.Ug Country Code Domain Names: The Ultimate Guide
The .ug country code domain names are ccTLD domain extensions specific to Uganda. They are derived from the country’s two letter ISO code, UG. In this article, I will share detailed information about all the dot ug country code domain name extensions. I show you what they are and when the use of each of them is preferred or recommended. We shall cover:
- Overview
- The .UG Second Level ccTLD
- The .UG Third Level ccTLDs
- Registering a .ug Domain Name
- .UG Domain Registry
- .UG ccTLD Whois Server
- Private Domain Registration
- Becoming a .UG Domain Registrar
- .UG Domain Registrar API
- Conclusion
Overview
Uganda has its specific country code domain name extensions. Just like any other countries around the globe . These extensions are basically for use by institutions, organizations and businesses operating within the borders of Uganda.
The dot ug (.ug) is the country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD) extension specific to Uganda. It derives itself from the country’s two letter ISO code, UG.
.ug domain names exist in two main categories of their corresponding ccTLDs. These include the second level .ug TLD extension as well the third level TLD extensions. In the sections below, we shall explore the different extensions and the circumstances under which one should use each of them.
The .UG Second Level ccTLD
.Ug is Uganda’s second level country code TLD extension. You can use it in more or less the same way you use the popular .com, .net and others. That means, with this TLD, you can register your domain name in the format domain.ug or brandname.ug.
The .ug second level country code domain name extension has no limitations on the nature of business or institution to use it. Any institution, organization or business can use it. Whether a private business or government agency, profit or non-profit organization. There are no special or specific limitations or recommendations on the use of this extension. As long as the institution or organization using it is operating in Uganda.
Examples of organizations using the .ug second level country code domain extension include Africel Uganda among others.
The .UG Third Level ccTLDs
Here is a list of .ug third level top level domain extensions designed for use by specific categories of institutions or organizations in Uganda. Whereas one can ably register any domain using any of the ccTLDs listed below, it can be extremely confusing and misleading to use a TLD for a purpose it is not meant for. Now let’s dive into the list of the different ccTLDs and their recommended or intended use.
.ac.ug
This third level .ug country code TLD is for use by Higher Institutions of Learning. Such institutions include Universities, Technical Institutes, Training Institutes or Colleges. Basically, those institutions that award Degrees, Diplomas or Certificates in the different professions. This means, mere citing on domain.ac.ug, one will easily figure out that this is a domain for a higher institution of learning within Uganda.
We don’t recommend using the .ac.ug domain extension for a website that does not belong to a higher institution of learning in Uganda. This is because it will be misleading. For example, a number of Ugandan secondary and primary schools have chosen to use the .ac.ug domain extension instead of .sc.ug. This is not right.
In the same way, it is not right for a higher institution of learning in Uganda to use any other domain extension other than the .ac.ug.
Examples of institutions appropriately using the .ac.ug country code TLD include Makerere University, Busitema University, Bugema University, Uganda Management Institute, Uganda Institute of Information & Communications Technology, Law Development Centre, Mbale Clinical Research Institute, East African Civil Aviation Academy among others.
Government or private agencies or departments directly dealing with academics may also use this extension. A good example is the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB).
.co.ug
We are all aware of the most popular generic .com domain extension. The .co.ug is its Ugandan ccTLD version. The .co part of the extension derives itself from the word commercial. Thus, the .co.ug is for businesses or commercial entities. We highly recommend companies operating in Uganda to take on this ccTLD. Do you know why? Because, a mere sight on a .co.ug domain name will tell the internet user that the website he is visiting belongs to a business or company located in Uganda.
.co.ug is by far the most popular and most selling .ug country code domain name extension. It’s popularity on the Ugandan market is similar to that of the .com on the world market. This also explains why many institutions and entities that would otherwise use the other specialized .ug country code domain extensions have continued to embrace the .co.ug domain extension.
.com.ug
The .com.ug is a twin sister to the great .co.ug. Call it its synonym, variation or version.
Just like the .co.ug domain extension, the .com.ug country code domain name extension is for businesses or commercial entities operating in Uganda. The decision of whether to use .co.ug or .com.ug is a matter of personal preference.
.go.ug
The “go” in this extension comes from the word government. Ugandan Government Agencies such as ministries, autonomous institutions, authorities among others use .go.ug domain extension. And as such we recommend only Ugandan government institutions to use this domain name extensions. Any other organizations or institutions other than those mentioned above should not use the .go.ug extension. This is because such use would be misleading.
.gov.ug
The .gov.ug domain extension serves the same purpose as the .go.ug. The choice of whether to use .go.ug or .gov.ug entirely depends on the preference of the institution or person registering the domain name.
.or.ug
This .ug ccTLD was designed for non-government or non-profit organisations. Its use is similar to that of the popular generic .org top level domain. The registry recommends the use of the .or.ug domain extension by non-government organisations (NGOs) operating within Uganda. The use of this .ug country code domain name extension for any other form of entity other than a non-profit organisation operating in Uganda can be misleading. Therefore, we do not recommend it.
.org.ug
.org.ug is another variation of the .or.ug domain extension. It serves the same purpose as the .or.ug. it’s also intended for non-government or non-profit organizations operating in Uganda. Like the other .ug ccTLDs with more than one variations, the choice as to whether to use .or.ug or .org.ug is a matter of preference by the individual organization or person registering the domain name.
.mil.ug
The top level domain .mil comes from the word military. It is a TLD designed for use by the military or defense forces and affiliated organizations/institutions. Thus, the .mil.ug ccTLD is only meant for use by the Uganda Peoples Defense Forces (UPDF) and affiliated military institutions. It’s not ideal to register a .mil.ug domain name for a use not related to military within Uganda.
