Process for fully shutting down the Onename registrar

Community
#1

Onename was a registrar service built on top of Blockstack by Blockstack PBC. With the release of client-side software, like the Blockstack browser and CLI, there was less need for a hosted registrar service where encrypted private keys had to be stored server-side. Using the latest client-side software to interact with Blockstack apps is more secure and better aligned with our vision for decentralized, secure apps.

We ended support for the Onename registrar over 2 years ago and provided a safe migration option to all users for a period of more than a year. Following the migration instructions, Onename users could transfer their usernames (registered as digital assets) to the Blockstack client software directly — we even paid transaction fees for all users for such migration. Once this migration finished and the remaining Onename usernames expired, we got ready to completely shutdown Onename. We did the following for expired (dead) usernames that were not migrated:

  • We created a new, separate namespace that ends in .onename.id instead of the original one that ends in .id.
  • We registered a new username for them (a new digital asset) in this new .onename.id namespace.
  • We emailed them the corresponding private key. The idea is that users have the option to start using apps using this new username but they’d transfer the username to a new address.

To be clear, this private key is NOT the original private key for your account, it’s meant as a temporary key to help users get started on the new software. While sending these via email is admittedly less than ideal in terms of security, we optimized for ease of use to help users to quickly get started and then transfer their new username to a key of their own.

There is no profile information or personally identifiable information attached to these new usernames and you can simply ignore these usernames if you don’t want them.

Also, for reference, if you directly register a new username using the on-boarding of the Blockstack client software, we do NOT email plain text keys. Instead, the recovery keys are encrypted with your password. This is the default path for new users to sign up, so this issue does NOT apply to the normal registration process.

Thanks a lot for pointing out any concerns with the process. Hope this description helps, please post any comments on the thread below — we really appreciate your feedback! :pray:

– Muneeb
CEO, Blockstack PBC

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#2

Thanks for sharing. This is the power of Blockstack’s design!!

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#3

I’m trying to play catch up being that I tried logging into the Blockstack browser on a PC today and it asked me for a pass phrase I do not have. I have a password, but that’s it. I believe I migrated correctly, but my name may have expired? Any guidance for me?

#4

Hey @jeffdolan,

Your name is definitely not expired, and it definitely was migrated. The Browser is prompting you for a seed phrase. This would have been a sequence of random words that it would have prompted you to write down on a physical sheet of paper. Depending on when you did the migration, you might have also had an encrypted copy emailed to you, which you can decrypt with your password. Do you still have either of those somewhere?

#5

I have a password, but not the email or seed phrase (that I can find). If I printed it, I may need to search around for that, but I don’t remember creating one.

#6

@jude I did find a OneName.io App Encrypted Secret that looks like a really long Bitcoin Address created and sent to me on Sun, 12 Oct 2014 13:00:44 GMT (Version 0.2.0). Does that help?

#7

The name was migrated to the address 1PniT4P46D4zaozuhWUuU8GYdg5MNB7L7o back in late 2017, so it’s unlikely that the onename text would still be valid (but don’t delete it just in case!).

Do you have anything more recent?

#8

@jude

I’m having the same issue. I have an email that tells me I successfully migrated my onename id to blockstack (back in 2017), but I was never provided any seed phrase or private key (there had been a problem migrating due to lots of requests, so it was done manually).

I have the seed phrase I was given for that ID, originally, but that seed phrase does not work in the sign in box (likely the 2015 onename seed phrase).

Just now, I created a new chrisyakimov.id.blockstack ID associated with the same email, but it doesn’t appear to be linked in any way to my onename id (chrisyakimov.id).

Any ideas?

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#9

@jude, No, I’ve looked and looked. Nothing. See comment from @chrisyakimov on what might have happened. It sounds like we are in the same boat.