      Why you feel they should offer a free service is beyond me; its not like offering the service is free for them, and I suspect the easydns guy sold to make back the money he's invested (and them some).

      There's nothing wrong with profit.

    7. Re:Easy answer by keithjr · · Score: 1

      4 years here, same experience. Works perfectly for my own needs, and if really wanted the pay service, I'd definitely drop the cash for it. I've been that satisfied with their service. I'm not sure what the GP is talking about.

    8. Re:Easy answer by egon · · Score: 1

      I'm pretty sure that the "staffing" of EasyDNS was pretty close to just 1 person ... the owner.

      --
      Give a man a match, you keep him warm for an evening.
      Light him on fire, he's warm for the rest of his life
    9. Re:Easy answer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Don't be an asshole.

    10. Re:Easy answer by TooMuchToDo · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Yea, god forbid someone actually needs to bring in some cash to pay for the hardware, colo costs, etc. to provide that service. Since when is being financially sound selling out to the man?

    11. Re:Easy answer by Minwee · · Score: 1

      And he refers to himself as "we".

    12. Re:Easy answer by chrisgeleven · · Score: 5, Informative

      I work for DynDNS. Our basic Dynamic DNS service has always been free when using one of our hostnames (such as example.dyndns.org). DynDNS has never stopped offering our free Dynamic DNS service and will not stop offering it.

      I recommend reading our CEO's welcome letter for information on our plans for EveryDNS. http://dyn.com/dd-welcome-everydns

    13. Re:Easy answer by Mad+Merlin · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Same here, except starting 2-3 years ago they started emailing me once a month saying I have 5 days to confirm that the account is still active or they'll drop the DNS entry. Annoying, but not annoying enough to switch away or fork over some cash.

      It might be different if you use an updater client thingie, but my IP never changes so I don't bother.

    14. Re:Easy answer by thetoadwarrior · · Score: 1

      I've been a long time free dyndns user and I've upgraded to the paid version this year. It's not that much, imo and there free service was virtually flawless as far as I was concerned. Maybe I'm just lucky but I like them.

    15. Re:Easy answer by chrisgeleven · · Score: 3, Informative

      If you have an update client that sends us at least one IP address update every 30 days, that will also prevent the account from expiring. Otherwise, it will require a login every 30 days onto our web site.

      Chris Gonyea
      DynDNS Support http://www.dyndns.com/support/

    16. Re:Easy answer by Penguin+Follower · · Score: 1

      I use the DynDNS update client to avoid such messages. It updates everything for me. I use the Mac client and they even have a dashboard widget to go with it. :)

    17. Re:Easy answer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The guy did it for over 8 years, how long is he supposed to freeride you? It's nice to see he got something for all that time, hope he enjoys it.

    18. Re:Easy answer by PitaBred · · Score: 1

      We don't refer to ourselves like that in polite company

    19. Re:Easy answer by Kjella · · Score: 1

      It might be different if you use an updater client thingie, but my IP never changes so I don't bother.

      On linux at least:
      sudo apt-get install ddclient
      Answer a few simple questions of provider, username, password and domain

      That's it. Your computer will now update itself wherever you go, if you change provider, if you bring the pc anywhere else... it's brillient.

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
    20. Re:Easy answer by dubner · · Score: 1

      That's the royal we.

    21. Re:Easy answer by Corporate+Troll · · Score: 1

      Never had a problem... Guess my IP changes more than ever 30 days.... (OpenBSD client, works great) If I could get more lifetime subscriptions I'd be willing to pay 100€ for them a pop. Got two domains on lifetime, and never regretted it.

    22. Re:Easy answer by Corporate+Troll · · Score: 1

      To clarify, I have a grandfathered "Custom" account :-) Perhaps those don't get the 30 day restriction.

    23. Re:Easy answer by chrisgeleven · · Score: 1

      Grandfathered Custom DNS services do not have the 30-day expiration, since they are considered a paid account.

    24. Re:Easy answer by cymen · · Score: 1

      I'm with you... It is hard to get too negative considering it's free however I switched from DynDNS to EveryDNS a couple months ago because staying at DynDNS was going to cost money. Maybe Google DNS will start offering free hosting of zones.

