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Mastering Registrar Command Line Edition: Tips & Best Practices

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Registrar Command Line Edition — Quick Reference & Cheat Sheet—

This quick reference and cheat sheet covers the Registrar Command Line Edition (RCLE) — a hypothetical or real command-line tool used for managing domain registrar tasks, domain records, DNS, transfers, and automation. The guide is organized for rapid lookups: installation, authentication, common commands, flags, examples, scripting tips, and troubleshooting. Use it as a condensed resource while working with RCLE in terminal sessions.

Overview

Registrar Command Line Edition (RCLE) provides command-line access to common registrar operations so you can automate domain provisioning, DNS updates, WHOIS queries, and bulk tasks without leaving your shell. RCLE aims to be scriptable, predictable, and consistent across environments.

Key use cases:

  • Registering, renewing, and transferring domains
  • Managing DNS records (A, AAAA, CNAME, MX, TXT, SRV, etc.)
  • Bulk operations for many domains
  • WHOIS lookups and privacy settings
  • Integration into CI/CD pipelines for automated deployments

Installation

Common installation methods:

  • Package manager (preferred where available)
    • Homebrew (macOS/Linux): 
      
brew install rcle
    • apt (Debian/Ubuntu): 
      
sudo apt update sudo apt install rcle
  • Download binary:
    1. Download appropriate release for your OS/architecture.
    2. Unpack and move to /usr/local/bin: 
      
tar -xzf rcle-vX.Y.Z-<os>-<arch>.tar.gz sudo mv rcle /usr/local/bin/ sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/rcle
  • Python package (if provided as CLI wrapper): 
    
pip install rcle-cli

Verify installation:

rcle --version

Authentication & Configuration

RCLE typically uses an API key or OAuth token. Store credentials securely.

  • Configure once per machine:

    rcle configure

    Prompts:

    • API endpoint (if self-hosted)
    • API key or token
    • Default registrar/account
    • Default timeout and output format (json/text)

  • Environment variables (for CI):

    export RCLE_API_KEY="your_api_key" export RCLE_ENDPOINT="https://api.registrar.example"

  • Config file (example path: ~/.rcle/config.yaml)

    api_key: "your_api_key" endpoint: "https://api.registrar.example" default_account: "acct-12345" output: "json"

Security tips:

  • Use least-privilege API keys.
  • Rotate keys periodically.
  • Keep config files readable only by owner: 
    
chmod 600 ~/.rcle/config.yaml

Global Flags & Output Formats

Common global flags:

  • -j, --json — output in JSON
  • -q, --quiet — minimal output
  • -v, --verbose — verbose logging
  • --profile <name> — use named profile from config
  • --endpoint <url> — override API endpoint

Output formats:

  • Human-readable table/text (default)
  • JSON for scripting: rcle domains list -j
  • YAML if supported: rcle domains list --output yaml

Command Structure

Typical structure:

rcle <resource> <action> [identifier] [flags]

Resources often include: domains, dns, whois, transfers, accounts, keys, templates.

Examples:

  • rcle domains register example.com --years 2
  • rcle dns add example.com --type A --name www --value 203.0.113.42 --ttl 3600

Domains

Register a domain:

rcle domains register example.com --years 1 --contact [email protected] --privacy on

Renew a domain:

rcle domains renew example.com --years 1

Get domain details:

rcle domains get example.com

List domains:

rcle domains list --limit 100

Transfer in:

rcle domains transfer-in example.com --auth-code ABCD-1234 --account acct-12345

Transfer out (generate EPP/auth code):

rcle domains transfer-out example.com

Set privacy:

rcle domains privacy example.com --off

Set auto-renew:

rcle domains auto-renew example.com --enable

Bulk register (CSV input):

rcle domains bulk-register --file domains.csv

domains.csv sample:

domain,years,contact,privacy example1.com,1,[email protected],on example2.net,2,[email protected],off

DNS Management

List DNS records:

rcle dns list example.com

Add record:

rcle dns add example.com --type A --name www --value 203.0.113.42 --ttl 3600

Update record (by record id or match):

rcle dns update example.com --id r-12345 --value 198.51.100.10

Delete record:

rcle dns delete example.com --id r-12345

Import zone file:

rcle dns import example.com --file zonefile.txt

Export zone file:

rcle dns export example.com --file example.com.zone

Common record examples:

