PD Domain Radar checks the registry itself, not your billing system's copy, and tells you when a domain you manage has a problem. WHMCS knows the expiry date it was told at registration, and very little else. Domain Radar reads the registry over RDAP, the machine-readable successor to WHOIS, and raises a finding when a domain is expiring, has had its nameservers changed, has lost its registrar lock, has a transfer in progress, is queued for deletion or was never verified.
It is built for hosting companies and agencies that manage domains for customers and want to hear about a lapse or an unwanted transfer from the module rather than from the customer. It also watches domains that are not in WHMCS at all, such as a customer's name held at another registrar.
Why hosts choose PD Domain Radar
Ask the registry, not the database. The things that cost you a customer happen at the registry: nameservers repointed, a lock switched off, a transfer started. Domain Radar looks there and shows what the registry said.
Findings ranked so the urgent ones stand out. A domain inside your warning window (45 days by default) is a warning and inside your critical window (14 days by default) is critical. Transfer in progress, pending delete, redemption and registry hold are always critical. Each finding shows when it first appeared, so a new problem stands out from one you already know about.
It does not cry wolf. A domain checked for the first time is never reported as "nameservers changed". Order, case and trailing dots never count as a change. When a lookup fails, you get one low-severity "could not be checked" note and no other claim about that domain, never a wall of false alarms.
Watch domains you do not manage. Add a customer's name held at another registrar, a brand you defend or a domain you are waiting to catch, and it is checked in the same sweeps as the rest of the portfolio.
Accept what is expected. Accept a finding and it drops out of the default list while staying on record. If it changes, it comes back.
Read-only, by design. Domain Radar reads only. It never changes anything at your registrar. A lookup carries only the domain name, and goes only to the registry's RDAP service, with a monthly refresh from IANA. Nothing is sent to us.
Swept without you. The portfolio is swept automatically in batches (200 by default), never-checked domains first and then the oldest-checked, and a failure is reported as a failed run.
How it works
- Install it. Domains in WHMCS are picked up automatically on the first scan, and you can add domains that are not in WHMCS on the Watchlist.
- Run a scan. The first sweep asks the registry about every domain and builds the portfolio.
- Work the list. Needs attention shows what the registry disagrees with you about, with the severity and the date it appeared.
- Get the digest. Optionally, one email lists what is new since the last sweep, to your chosen addresses or your system address.
What you get in WHMCS
What it looks for
- Expired domains, and domains expiring inside your warning and critical windows
- Nameservers changed since the previous check, and, if you switch it on, domains not using your nameservers, compared on the registrable domain so dns1.yourhost.net counts as yours when ns1.yourhost.net is configured
- Registrar lock off, auto-renew off close to expiry, and DNSSEC removed (the last two are switchable)
- Transfer in progress, pending delete or redemption, and registry hold, all critical
- Registrant not verified, a warning, because domains get suspended for it
- "Could not be checked" for a registry that publishes no lookup service
Running it day to day
- A Portfolio of every domain with the facts the registry reports, including real nameservers and lock state, which WHMCS does not store
- A Watchlist for domains that are not in WHMCS: add them one per line or separated by commas, and anything that is not a domain name is ignored
- A Needs attention list you can filter by severity, with Scan now
- Accepted findings stay on record and come back if they change
- Sweeps include expired domains until they have been expired for more than 30 days, unless you tell it to keep checking
- The digest email lists only what is new, and you choose the lowest severity that triggers it (warnings and critical by default)
- The assistant tools can read the portfolio, findings and watchlist
Security built in
- Domain Radar never changes anything at your registrar. It reports, and you decide.
- A lookup carries only the domain name. Nothing about your customers is sent anywhere.
- No account with a third-party service is needed, and nothing is metered.
One product, every feature
PD Domain Radar is one paid module with everything included, at £15 per month or £150 per year. There are no tiers to compare.
If your subscription lapses, the portfolio stays readable. Sweeps, findings and the watchlist pause until you renew.
Requirements
- WHMCS 9 or later and PHP 8.2 or later
- PD Modules (free), which installs PD Domain Radar
- The ionCube Loader
- Domains on extensions whose registry publishes RDAP, which covers most gTLDs and many country codes. Others are shown as "could not be checked"
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