Programmable DNS

Programmable DNS represents a fundamental evolution in how domain functionality can be accessed and controlled. Traditional DNS provides static mappings between domain names and IP addresses, with configuration limited to whoever has registrar account credentials. Programmable DNS extends this by exposing domain capabilities as on-chain primitives that can be accessed, delegated, and composed through smart contracts.

Domain Ownership Tokens

Domain Ownership Tokens are minted on a target chain specified by the Registrant during the domain tokenization process. These tokens grant the owner full ownership of the domain and transfer of the Ownership Token requires the new owner to go through the claim process specified above. Domain Ownership Tokens can be burned and split into multiple Synthetic Tokens for finer-grained access rights and utility within DomainFi apps.

Domain Synthetic Tokens

Domain Synthetic Tokens represent specific management rights extracted from a Domain Ownership Token through a controlled decomposition process. Each Synthetic Token grants its holder authority over a particular domain function—such as DNS management or subdomain creation—without conferring full ownership. Synthetic Tokens can be independently traded on NFT marketplaces, used within DomainFi applications, or recombined to reconstruct the original Domain Ownership Token. The Doma Protocol maintains records of all Synthetic Tokens derived from each domain, ensuring that permissions remain mutually exclusive and collectively represent full ownership rights of the domain.

Domain Capabilities

Domains are inherently composed of utility and ownership. Through Doma, these can be decomposed into discrete, programmable capabilities.

Some examples of domain capabilities include:

DNS Record Management	Control over A records, CNAME records, MX records, TXT records, and other DNS configurations
Subdomain Creation	Authority to create and manage subdomains under the parent domain
Content Routing	Control over where the domain resolves and what content it serves
Email Configuration	Management of mail server records and email routing
Renewal Authority	Rights to renew the domain registration
Registry Records	Control over parent zone (Registry Owned Zone)
Records Update	Control over NS and DS Records

Domain Synthetic Tokens

Domain Synthetic Tokens represent specific management rights extracted from a Domain Ownership Token through a controlled decomposition process. When a domain owner wishes to delegate specific capabilities, the domain NFT is locked, and synthetic tokens representing those capabilities are issued.

Onchain DNS

These capabilities can be exposed through Domain Ownership Tokens or Synthetic Tokens via smart contracts, enabling programmatic access.

For example, a smart contract can be granted permission to update DNS records based on predefined conditions, or a DAO can collectively manage subdomain allocation for a community-owned domain. This programmability enables entirely new use cases such as conditional DNS routing, automated failover systems, and dynamic content delivery based on onchain events.

For example, an ENS claim typically requires visiting your registrar to set up DNS entries, then completing an on-chain claim. Programmable and onchain DNS eliminates this friction. Users can create the required DNS entries and complete all claims fully on-chain, enabling all registrars to offer a seamless, programmable ENS claim flow.

Similarly, subdomains issued through staking use the domain ownership token to generate synthetic subdomain tokens for users. These subdomain tokens give users full control over their subdomain DNS, including ENS claims.

This programmable approach transforms domains from static assets into dynamic, composable primitives that can power sophisticated DomainFi applications while maintaining full DNS compliance.

Fully Onchain Ownership

Key properties of Owner Synthetic Tokens:

• Independent Trading: Can be traded on NFT marketplaces or used in DomainFi applications

• Recombination: Can be recombined to reconstruct the original Domain Ownership Token

• Mutual Exclusivity: The protocol ensures permissions remain mutually exclusive

• Collective Completeness: Together, all synthetic tokens represent full ownership rights

Why Programmable DNS is Transformative

Programmable DNS fundamentally transforms domains from static digital real estate into dynamic, composable digital assets:

1. Granular Access Control: Delegate specific capabilities without surrendering ownership. A company can grant a marketing agency subdomain rights while retaining DNS management.

2. Smart Contract Integration: Domain capabilities can be programmatically accessed, enabling automated management and DeFi integration.

3. Cross-dApp Interoperability: Use domains across all compatible dApps regardless of registrar.

4. Revenue Generation: Monetize specific capabilities—lease subdomains, sell DNS rights, create yield positions.

5. Composability: Domain capabilities become building blocks for novel applications.

6. Security: An additional layer of onchain cryptographic verification (for example, using multi-sigs) to do any domain operations.