One of the great things about ENS names is that they're entirely decentralised, meaning that as wallet owner you hold full ownership of the name and no one can take it from you.
But this also comes with a certain degree of responsibility to secure your keys and be careful of phishing scams, because if you lose your name, we can't recover it for you.
Therefore it's a good idea to adopt proper security practices to make sure that you don't lose your name to scammers and thieves.
Hot, Warm, and Cold Wallets
Before diving into strategies, let's understand the difference between hot, warm, and cold wallets:
Wallet type | Details |
Cold wallet | This wallet is usually completely offline, used for long-term storage of funds, and provides maximum security. It is not used day-to-day.
With this wallet you are usually not connecting and signing permissions on apps, sites, etc |
Hot wallet | A wallet you use day-to-day and just transfer funds into when needed.
With this wallet you may be connecting and signing permissions on several apps, sites, etc |
Warm wallet | A wallet you use less often than your hot wallet and may use as an additional layer of security separating your hot and cold wallets.
With this wallet you may be connecting and signing permissions on several apps, sites, etc |
Setting up your name
It is recommended to use a cold wallet as the owner of your ENS names for enhanced security, while setting a hot or warm wallet as the manager to maintain day-to-day control without compromising safety; as well as use your hot wallet as the ETH address and Primary Name.
This design allows you to use the ENS name from your hot wallet, but with the added security that if the hot wallet is compromised, you won't lose your ENS name held in your cold wallet.
To change the ETH record, Manager & Owner, refer to: How to Edit Roles
To set the Primary Name, refer to: How to Set as Primary Name
For Unwrapped names
Role | Wallet type | Details |
Owner | Cold | This wallet is secure because you aren't connecting it to any sites or apps and signing permissions. |
Manager | Hot or Warm | If the manager address is compromised, the owner can change the manager. |
ETH Address + Primary Name | Hot | If this wallet is compromised, the Manager can change the record. |
For Wrapped names
Role | Wallet type | Details |
Owner | Cold | This wallet is secure because you aren't connecting it to any sites or apps and signing permissions. |
ETH Address + Primary Name | Hot | If this wallet is compromised, the owner can change the ETH address. |
If you do not see the manager role your .eth name your name is wrapped in the NameWrapper contract. See our Article Where is the Manager role?
Understanding name roles
Owner
Unwrapped names:
Can transfer ownership of the name to another wallet.
The owner also can update the manager.
The owner cannot update records for the name like the ETH address
Cannot create subnames
Wrapped names:
Can transfer ownership of the name to another wallet.
Can update all the records like the ETH Address, Avatar, Contenthash, etc.
Can create subnames.
Manager
Unwrapped names only:
Cannot transfer ownership of the name.
Can update all the records like the ETH Address, Avatar, Contenthash, etc.
Can set a new manager.
Can create subnames.
ETH Record
This is the address the name points to and determines where funds are received.
The wallet matching the ETH address can choose that name to set as Primary Name.