ChangeChecklist

IT providers and MSPs

New client intake: domain, DNS and email

Find out where a new client's domain is registered, who runs its DNS and email, and what depends on them, before you touch anything.

Never write passwords, recovery codes, one-time codes, card numbers or account numbers on this form. Note where something is, not the secret itself.

Transfer your domain to a new registrar

Same questions as the domain registrar plan, so the answers map straight onto a checklist.

About the domain

  1. What kind of domain is it?

    • [ ] A generic domain like .com, .net, .org or .shop
    • [ ] A country-code domain like .ca, .co.uk, .com.au or .de
    • [ ] Several domains with different endings

  2. How many domains are you moving?

    • [ ] Just one
    • [ ] 2 to 10
    • [ ] More than 10

  3. When does the domain expire?

    Check your registrar account or ICANN Lookup.

    • [ ] More than a month from now
    • [ ] Within the next month
    • [ ] Within a week, or it has already expired
    • [ ] I'm not sure

  4. In the last 60 days, was the domain registered or transferred, or were the owner's name, organisation or email changed?

    60 days is the current window under ICANN's policy for generic domains.

    [ ] Yes   [ ] No   [ ] Not sure

  5. What runs on the domain?

    • [ ] A website
    • [ ] Email addresses
    • [ ] Apps, APIs or other services
Ownership and access

  1. Who registered the domain?

    • [ ] Me or my business
    • [ ] A web designer, agency or former employee
    • [ ] I'm not sure

  2. Can you sign in to the current registrar account?

    • [ ] Yes, including two-factor
    • [ ] Yes, but the email or two-factor method is out of date
    • [ ] No, I'm locked out or don't have the login

  3. Can you receive email at the domain's registrant contact address?

    • [ ] Yes, at an address on a different domain
    • [ ] Yes, but it's an address on this same domain
    • [ ] No, it's an old address or I'm not sure which one it is
DNS and bundled services

  1. Who hosts the domain's DNS today?

    Check the nameservers in your registrar account, or run `dig NS yourdomain.com +short`.

    • [ ] The current registrar (its default nameservers)
    • [ ] A separate DNS provider (like Cloudflare or Route 53)
    • [ ] Our own nameservers under this domain (like ns1.example.com)
    • [ ] I'm not sure

  2. Is DNSSEC turned on?

    `dig DS yourdomain.com +short` returns a value if it is.

    • [ ] Yes
    • [ ] No
    • [ ] I'm not sure

  3. Which extras do you use at the current registrar?

    • [ ] Email forwarding
    • [ ] URL or web forwarding
    • [ ] Email mailboxes
    • [ ] Website hosting or a site builder
    • [ ] An SSL certificate
    • [ ] WHOIS privacy

Move DNS to a new provider

Same questions as the dns provider plan, so the answers map straight onto a checklist.

Your DNS today

  1. How much DNS are you moving?

    • [ ] One domain with a handful of records
    • [ ] A few domains or a few dozen records
    • [ ] Many domains or hundreds of records

  2. Is your DNS currently hosted by your domain registrar?

    For example, GoDaddy or Namecheap's default nameservers.

    [ ] Yes   [ ] No   [ ] Not sure

  3. Can you sign in to the registrar to change nameservers?

    • [ ] Yes
    • [ ] No, someone else manages it or I'm locked out
    • [ ] I'm not sure

  4. Is DNSSEC turned on?

    `dig DS yourdomain.com +short` returns a value if it is.

    • [ ] Yes
    • [ ] No
    • [ ] I'm not sure

  5. Is the old DNS service ending on a fixed date?

    • [ ] No, I can take my time
    • [ ] Yes, on a known date
    • [ ] Yes, within the next few days

  6. Would even a short DNS problem stop sales, email or critical services?

    [ ] Yes   [ ] No   [ ] Not sure

Records that need care

  1. Is email hosted on this domain?

    [ ] Yes   [ ] No   [ ] Not sure

  2. Do you use any of these?

    Pick any you know of. If you're not sure, check the export for unusual record types.

    • [ ] ALIAS, ANAME or a CNAME at the root domain
    • [ ] Proxied or CDN records (like Cloudflare's orange cloud)
    • [ ] Geo, weighted, latency or failover routing
    • [ ] Subdomains delegated to other nameservers (NS records)
    • [ ] Secondary DNS or zone transfers (AXFR)

  3. Will the new provider also proxy or cache your website (like Cloudflare)?

    [ ] Yes   [ ] No   [ ] Not sure

Automation and tools

  1. Does anything update DNS automatically?

    • [ ] A dynamic DNS client (router, home server, VPN)
    • [ ] Certificates issued with DNS validation (certbot DNS plugin, cert-manager, Caddy)
    • [ ] Terraform, Pulumi, OctoDNS or other infrastructure as code
    • [ ] Scripts, CI jobs or Kubernetes external-dns

Change your business email provider

Same questions as the business email provider plan, so the answers map straight onto a checklist.

Your current and new provider

  1. Where is your email hosted now?

    • [ ] Mailboxes from our web host or domain registrar
    • [ ] Zoho Mail
    • [ ] Another hosted email service
    • [ ] Our own mail server

  2. Where are you moving?

    • [ ] Google Workspace
    • [ ] Microsoft 365
    • [ ] Fastmail
    • [ ] Zoho Mail
    • [ ] Proton Mail
    • [ ] Another provider

  3. How many mailboxes are you moving?

    • [ ] Just mine
    • [ ] 2 to 10
    • [ ] 11 to 50
    • [ ] More than 50
Addresses and senders

  1. Which of these do you use?

    Pick all that apply.

    • [ ] Aliases or extra addresses
    • [ ] Shared or group addresses like info@
    • [ ] Forwarders or mail rules
    • [ ] A catch-all address
    • [ ] Calendars and contacts stored with the old provider

  2. Do other services send email as your domain?

    Website forms, invoicing, CRM, newsletters or booking tools.

    [ ] Yes   [ ] No   [ ] Not sure

  3. Do printers, scanners, website forms or other apps send mail through your current mailbox?

    [ ] Yes   [ ] No   [ ] Not sure

  4. Do you need to keep a separate archive of old email?

    [ ] Yes   [ ] No   [ ] Not sure

Domain and DNS

  1. Is your domain's DNS managed by your current email or web host?

    • [ ] Yes
    • [ ] No
    • [ ] I'm not sure

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