Machine Names vs. Third Level Domains
	What's New in IT IT Consulting Phones/VoIP Internet Security About Us Home

	Web Site Hosting	Web Design	Broadband/Access	E-Mail Solutions	Accept Credit Cards	Hosting Support

Note: this page applies to old account types we no longer offer. We have left it up since it may be helpful for someone, since they get a decent amount of search traffic. All current hosting plans with a control panel use Plesk.

If you are an ITS client please contact us for assistance for your account.

Because machine names and third level domain names appear the same on the surface, there is often confusion.  RapidSite offers machine names and third level domains.

Machine Names

A machine name appears in the form something.yourdomain.com.  We currently support machine names which points to the root level of your domain account, similar to a domain pointer.  If you would like to set up a machine name, you may use our Zone File Editor. If you would rather have ITS perform the update, please send the desired name (e.g. something.yourdomain.com) to Technical Support and please confirm that you acknowledge the $25 one-time set up fee. For information on pointing a machine name to the sub-directory of a domain account, please refer to the documentation on .htaccess Modifications.

Third Level Domains

A third level domain also appears in the form something.yourdomain.com.   However, it varies from a machine name in that it has its own IP address.   Third level domain accounts have the same functionality as a regular domain account and users are required to be the registered owner of the associated second level domain (e.g. theclub.com) in order for us to set up the third level domain account (e.g. join.theclub.com).  Of course, the second address (i.e. join.theclub.com) would not require domain registration as it is based on an existing domain.  Third level domain accounts are billable based on the plan type selected.

NOTE:  Labels may not be all numbers, but may have a leading digit.  The "label" is the left-most identifier in the address (e.g. 'join' is the label of join.theclub.com).  For example, a2.domain.com and 2a.domain.com are acceptable whereas 2.domain.com is NOT acceptable.  Having a hostname that is a single digit is not compliant with RFC-1912.

Please note: the information on this page applies to ITS web hosting plans. It may or may not apply to other environments. If you are looking for a feature described here, or better support from your hosting provider, please consider hosting your site with ITS!

Copyright © 1996-2026, Integrated Technical Solutions, Inc., all rights reserved. See Terms/Legal for trademarks, copyright, and terms of use.