    25. Re:Easy answer by Gordonjcp · · Score: 2, Interesting

      if really wanted the pay service, I'd definitely drop the cash for it

      I'd *love* to drop the cash for DynDNS's paid service, but I can't because - like many USian companies - they insist on taking only credit cards. Outside the US, *everyone* has a debit card so comparatively few people bother with credit cards. If you want to do business outside the US, not taking debit cards is economic suicide.

    26. Re:Easy answer by cymen · · Score: 1

      Actually, I was with EditDNS not DynDNS and EditDNS switched to a paid-only model. I do have an account at DynDNS but I was just using the dynamic features. Apologies to DynDNS. The $5/month fee at EditDNS was too steep for a non-critical playground.

    27. Re:Easy answer by Corporate+Troll · · Score: 1

      As said.... never had a problem... Would pay again :-)

    28. Re:Easy answer by AmberBlackCat · · Score: 1

      Then they should have done that in the first place. The problem is not (trying to sell something). The problem is (taking something that was free, and putting a price on it). It's bait-and-switch.

    29. Re:Easy answer by sbeckstead · · Score: 1

      This was another reason I moved to EveryDNS.

    30. Re:Easy answer by sbeckstead · · Score: 1

      Easier said than done I'm afraid for most people...

    31. Re:Easy answer by sbeckstead · · Score: 1

      I don't actually use the dynamic DNS services. I did way back when it mattered, doesn't as much today. I do use the custom DNS services for which I donated once and had unlimited use on EveryDNS, I've let the services on DynDNS expire because I couldn't afford to keep them up. I've used both for years but always went to EveryDNS because it was just easier to understand how to do what I wanted to do and lately cheaper too.

    32. Re:Easy answer by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      "Overly Expensive"? $30 a year for a service that I've never seen go down and provides 5+ dns servers in various different countries so its always available is pretty cheap if you ask me.

      I can't even find a comparable DNS solution - all the hosting providers i've seen give you two DNS servers, both in a single datacenter, so when their links go down - so does your site.

      DynDNS has the DNS servers dotted all over the globe so even if an entire country goes offline your DNS will still be up.

    33. Re:Easy answer by beanpoppa · · Score: 1

      I donated something like $10 over 10 years ago, and have been using the DynDNS service ever since. I have NO idea what my login info is, so I hope I don't have to change any settings.

    34. Re:Easy answer by plague3106 · · Score: 1

      Bull. Nobody is under any obligation to offer something free forever. Get your entitled head out of your ass. This is not bait and switch, this is "we're discontinuing our free service." They owe you what you paid them, nothing.

    35. Re:Easy answer by Inda · · Score: 1

      Why not get a Visa or Mastercard debit card?

      Why risk using a debit card online? You know they are not insured?

      --
      This post contains benzene, nitrosamines, formaldehyde and hydrogen cyanide.
    36. Re:Easy answer by TheTurtlesMoves · · Score: 1

      Profit is the evil of money grabbing greedy corporations, everyone knows good services are provided for free if they really cared.

      In other news, I haven't had a raise in 3 years!

      /sarcasm

      --
      The Grey Goo disaster happened 3 billion years ago. This rock is covered in self replicating machines!
    37. Re:Easy answer by flibuste · · Score: 1
      My point still holds...Your CEO wrote

      One of the questions that we are sure everyone is going to ask is whether or not EveryDNS will remain free. While we don't 100% have that answer yet, we do know that we are going to discontinue new sign-ups in the near future, listen to your feedback and be in touch.

      You have to agree that when a business holder says this, it usually because he doesn't want to make a stance or wants an exit door. All this says is that it will remain free "for now" with no promise of anything. The fact that your CEO announces that new sign-ups are closed says something about accepting more non-paying customer on top of existing ones...I don't buy the "Oh, we're just waiting for your feedback" argument. To me, it's a cover-your-ass post, nothing more.

      As much as I would like to go with your CEO views, there is nothing that DynDNS did/does for me as a customer that would make me confident in that regard.

    38. Re:Easy answer by AmberBlackCat · · Score: 1

      I'm not saying I'm entitled to anything. I'm saying what the problem is. After they go out of business, they're going to wonder what the problem was.