  • A
  • AAAA
  • CNAME
  • MX (with priority)
  • TXT (including SPF and DKIM)
  • SRV (priority, weight, port, target)

Example: add MX

rcle dns add example.com --type MX --name @ --value "10 mail.example.com." --ttl 3600

Example: set TXT for SPF

rcle dns add example.com --type TXT --name @ --value "v=spf1 include:_spf.example.com ~all"

WHOIS & Contact Management

Get WHOIS:

rcle whois get example.com

Update contact:

rcle contacts update --id c-98765 --email [email protected] --phone "+1.5555555555"

Bulk contact sync:

rcle contacts sync --file contacts.csv

Privacy/proxy management:

rcle whois privacy example.com --enable

Transfers

Check transfer status:

rcle transfers status example.com

Approve transfer:

rcle transfers approve example.com --auth-code ABCD-1234

Cancel transfer:

rcle transfers cancel example.com

List pending transfers:

rcle transfers list --status pending

Templates & Automation

Create DNS template:

rcle templates create --name "webapp" --file webapp-dns.json

Apply template:

rcle templates apply webapp example.com

Use in scripts (example bash snippet):

#!/usr/bin/env bash set -euo pipefail domains=("example.com" "example2.net") for d in "${domains[@]}"; do   rcle dns import "$d" --file "./zones/$d.zone" -j | jq '.' done

CI/CD example (GitHub Actions step):

- name: Update DNS   run: rcle dns apply example.com --template webapp --profile ci   env:     RCLE_API_KEY: ${{ secrets.RCLE_API_KEY }}

Error Handling & Exit Codes

Common exit codes:

  • 0 — success
  • 1 — general error
  • 2 — authentication failure
  • 3 — resource not found
  • 4 — validation error (bad input)
  • 5 — rate limited / throttled

Retries:

  • Use exponential backoff for transient errors.
  • Respect rate-limit headers if provided.

Verbose troubleshooting:

rcle --verbose domains register example.com --years 1

Logs:

  • Local logs typically in ~/.rcle/logs/
  • Rotate and secure log files.

Security Considerations

  • Use API keys with minimal scope.
  • Store secrets in system keychains or CI secrets vaults.
  • Validate DNS changes in staging prior to production.
  • Monitor registrar account activity and enable alerts for transfers.

Common Workflows & Examples

Create domain and configure DNS:

rcle domains register newsite.com --years 1 --contact [email protected] rcle dns add newsite.com --type A --name @ --value 198.51.100.5 --ttl 3600 rcle dns add newsite.com --type CNAME --name www --value "@" rcle dns add newsite.com --type MX --name @ --value "10 mail.newsite.com."

Bulk renew domains from CSV:

rcle domains renew --file renew.csv

Automated transfer check script (bash):

#!/usr/bin/env bash rcle transfers list --status pending -j | jq -r '.transfers[] | "(.domain) (.status)"'

Troubleshooting Tips

  • “Authentication failed” — confirm API key, profile, and endpoint; check system clock for token-based auth.
  • “Domain already registered” — WHOIS show registrant and expiry; use transfer or contact owner.
  • “DNS changes not propagated” — verify TTLs and use dig/host to check authoritative servers.
  • “Rate limited” — back off and apply batching/queuing for bulk ops.

Quick Command Summary (Cheat Sheet)

  • Configure: rcle configure
  • Version: rcle --version
  • List domains: rcle domains list
  • Register domain: rcle domains register example.com --years 1
  • Renew domain: rcle domains renew example.com --years 1
  • Transfer in: rcle domains transfer-in example.com --auth-code ABCD
  • DNS list: rcle dns list example.com
  • Add DNS record: rcle dns add example.com --type A --name www --value 203.0.113.42
  • WHOIS: rcle whois get example.com
  • Templates: rcle templates apply webapp example.com

Further Reading & Resources

  • RCLE man page: man rcle (if installed)
  • Built-in help: rcle --help and rcle <resource> --help
  • Use -j/--json for scripting-friendly output.

This cheat sheet is designed for fast reference. For comprehensive operational procedures, refer to your registrar account documentation and the official RCLE user manual.

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