This AUsome! blog addresses the technical portion of the .au Registry Transformation Project. In today’s post, we discuss the rehearsals being conducted prior to the transition on 30 June.

Like a production at the Sydney Opera House, the planned transition of the .au registry to a modern platform is a carefully choreographed project performed by a highly skilled and experienced group. An internet top level domain (TLD) registry is a complex combination of a wide range of technologies, and a number of tasks must be done correctly (and in the correct order) in order to avoid any gaps in the “show.”

Fortunately, Afilias is a world leader in conducting successful transitions. Indeed, Afilias moved the entire .org domain (currently 10M names versus .au’s 3M) over a decade ago, and nobody who was using .org names knew anything about it—service continued uninterrupted. Afilias has conducted over 20 transitions since and has a finely tuned process for ensuring a secure, reliable and speedy move.

Like an opera, however, the key to success is rehearsal! The right people need to be in the right place at the right time doing the right thing for success to happen.

Although the transition date isn’t until 30 June, Afilias has already held a number of full dress rehearsals on the transition.  A full dress rehearsal for a TLD transition includes a variety of critical elements:

1. The “star” (the registry system): The star of the .au transition is the registry system itself.  The new registry is ready to roll, following months of preparation, customization and testing. As we noted in last week’s post, registrars have been testing their own systems with it and making tweaks to ensure complete compatibility.
2. The “score” (data from the old registry):  Because the old registry is still operating, transactions will continue in the old system until 30 June—at that point, the “score” will be finished. In the meantime, Afilias has been working with nearly completed scores, loading the data extracts and ensuring that everything works as expected. The completed score is set for delivery on opening night!
3. The “supporting cast” (monitoring, reports, financial systems, etc): The star and score would fall flat without the myriad supporting elements that make a TLD operate. Every aspect of operations must be monitored; reports must be generated and distributed; funds must flow through the system; and a host of other elements must play their role.

At this point, the entire show is nearly ready—except the final score.  When the completed score is delivered, ALL the required resources will be in place, and the curtain will rise on the next episode in the .au story.

Have a question or want to suggest a topic for us to cover? Email us at transformationblog@afilias.com.au.

More information on Afilias plc is located at www.afilias.info.