    39. Re:Easy answer by Gordonjcp · · Score: 1

      Why not get a Visa or Mastercard debit card?

      Got one. They're not accepted. I *could* get a credit card, but they cost money to use. Why pay for a service I basically already have for free? I don't want the credit facilities, so I don't see why I should pay for them.

      Why risk using a debit card online? You know they are not insured?

      Neither are credit cards. Well, *technically* they are but the card issuer will wriggle out of any request if you get ripped off.

    40. Re:Easy answer by plague3106 · · Score: 1

      Ya you are. You're claiming that they should be offering the service free forever. Pretty much the definintion of entitled attitude.

      Please explain how NOT having to pay costs for freeloading users will put them out of business? Oh, it won't. Seriously, get your head out of your ass; you don't seem to be in touch with reality.

  3. DynDNS honours their own one time donatations by Rix · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Even though (I think) they no longer take them. I gave them $10 some time in the early naughties, and they still provide what they said they would then. It's hard to complain about that.

    1. Re:DynDNS honours their own one time donatations by suggsjc · · Score: 1

      Exactly. I've been a supporting user for several years as well. I have not once had any issues with their service. I did have a question once, so I sent an email and was answered within minutes.

      Anyway, I hope that DynDNS will continue to honor the "donate once for lifetime service" at least for those existing users covered under that plan. But even if they don't, so long as they keep the same level of service, then I would not mind paying (within reason).

      --
      When I have a kid, I want to put him in one of those strollers for twins and then run around the mall looking frantic.
    2. Re:DynDNS honours their own one time donatations by chrisgeleven · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Those who have lifetime service on DynDNS will not lose it. We take providing that service very seriously, since some of our biggest fans are our longtime customers.

      Chris Gonyea
      DynDNS Support

    3. Re:DynDNS honours their own one time donatations by __aasqbs9791 · · Score: 1

      I'm pretty sure the poster meant the lifetime donation on EveryDNS. Will DynDNS honor that?

    4. Re:DynDNS honours their own one time donatations by chrisgeleven · · Score: 2, Informative

      Our CEO Jeremy Hitchcock wrote a welcome letter to EveryDNS customers here http://dyn.com/dd-welcome-everydns that explains a little bit more about our plans for EveryDNS.

      I honestly do not have an answer for your specific question, but as of right now there will be no changes to the EveryDNS service in the short term as our welcome letter states.

    5. Re:DynDNS honours their own one time donatations by sbeckstead · · Score: 1

      No they don't take them, they now DEMAND them.

    6. Re:DynDNS honours their own one time donatations by sbeckstead · · Score: 1

      How about those who donated to EveryDNS?

    7. Re:DynDNS honours their own one time donatations by Jeremy+Visser · · Score: 1

      How about those who donated to EveryDNS?

      Seconded. Another donating EveryDNS user here. After all these years, I wonder where the donations went. Because David Ulevitch also owns OpenDNS, surely he would have been able to EveryDNS on the side with OpenDNS money.

    8. Re:DynDNS honours their own one time donatations by pnutjam · · Score: 1

      The letter is nice, but if you click the link to his blog it just says:

      "bwahahaha....."

      I find it disconcerting...
      ;)

  4. All YourDNS... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ... are belong to us?

  5. nerd fail by jollyreaper · · Score: 5, Funny

    I used to smugly think I caught people being redundant saying DNS server. Comic book guy voice: "Do you say Persional Information Number Number? Do you say Automatic Teller Machine Machine? Fools." And then I found out that DNS is Domain Name System or Domain Name Service, never Domain Name Server. Domain Name Service Server is perfectly acceptable usage. Haven't felt so n00b since I called Wine an emulator.

    --
    Kwisatz Haderach
    Sell the spice to CHOAM
    This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
    1. Re:nerd fail by noidentity · · Score: 1

      Domain Name Service Server is perfectly acceptable usage

      Not sure about that. A server is something that serves. A service is something served. In other words, what does Domain Name Server leave out that Domain Name Service Server doesn't? It's sort of like saying that a waiter in a restaurant will now wait on you. Well, by definition someone who waits on me is a waiter.

