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Naming conventions for websites
The names of all University of Basel websites (DNS name; DNS = Domain Name System) are displayed worldwide within a hierarchical namespace. The DNS server for management of the unibas.ch DNS branch (unibas domain or unibas namespace) is operated by IT Services.
1. Names within a department’s domain
Service names within the existing domain of an organizational unit may be defined by the project managers.
Requirements:
- The name must be unique.
Examples:
- xy-webauftritt.kurznameeinrichtung.unibas.ch
- wiki.its.unibas.ch
- xy-kongress.wwz.unibas.ch
List of existing domains
(accessible only within the University of Basel intranet)
2. Service names directly within the unibas.ch domain
For interdepartmental websites, it is possible to assign a name directly within the unibas.ch domain.
Requirements:
- Service names directly within the unibas.ch naming sphere must be agreed with the Web Desk. The Web Desk decides in consultation with IT Services on the allocation of these names.
Applications:
- General names for university-wide services
Examples:
communications.unibas.ch
- Specific names that are clearly needed by only one organizational unit.
Examples:
baselgerman.unibas.ch
physicssurvey.unibas.ch
Services cannot be entered directly in the unibas.ch domain if they contain titles or names of people.
Service names at the level below unibas.ch may be refused. A service name cannot be published unless it has been officially confirmed by IT Services or the Web Desk. The originator shall be responsible for costs arising due to a lack of approval.
General guidelines for the naming of web presences
1. The minimum length of the service name is 4 characters.
2. The host part of the name (incl. institutional abbreviation and hyphen) must be no longer than 15 characters.
3. The name must contain no special characters (exception: hyphen).
4. The name must contain no spaces.
5. The name must not contain capital letters.
3. Service names outside the unibas.ch domain
In plausible exceptional cases (e.g. established conference names, collaborative projects), a web presence with a domain name outside the unibas.ch domain may be provided on the University of Basel’s infrastructure.
Requirements:
- Plausible justification
- The content is maintained within the framework of a posting or activity on behalf of the University of Basel.
- The decision as to whether a web presence may be hosted outside the unibas.ch domain on the University of Basel’s infrastructure is taken by the Web Desk in consultation with IT Services.
- All interactions with the relevant name registry (reservation, configuration, activation, etc.) and the associated costs are the sole responsibility of the domain owner. In an external domain of this kind, the names of the services are chosen by the domain owner.
- Services displayed on the University of Basel’s infrastructure via an external domain of this kind must include a reference to the University of Basel (‘powered by’ logo).
Examples:
- xy-kongress.ch
- xy-projekt.com
The Web Desk and IT Services reserve the right to reject entries and to delete them where applicable if the names are protected by law (e.g. Coca Cola) or offend against common decency.
The Web Desk and IT Services also reserve the right to delete entries from the name services if they do not satisfy the naming conventions described above.
External DNS services
If the above naming conventions and rules prevent hosting of your web presence on the University of Basel’s DNS servers, several other options exist:
- Fee-charging DNS service providers in Switzerland
- Free DNS service providers around the world
4. Internationalization
If desired, access to the website with an internationalized domain can be set up using a redirect to the respective language tree.
Example: psychology.unibas.ch -> psychology.unibas.ch/en
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