.dev

.dev is a generic top-level domain operated by Google Registry. It was introduced through ICANN's new generic top-level-domain program and became available to the general public on March 1, 2019, following an early-access period that began on February 19 of the same year. The extension is positioned around software development, engineering, programming, and other technology-oriented activity, making it suitable for developer tools, documentation, open-source projects, technical communities, and individual professional sites. A defining characteristic of .dev is its security configuration. The domain is included on the HTTP Strict Transport Security, or HSTS, preload list. As a result, modern web browsers generally require websites using the .dev extension to be served over HTTPS, even when an individual site has not separately requested HSTS inclusion. This creates a security baseline for the namespace and makes ordinary unencrypted HTTP access unavailable for .dev websites in common browser environments. The HSTS requirement also changed a practice that had been common among developers before the public launch. Developers frequently used addresses ending in .dev on private networks or local machines for testing. Such addresses could be resolved through hosts files or private, improvised DNS configurations and were not necessarily intended to be reachable on the public internet. Once .dev was placed on the HSTS preload list and browser support for that policy became widespread, many of these local test environments stopped loading unless they were configured to use HTTPS. The change therefore affected both the public identity of the extension and certain established local-development workflows. Unlike a consumer packaged-goods brand, .dev is a digital namespace rather than a manufacturer or retail label. Its principal offering is the registration and delegation of domain names under the .dev suffix. The extension operates internationally through the domain-name system, with usage centered on technical organizations, software projects, developers, and internet services. Specific information about its corporate headquarters, individual founder, financial performance, executive leadership, and ownership structure beyond its operation by Google Registry is not established in the supplied reference material.

.dev emerged from ICANN's expansion of the generic top-level domain system. Google Registry operated the extension as a namespace associated with development, programming, software, and related technical work. The supplied reference identifies the extension as having been proposed within ICANN's new-gTLD program, although it does not provide a specific proposal date or details about competing applications, delegation, or registry agreements. The domain became available to the general public on March 1, 2019. An early-access period began on February 19, allowing earlier registrations before general availability. The public launch established .dev as an internationally usable domain suffix for websites and services connected with software development and technology. The extension also has a significant security-related history. Google Registry placed .dev on the HSTS preload list. This means that browsers supporting the preload policy treat .dev websites as HTTPS-only by default, rather than waiting for each site operator to configure HSTS independently. The policy provides a strong transport-security requirement across the namespace. Before that browser-enforced behavior became widespread, developers often used .dev as an informal local-network suffix. These private addresses could be created through hosts-file entries or local DNS systems for testing and staging and were not intended to resolve through the public internet. After .dev became subject to preloaded HSTS, browsers generally refused to load such addresses over ordinary HTTP. Local environments therefore needed HTTPS configuration or a different naming approach. This consequence became one of the most notable practical characteristics of the .dev namespace. The available material does not document a change in ownership, a corporate acquisition, a leadership transition, financial results, major advertising campaigns, product recalls, litigation, or scandal associated with .dev. Its documented development is primarily technological and infrastructural: the launch of a Google-operated generic top-level domain and the adoption of an HTTPS-by-default security policy.

• 2019

  Early-access registration begins

  [1].deven.wikipedia.org

  An early-access period for .dev domain registrations began on February 19, ahead of public availability.

• 2019

  Public launch of .dev

  [1].deven.wikipedia.org

  .dev became available to the general public on March 1, establishing the extension as a publicly registrable generic top-level domain.

• Proposed under ICANN's new generic top-level-domain program

  [1].deven.wikipedia.org

  .dev was proposed as part of ICANN's program to introduce new generic top-level domains. The supplied material does not specify the proposal year.

• Added to the HSTS preload list

  [1].deven.wikipedia.org

  The .dev namespace was incorporated into the HSTS preload list, requiring browsers to use HTTPS for .dev websites unless they do not support the relevant policy.

A secure, technology-oriented domain namespace for developers, software projects, technical organizations, and internet services.

• Domain-name service · 2019

  .dev domain registrations

  The core offering is the registration and use of internet domain names ending in .dev. The namespace is oriented toward developers, software companies, technical documentation, programming communities, and related digital projects. Because the extension is on the HSTS preload list, websites using these names are expected to operate through HTTPS in modern browsers, giving the namespace a built-in secure-transport requirement.

• Adopt HTTPS-by-default behavior through HSTS preloadingStrategy

  Background

  The .dev namespace was placed on the HSTS preload list, creating a browser-enforced expectation that websites under the extension use secure HTTPS connections.

  Action taken

  Browsers supporting the preload policy refuse ordinary HTTP access to .dev websites unless the connection is secured through HTTPS.

  Aftermath

  The policy established a security baseline for public .dev sites but disrupted some informal local testing environments that had used .dev addresses over unencrypted HTTP.

  Source

1. 1.deven.wikipedia.org