    2. Re:nerd fail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Bah, that's their own fault on Wine. I mean, the "e" stands for emulator. So what if "i" and "n" stand for "is not an"

    3. Re:nerd fail by HoboCop · · Score: 1

      The server is generally more specific than the service. It can have a version, a location, etc. The service would be analogous to a wait staff, while the server would be a specific waiter/waitress.

    4. Re:nerd fail by canajin56 · · Score: 0

      The WINE name is designed to look JUST like it's supposed to stand for "WINdows Emulator". Besides, emulate means to imitate in order to match or exceed. Since WINE works by providing the same API calls that work in the same way as in Windows, I'd still call it an emulator, even if that's improper usage of the word ;)

      --
      ASCII stupid question, get a stupid ANSI
    5. Re:nerd fail by maxwell+demon · · Score: 1

      But "Domain Name System Server" has exactly zero redundancy.

      --
      The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
    6. Re:nerd fail by Critical+Facilities · · Score: 0

      it's supposed to stand for "WINdows Emulator"

      Whooosh!!

    7. Re:nerd fail by Ash-Fox · · Score: 1

      The WINE name is designed to look JUST like it's supposed to stand for "WINdows Emulator".

      WINE - Wine Is Not an Emulator

      --
      Change is certain; progress is not obligatory.
    8. Re:nerd fail by agrif · · Score: 1

      Wine talks big about not being an emulator, but really?

      What is an emulator if not a system of code to impersonate parts of a machine (or bit of software) that is not present? Wine is software to impersonate bits of Windows, so that Windows software can run in a different system.

      Wine is totally an emulator.

    9. Re:nerd fail by mrmeval · · Score: 1

      Domain name service server? Anyway I've been with DynDNS for years. One of my domains is paid up for 10 years though I still use their dynamic service for simple stuff.

      --
      I'd go on a Vegan diet but the delivery time from Vega is too long. --brownkitty
    10. Re:nerd fail by sbeckstead · · Score: 1

      Wine is a mocker, strong drink a rage!

  6. I don't know much about EasyDNS... by MrCrassic · · Score: 1

    ...but all I know, based on my experience with them for several years, is that they've found a good home.

  7. That's sad by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I've been using EveryDNS for a long long time. Since it started I suppose. I've given them donations year after year in hopes of avoiding this situation.

    I was mostly too lazy to roll my own DNS but I guess I should start getting up to speed with the latest security fixes to bind9 or see if there's some other suitable replacement DNS server.

  8. blah @ DynDNS by TypoNAM · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I originally started using DynDNS.org back over a decade ago when it started out as a service running off of a dedicated dial-up modem with a static IP address. Over the years I had just a few .dyndns.org addresses which were basically setup as static. About two years ago I decided to log in after ages of not touching it to change IPs on one of the addresses cause my ISP was making everybody on a specific subnet switch over to another. Well little did I know that free users must log in every three weeks or so, else the account will be dropped. By logging in I triggered their timeout service to begin.

    I was checking my email one morning and found a notice that I should log into DynDNS else my account will be dropped within 4 hours. That email was sent three days ago by the time I read it. So, after having an account after so many years it just gets dropped like that without any warning what so ever except an email to alert me that I have a four hours notice. Since then I have avoided DynDNS and recommended others to go else where when asked about it since I thought that was just absolutely wrong.

    --
    This space is not for rent.
    1. Re:blah @ DynDNS by Hurricane78 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Question: Did you read the terms when you started using it?

      --
      Any sufficiently advanced intelligence is indistinguishable from stupidity.
    2. Re:blah @ DynDNS by canajin56 · · Score: 0, Flamebait

      Really? I haven't logged into mine for a year, and it's still up and running. And before that, I hadn't logged into it in like 5 years. Good old is-a-geek.net, I've had mine since first year undergrad, so I could ssh to my home boxes without having to memorize a new IP address every time a power outage changed my cable modem's IP. Since that only happened rarely, I didn't log in anywhere near once a month, not even close. It's still active, and yeah, I logged in like last year, and haven't logged in in quite a while since, and it's still working.

