Understanding ENS domain name encapsulation function in one article

The ENS Name Wrapper feature of Ethereum Name Service (ENS) is seen as a key improvement for ENS mass adoption and the transformation of Web3, and is expected to be launched on the mainnet in two weeks. So what exactly is the ENS Name Wrapper feature? Why is it so important?

What is ENS domain name wrapping?

In simple terms, the packaging function allows any existing ENS domain name at any level to be packaged as an ERC-1155 token. Subdomains can be stored as separate NFTs. In addition, the parent domain name can also perform more sophisticated management and control over subdomains, including expiration and permission granting, bringing more flexibility to ENS domain names. Currently, ENS subdomains are not created as separate NFTs, so transfers and transactions are also restricted.

As we all know, ERC-721 is the most basic and widely used NFT underlying standard of Ethereum, which is a non-fungible token contract. In contrast, ERC-1155 supports both homogeneous and non-fungible tokens, and can be transferred and authorized in batches, which is very convenient and efficient for the control and management of subdomains.

Other advantages and features of domain name encapsulation listed by ENS include:

• Allows the parent domain owner to give up control of the subdomain, i.e. "release". The parent domain cannot affect the released domain in any way until it expires.

• Support for "locking" domains, where the domain owner gives up the ability to unwrap the domain, and can also be locked by the parent domain owner when releasing the domain. A "locked" domain ensures that neither the domain owner nor any parent domain owner can affect it until it expires. "Locking" can also revoke other permissions on the domain, including the ability to create subdomains or set resolvers.

• The UI and smart contracts can check the status of a domain with a single function call.

• Domain owners can directly create a subdomain without registering it first and then encapsulating it.

The life cycle of a domain name is shown in the figure:

That is, a domain name can be encapsulated after registration, and a registered domain name can also directly create a encapsulated subdomain. Afterwards, the second-level domain name can be automatically "released" when it is "encapsulated". In other cases, the parent domain name owner can give up control of the subdomain name, that is, "release", or the parent domain name owner can "lock" it while "releasing", or the subdomain name holder can "lock" it by himself to give up the ability to unwrap the domain name.

It should be noted that all ENS domain names are subdomains of the top-level domain name eth, and subdomains are divided into second-level domain names (such as apple.eth), third-level domain names (1.apple.eth), etc. For example, apple.eth is a subdomain of eth, and 1.apple.eth is also a subdomain of apple.eth. However, in most cases, ENS subdomains are currently considered third-level and above domain names.

As ENS team member domico.eth said, the key of the top-level domain name eth has been officially transferred to the public contract by ENS. ENS officials have no access to the eth domain name, so there is no need to worry about someone impersonating the second-level domain name. In the ENS Name Wrapper function, the parent domain name mainly gives up control of the subdomain name by setting the expiration time of the subdomain name and canceling the "PARENT_CANNOT_CONTROL" fuse. The fuse can be seen as a door. When this door is opened, the parent domain name holder can perform specific operations, such as controlling the subdomain name, or it can be permanently closed, that is, "burned", eliminating the parent domain name holder's ability to access the subdomain name again, which is very similar to ENS handing over the key to eth.

Why is ENS domain wrapping important?

The importance of this function can be seen from the ENS domain name packaging cycle. Packaging domain names as ERC-1155 is an inherent advantage for the management and control of subdomains, which can help domain name holders reduce costs and improve efficiency to a great extent. The "release" function in ENS domain name packaging can give subdomains more flexibility by giving up control of subdomains, which is also a key step in establishing a trustless subdomain ecosystem.

With the domain name encapsulation function, Web2 companies with their own company name domain names can distribute or configure subdomains for their suppliers, buyers or users, and can give them certain application scenarios or utilities. Web3 companies and projects can also directly airdrop subdomains to their users, and can also deepen their connections with the community through subdomains. In addition, scenarios such as subdomain transactions and rentals may also be launched.

We have reason to believe that ENS domain name encapsulation will add more imagination space for the large-scale adoption of Web3.