At the time of writing and publishing this article, there seems to be no single website using the .mil.ug ccTLD. Even the UPDF itself is still using the .go.ug domain extension.
.ne.ug
This was designed for operators of Network Infrastructure services. These include Network Service Providers, Internet Service Providers, Internet Exchange Points, Internet Bandwidth Resellers and such similar services. The .ne.ug ccTLD is meant to serve the same purpose as the .net domain extension but with restriction to Uganda.
.net.ug
The .net.ug domain extension is another variation of the .ne.ug ccTLD. Call it a synonym. The two are used interchangeably. Both domain extensions serve the same audience and purpose. Whether to use .ne.ug or .net.ug is a matter of personal preference.
.sc.ug
The ccTLD .sc.ug derives itself from the word school. It’s a .ug country code domain name extension used by schools. Therefore, if you have a secondary, primary or nursery school and are looking forward to establishing a website for it, the .sc.ug domain name is your ultimate deal. Any educational institution at the level of a secondary school or below is supposed to use this extension. This also includes kindergartens.
In Uganda today, it’s very common to find a secondary or primary school using a .ac.ug domain name. I will not mention them here but there are very many out there. They are ofcourse right to think that any academic institution can use the .ac.ug domain extension because the ac stands for academic. However, they are wrong because the registry designed it primarily for use by higher institutions of learning.
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Registering a .ug Domain Name
There are currently very many registrars out there who offer registration of .ug country code domain names. Some offer a few of the TLDs while others like ourselves offer a complete set. The major distinctive difference between the different registrars is the price. Some sell .ug domain name very expensively while others sell them relatively cheaper.
Of course, .ug domain names are generally expensive compared to many other ccTLDs around the globe. Even at the central registry. That explains why the registrars also sell them expensively. Why they remain expensive at the central registry! We can’t really tell.
Jubilee Web Host is one of those registrars who offer .ug domain names at the lowest rates on the domain market. Check out here.
.UG Domain Registry
The central registry for all dot ug country code domain names is the .ug Registry. The registry also regulates the use of all .ug ccTLDs. To visit the registry as well as getting more information about the same, you can visit them at www.registry.co.ug.
Whois Server for .Ug Country Code Domain Names
whois.co.ug is the whois server for all .ug domain name extensions. It returns a “No entries found” if the domain in your query does not exist in the system. That means, that particular domain is available for registration.
Thus, for purposes of implemeting domain lookups on your website, if you have a file listing the different whois servers, you may add the whois records for the .ug domain names as follows:
.ac.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.co.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.com.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.go.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.gov.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.mil.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.ne.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.or.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.org.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.sc.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
.us.ug|whois.co.ug|No entries found
For those using the latest versions of WHMCS for perform domain lookups, simply add the following code to the whois.json file of your WHMCS installation. That is all.
{
"extensions": ".ac.ug,.co.ug,.com.ug,.go.ug,.gov.ug,.mil.ug,.ne.ug,.or.ug,.org.ug,.sc.ug,.ug,.us.ug",
"uri": "socket://whois.co.ug",
"available": "No entries found"
}
Private Domain Registration
This is also called ID Protection, Whois Privacy or Whois Guard. Private domain registration is increasingly becoming essential due to the ever growing internet scam. It helps protect the registrant from the wide internet scam and spam by hiding his personal contact information from the public whois record.
The .ug domain registry does not primarily implement private domain registrations.
However, as a registrar, Jubilee Web Host provides private domain registration. This is because we fully understand how important it is to protect the registrant from the internet scam and spam. That is the reason we provide an option for turning on or off your .ug domain whois privacy. When you activate whois privacy, our public contact information will replace your personal contact information in the public whois record for your domain. This helps to protect you from spammers as they can’t access your contact information. However, your correct contact information remains accurate within our system.
You can turned this feature on or off right within your client area at https://www.jubileewebhost.com/clients. To access this option, you simply have to navigate to the specific domain for which you want to enable or disable the whois guard service.
Should you face any challenges enabling or disabling the service, feel free to open a support ticket within your client area. Our support team will do it for you.
Becoming a .UG Domain Registrar
It is really very simple to become a registrar for .ug country code domain names. Simply visit the .UG Registry website and signup for an account. The terms and conditions for becoming a registrar are a monopoly of the registry and are contained on their website. As such, I recommend you fully read them and understand be signing up for the registrar account.
If you are looking out to purchasing only one or two websites, I would rather recommend you obtain cheap .ug country code domain names from here.
.UG Domain Registrar API
The .ug Registrar Application Programming Interface (API) allows .ug domain registrar to manage domain names within their registrar accounts remotely without directly logging in to the .ug registry website. Integrating the API within your website enables you to send commands to the registry directly through your website.
To gain access to the API, you must be a .ug domain register with an active account at the registry.
Conclusion
.ug is the country specific domain extension for Uganda. It has both the .ug second level ccTLD as well as a number of third level ccTLDs. Some of the third level ccTLDs have two versions or variations. These include .co.ug and .com.ug, .go.ug and gov.ug, .ne.ug and .net.ug, as well as the .or.ug and .org.ug. Others such as .ac.ug, .mil.ug, .sc.ug and .us.ug have only one variation. In cases where the ccTLD has more than one version, the choice of which version to use depends on the registrant’s preference.
Apart from the .ug second level ccTLDs, all the third level .ug ccTLDs are intended for specific categories of websites or organizations. Therefore, as a registrant, caution has to be taken while selecting which ccTLD to use to avoid misleading the website visitors as well as search engines. Jubilee Web Host may reject your registration of a given domain should we find it inappropriate. Besides, the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) which regulates all communication channels in Uganda reserves the right to discontinue you from using a given domain. This is if they deem that your use of such a domain is inappropriate or misleading. This is the last thing you want to happen to you. So be careful while choosing which ccTLD to use.