      I do seem to recall that I originally had signed up as a "dynamic" IP, and they discontinued my domain since it hadn't changed in a month or so, maybe that's what happened to you? Either way, you can change a "static" IP address from them at will, and the change propagates pretty fast still, so while I"m not sure why they have that dumb policy, there's also no reason to really use a dynamic IP, as a free user anyways.

      --
      ASCII stupid question, get a stupid ANSI
    3. Re:blah @ DynDNS by ranulf · · Score: 1

      I can't remember when I last logged in, but it was certainly at least a year ago. I just logged in now and everything's just as I left it...

    4. Re:blah @ DynDNS by TeknoHog · · Score: 1

      I do seem to recall that I originally had signed up as a "dynamic" IP, and they discontinued my domain since it hadn't changed in a month or so, maybe that's what happened to you?

      I use DynDNS with DHCP addresses, but they are practically static. Nevertheless, there is no problem, as long as the update script (ddclient) is running periodically. When a host record hasn't been updated in 30 days or so, there is a warning email, and after some time that hostname is dropped. Thus occasionally I have had to re-register a hostname, but that is not a huge problem.

      --
      Escher was the first MC and Giger invented the HR department.
    5. Re:blah @ DynDNS by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      I’m pretty sure they collapsed both of those into one option, with the difference being the TTL that you choose (60 seconds or 4 hours).

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    6. Re:blah @ DynDNS by johncandale · · Score: 2, Insightful

      About two years ago I decided to log in after ages of not touching it ... little did I know that free users must log in every three weeks or so, else the account will be dropped. By logging in I triggered their timeout service to begin.

      I was checking my email one morning and found a notice that I should log into DynDNS else my account will be dropped

      'BAAWWWWWW, my free service should be perfect in everyway in perpetuate.' Sounds like to me if it was important to you you would have been paying a little more attention to it in the first place. I bet you also think you should be able to use any web site for free without ads, and should be able to download free movies and TV and music. It's normal to drop inactive accounts, with a free service 90% users sign up, use it for 3 months then never touch it again. Don't be so entitled.

    7. Re:blah @ DynDNS by fulldecent · · Score: 1

      ... and to bump you from a +4 interesting to a +5 informative, could you please tell the crowd who it is that you _do_ recommend?

      --

      -- I was raised on the command line, bitch

    8. Re:blah @ DynDNS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      As he stated, those weren't the terms when he started using it. I had the same situation a number of years back, and when I got the notice, I found my account was dropped by the time I attempted to log in -- so I switched to NoIP and haven't looked back. NoIP just requires you to refresh your IP regularly, which can be done with a daemon -- otherwise the *domain* gets dropped, but you keep your account. They also mail out notices of changes to their SLAs in advance of the change, which is better than the situation *was* at DynDNS. From what I hear, DynDNS has cleaned up most of these issues now, but having had such a good experience with another provider, I have no incentive to try them out again.

    9. Re:blah @ DynDNS by thetoadwarrior · · Score: 2, Insightful

      No one does that. It's easier to bitch after the fact.

    10. Re:blah @ DynDNS by chrisgeleven · · Score: 4, Informative

      I work for DynDNS Support, so I can clarify what happened here. Our free accounts (ie: no paying services) will expire every 30 days unless you either 1) login to your DynDNS.com account on our site or 2) send an IP address update for one of your hostnames using an update client. Each login or IP address update thus resets the 30 day expiration date on the account. We send out a warning 5 days before the expiration date of the account, giving you time to login to the account to save it. If you do not do that, the account and hostname will be deleted but you can simply sign up again if you lost the account by accident.

      For most customers, #2 above will keep their free account active since most ISP's do change their customer's IP addresses often.

    11. Re:blah @ DynDNS by clone53421 · · Score: 4, Informative

      It’s worth mentioning that some update clients will automatically force an update in time to avoid the account expiration even if your IP hasn’t changed in that time.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    12. Re:blah @ DynDNS by canajin56 · · Score: 1

      Oh, well yeah, my router has a built in dyndns.org update script on it, that must be it. Still, I didn't think my IP address changed that often, could be mistaken though, I don't really keep track ;)

      --
      ASCII stupid question, get a stupid ANSI
    13. Re:blah @ DynDNS by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      Oh, well yeah, my router has a built in dyndns.org update script on it, that must be it.

      Mine did too, and two days after I enabled it I got blocked for abusive updates. So even if the router says it will... I’d check the compatibility list and the incompatibility list.

      (After I turned off the router feature, I got my account unblocked and kept on using a software updater.)

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    14. Re:blah @ DynDNS by columbus · · Score: 1

      Hi Chris,
      First off, thank you for the work you guys do. I appreciate it. I recently set up a free DynDNS account for a friend who wanted to learn linux by running a linux webserver from home with a cable modem & a dynamic IP address. The service works, it does what it is supposed to, and it is the right price for people who want to learn. Thanks.

      Second, I do have a minor gripe about the way the update regulations are set up. We're using one of the update clients. You don't want your servers overloaded, so you tell clients not to update (with the same IP address) more than once every 30 days. You don't want dead accounts hanging around, so you require an update at least once every 30 days. Both of these goals are reasonable, but the the deadlines put them in a little bit of tension. In order to violate neither of your policies, and assuming that the ISP has not changed the ip address, we need to send an update exactly once every 30 days, no more, no less.

      I've got the client running on a crontab to send an update on the first of every month. But if its a short month (like Feb) I'm bothering you with a ping that is too frequent. If it's a long month (like Dec) I'm bothering you with a ping that is too infrequent (and your servers send out a warning email). It would be nicer if your 2 deadlines allowed a window of opportunity of a few days for the 'I'm still alive' ping. Could you guys change the deadlines to 25 days & 35 days or something to leave us a 10 day window?

      Minor griping aside, thanks for what you're doing.

      --
      friends don't let friends teleport drunk
  9. I like 'em. by hideouspenguinboy · · Score: 4, Informative

    I've paid for DynDNS service for the last few years - I fell I've received good service at a fair price. I'm happy to see them expanding their business, and I hope they profit enough to continue making me happy.

  10. DynDNS is very reliable by ub3r+n3u7r4l1st · · Score: 1

    counting it, I have two domains with custom DNS and one of the domain with a "spring VPS" service attach to it. The custom DNS is very easy to configure, I just have to set the MX to Google and that's it for mail.

    1. Re:DynDNS is very reliable by chrisgeleven · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Thanks for the nice comments! I work for DynDNS and we take great pride in our reliability.

      - Chris Gonyea
      DynDNS Support

  11. existing accounts by syrinx · · Score: 1

    "We will be discontinuing signups in the near future but existing accounts will remain active and fully functional"

    This is the same thing they did with their own service -- at one point they offered their "Custom DNS" service for a one-time fee. You can't get that anymore, but if you paid the one-time fee at the time, they've never taken it away from you. I'm sure they will keep the same thing for former EveryDNS customers.

    --
    Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.
  12. Unanswered question... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    What did DynDNS pay for the company? The article doesn't mention the price.

  13. A critical analysis of your analogy by jonaskoelker · · Score: 1

    It's sort of like saying that a waiter in a restaurant will now wait on you. Well, by definition someone who waits on me is a waiter.

    Someone who waits on people is a waiter. You're being told that one of those waiters will service you (rather than other people).

    </pedantic>

  14. Possible Replacement by dlgeek · · Score: 4, Informative

    Since there were several people asking about possible replacements for hosting a DNS zone for free, I thought I'd give a shoutout to zoneedit.com. They do managed DNS, but your first 5 zones are free. I know the website looks like a relic from the 90s, but I've been using them for years and years (hosting 2 domains) and have never had a single issue.

    Oblig Disclosure: No relation to the company other than being a satisfied user.

    1. Re:Possible Replacement by rdforsyth · · Score: 1

      I've been using zone edit for about 8 years, and I've never had any issue with them. In fact, I had forgotten my password, and the original email I was using with them was an email I stopped using years ago, but I was still able to get my account information easily. I've never once been hassled by them about anything, and other than the fact that you do need some knowledge of what an IP is, and what to do with DNS server information, there's really nothing better. Same disclosure, just a happy customer.

      --
      Ryan
    2. Re:Possible Replacement by trampel · · Score: 1

      I second the recommendation for zoneedit. I found them a few years back when Yahoo small business had a "$5 for 5 years" name registration offer and I needed cheap DNS service.

    3. Re:Possible Replacement by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'll vouch for ZoneEdit also (as much as an AC can, that is). I've been using their free service for years, maybe even a decade, and never had a problem.

  15. nerd fail nerd fail (and that's not redundant) by Zero__Kelvin · · Score: 2, Funny

    "Not sure about that. A server is something that serves. A service is something served."

    Right, which is why it would be wrong to talk about the IRS as having a server, and why when the IRS invades your business and takes all your servers, they tell you that it was a pleasure servicing you ...

    "It's sort of like saying that a waiter in a restaurant will now wait on you."

    You really haven't thought your effort to be pedantic through very well at all, have you. I suppose the hostess could say "The waiter will now do that thing he does" but that would be problematic if for example you just saw a certain movie produced by Tom Hanks and consequently expected him to break out in song, or if for example you were about to order a white drink of creamy consistency, since you might be afraid that he might do that thing he does in your drink. So as you can see it makes perfect sense to be specific about what the waiter is about to do.

    Of course, these days you usually can't find a waiter, since they usually refer to themselves as servers now! Maybe the next time your out to dinner you should request your server to resolve a Domain Name to an IP address. I expect that you'll be the "waiter" for an infinite period in that scenario, though ;-)

    --
    Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun
    1. Re:nerd fail nerd fail (and that's not redundant) by noidentity · · Score: 1

      "Someone will wait on you shortly." or even just "You will be waited on shortly."

    2. Re:nerd fail nerd fail (and that's not redundant) by Zero__Kelvin · · Score: 1
      From your first post:

      "It's sort of like saying that a waiter in a restaurant will now wait on you."

      And now ...

      "Someone will wait on you shortly."

      How do I know it will be the server who waits on me, and why did we move from the present to future tense? (Also, your entire original post was absurd, thus I made mine almost equally absurd, so trying to take it seriously and have a serious discussion based upon my post is phenomenally absurd)

      --
      Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun
  16. Thanks... by Civil_Disobedient · · Score: 1

    I just wanted to say thanks for responding. Most companies seem to have a preternatural fear of opening up a dialogue with the unwashed masses, even when it's clearly in their own best interests. Glad to see DynDNS bucking the trend.

    /satisfied DynDNS customer

    1. Re:Thanks... by chrisgeleven · · Score: 2, Interesting

      You're welcome. We take pride in being very transparent with our customers. You can see that on our company site (dyn.com) and on our twitter pages (http://twitter.com/dyninc and http://twitter.com/dyndns).

    2. Re:Thanks... by XanC · · Score: 1

      That's certainly true.

      Quite some time ago I was looking over your IPv6 transition plan, which you had posted in great detail. I pointed out that I needed to be able to add IPv6 glue records, which was a step left out of the plan. I very quickly got back something like "oh yeah, thanks" and not long after, the feature was there. /another satisfied DynDNS customer.

  17. EveryDNS has left the building... by InakaBoyJoe · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Have you tried to contact EveryDNS lately? No one is there.

    Well, I donated to EveryDNS at year-end, but my account wasn't updated to "donator" status. Repeated attempts to contact them over the last 3 weeks have gone completely unanswered.

    The conclusion? DynDNS bought EveryDNS, sent everybody home, and we're just a server failure away from having to scramble to find another DNS. Maybe some of us will sign up for DynDNS's paid service? Wouldn't that be nice for the new owners...

    1. Re:EveryDNS has left the building... by chrisgeleven · · Score: 1

      I work for DynDNS Support. If you have a DynDNS account (which you can create for free) you can e-mail support AT dyndns.com with your questions and we can look into it. Put attention Chris in the e-mail so I can see it and grab the ticket.

      I haven't been briefed on providing support for EveryDNS customers yet, but I can check and see if I can get some answers for you. It is my understanding that EveryDNS support wasn't very prompt in their responses to begin with, so that maybe why you haven't heard back yet. In either case, I will do my best to help you out.

    2. Re:EveryDNS has left the building... by shovas · · Score: 1

      Well, I donated to EveryDNS at year-end, but my account wasn't updated to "donator" status. Repeated attempts to contact them over the last 3 weeks have gone completely unanswered.

      Exactly my predicament but I had done exactly what you had done years ago. Buddy has been AWOL for a long time.

      --
      Selah.ca. Pause, and calmly think on that.
    3. Re:EveryDNS has left the building... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Same here, i donated the first days of Jan, but nobody aswered me, or thanked or upgraded me to a donor status.
      The Trouble Ticket system has my ticket with the paypal receipt attached, but nobody answered me.

      i fear that the parent will be right.
      Please dyndns owner or employee, prove us wrong and gain good karma.

    4. Re:EveryDNS has left the building... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      looks like the servers have failed. i can't get to everydns's site.

  18. Irritate by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How the hell did this happen? He better be set for life. Selling out like that makes me want to .... better keep my mouth shut on that one. If I had known he was that desperate or ready to sell out I'd have donated money. My zero dollars would of turned into $100 real quick. I understand that people have to eat and if only there weren't so many good causes to donate to I'd of donated by now. I wonder if it isn't too late for him to back out of the deal. I'm sure it is too late. This sucks.

  19. Well, that matters little by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I don't know anything about EveryDNS (had never heard of it before) and have no idea about their employees. However, many one-person "organizations" (whether a company, a small department of such, admin of a website...) refer to themselves as "we". If you say "I think something", you give the impression of one person who can well be wrong, an asshole, etc... Calling yourself "I" in any announcement that some people won't like is just asking for trouble. At the very least you might get the reputation of an asshole.

    However, plural or at least third person... You are taking the responsibility off your shoulders. Not "I, John Smith, have decided to block you from facebook". People will just think "John, you are an asshole. Stop that." but if you say "The IT department has..." you are taking the responsibility off your back. It is the faceless organization now that has come up with the policy. In addition, it's all-knowing organization with all the expertise, etc...

    Amazingly, this works very well. I've worked a lot of times in jobs with a lot of customer interaction and this is pretty much mandatory there if you don't want to get flamed constantly.

  20. EditDns is Gone too by BountyX · · Score: 1

    EditDns terminated their free service a couple of days ago as well...

    --
    Trying to install linux on my microwave, but keep getting a kernel panic...
    1. Re:EditDns is Gone too by Kolie · · Score: 1
    2. Re:EditDns is Gone too by BountyX · · Score: 1

      I stand corrected. They narfed their services and moved them to free.editdns.net due to a DDoS attack. Still not nearly as good as their old free service.

      --
      Trying to install linux on my microwave, but keep getting a kernel panic...
  21. The question on everyone's mind by initialE · · Score: 2, Interesting

    What's in it for Dyndns? Why buy over a competitor fielding free services? And what can we expect in the medium to long term?

    --
    Starbucks, Harbuckle of Breath.
    1. Re:The question on everyone's mind by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What's in it for Dyndns? Why buy over a competitor fielding free services?

      Easy

      1. Buy popular free service
      2. Slowly phase out free service for 'special offers' on your pay service
      3. Bank on the fact that most of the new users would rather pony up the fee than take the trouble to take their business elsewhere
      4. Profit

  22. This is a good thing. by davidu · · Score: 1

    This would have been a good one for me to get a "first post" on... do people even do that here any more? :-)

    -David

    --

    # Hack the planet, it's important.
    1. Re:This is a good thing. by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      Yes.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
  23. Money? by nikanth · · Score: 0

    How do they make money?

  24. EDITDNS.com by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Another FREE dns service that has recently bite the bullet is editdns.com.

    The service suddenly turned pay only and with heavy fees.

    The dns service was already suspended for the free "customers"

    Is it a sign of times?

  25. Webhop of the EveryDNS does not function by arsolto · · Score: 1

    *Since that the EveryDNS was acquired by the Dyn Incorporation that the service webhop does not function. Already I sent claims for the team of support of the EveryDNS, but I am being ignored. Although the Dyn has knowledge of this, not yet it took no step to decide the problem. *Translated text of the Brazilian Portuguese for the English.