Web Hosting FAQ's
Web Hosting Related Questions
Domain Name Related Questions
Microsoft FrontPage Related Questions
What is virtual Web hosting?
We specialize in virtual Web hosting, which means that you can find a home for your Web
site on our high performance Web servers and establish your presence on the Internet with
your own unique domain name. This is a very intelligent and cost effective alternative to
hosting your own web site internally. Our shared hosting environment gives you the
benefits of high performance servers, high bandwidth connectivity that can seamlessly grow
with your needs, pre-installed software, guaranteed reliability and around-the-clock
support, all at a small fraction of the cost of doing it yourself.
Is 500 MB/month of data transfer
going to be enough to support my web site ?
Our experience has shown that 500 MB/month will be more than enough bandwidth for the
average Web site. Depending on the quantity and size of your files, this could support
thousands of hits per month. Note that only a small percentage of our customers have
exceeded our data transfer threshold. Should your needs grow, however, we have cost
effective plans that are designed to grow with you. For example, most of our customers
begin with our Professional plan. Those whose sites have become quite popular have either
paid $0.10/MB/mo. for additional data transfer or have upgraded to our Corporate or
Commercial plans, which have much higher data transfer limits. A very small percentage of
our customers with extremely popular sites have found it cost effective to upgrade to our
Enterprise or High Volume plans which have high enough data transfer limits to accommodate
nearly all of our customers' needs.
How do I transfer files to my Web site ?
Files can be transferred to the Web server via File Transport Protocol (FTP). If you
have a PPP Internet account and need FTP software, you can download a program for either
the PC or Mac from our site. Internet providers such as AOL, Compuserve, and Prodigy may
have a built-in FTP interface. An FTP tutorial is available for first-time users.
Microsoft FrontPage users can 'publish' their sites to our server and should not use
FTP.
How long does it take to set up a new
account ?
Most accounts are set up and active within 24 hours! Once an account is set up an
activation notice will be sent you via e-mail including a userID, password, and FTP
hostname. You can begin uploading files to your new web site immediately thereafter.
Domain account users will be given a temporary URL to access their site via the Web prior
to the completion of either domain registration or transfer.
Domain Name Related Questions
Will I be able to access my domain name with
or without the 'www.'?
Yes, you will be able to access the domain name with or without the 'www.' in front.
For example, you can access the domain name "mydomain.com" by going to
"www.mydomain.com" as well as "mydomain.com".
Do you handle domain
registration?
Yes. We will contact the InterNIC once your account is activated to request either a
new domain name registration or a transfer. You do NOT need to submit a registration or
modification template to the InterNIC, as this will only delay your request.
When an account is activated with a new domain name, we will automatically send the
registration template to InterNIC. The information sent on the template is pulled directly
from the order form. InterNIC typically completes the registration within 24 hours, and
propagation typically takes about 72 hours.
Let us know if you do not receive notification that a domain name has either been
registered or transferred within two weeks. In the meantime, refer all concerns to Registration Services. You can reach them
by calling (703)742-4777 and selecting option number 2, or you may write them at hostmaster@rs.internic.net. Be sure to
reference your NIC ticket number when contacting either us or the InterNIC.
What is a NIC handle?
Every entity registered with InterNIC has a NIC handle. You can use the same NIC handle
as the contact for several domains. This way, if you make a change to the NIC handle
(i.e., the e-mail address), all domains using that NIC handle will be updated as well.
Who should I contact regarding InterNIC
billing?
Questions regarding InterNIC Invoicing and Payment
Procedures should be referred to Registration Services. You can reach them by calling
(703)742-4777 and selecting option number 1, or you may e-mail them at hostmaster@rs.internic.net.
Customers wishing to make payment by credit card may call either (888)771-3000 or
(402)496-9788 (outside the U.S.).
Can I transfer an existing domain name?
Yes. Whether you place an order by telephone or via our online order form, be sure to
specify that you are requesting a transfer and NOT a new domain. You
should keep the service at your present site while waiting for your domain name to
transfer. We will provide you with a temporary IP address so you can mirror your site on
our server. All e-mail and Web pages will still be accessed from your current site. When
InterNIC receives the template, they will generate an acknowledgment request (Ack/Nak) and
send it to the current administrative contact of the domain. Once the administrative
contact acknowledges the transfer, InterNIC will update their records.
It is very important that you use the same company name and address on the template as
that which is on file at InterNIC. If the company name differs from that which is on file,
InterNIC will treat the transfer as a delete/new and will not allow the transfer to be
completed.
If the contact information for the domain is no longer current, you will need to
prepare a fax on company letterhead, as follows:
- Include company name, address and phone number in the header
- Reference the domain name and NIC tracking number
- Request the domain name modification in accordance with the NIC number to the new Name
Servers
- Have the President or Vice-President of your company sign the request
- Print the name and title below signature
- Fax this letter to us, ATTN: DOMREG department with 'InterNIC' as the subject.
I have purchased my domain name
from another company. How can I update the information at InterNIC?
In order to transfer a domain name from one organization to another, InterNIC requires
that the original owner file a "delete/new" template. This template consists of
two domain registration templates, combined into one e-mail. The first template deletes
the registration of the original domain name, and the second re-registers the domain name
using the new owner’s information. This request must be initiated by the original
owner, as the owner is the only one authorized to make such a modification.
How long does it take before my domain
name is active?
Once the InterNIC announces that your domain name has been registered (or transferred,
if applicable), it usually takes about 72 hours before it visible to all users of the
Internet. All Internet providers must update their records (DNS tables) to reflect new
site locations. This process is called propagation.
What is the InterNIC fee for domain
registration ?
The InterNIC charges $70 to register a new domain name. This fee covers the first two
years, as they currently bill at a rate of $35 per year. The InterNIC will send you an
invoice via e-mail between three to six weeks after the domain is registered.
Microsoft FrontPage Related Questions
Answers to questions you may have about using Microsoft's FrontPage on our UNIX
Servers.
NOTE: For specific information on how to use
the FrontPage software, please consult the program's documentation or Microsoft Technical Support.
FrontPage extensions are CGI programs that provide the server side implementation of
FrontPage. FrontPage communicates with the extensions via HTTP using a Remote Procedure
Call (RPC). When the server sees the "POST" request addressed to the FrontPage
server extensions it simply directs the request to the appropriate CGI program. The
extensions implement authoring (uploading/downloading documents, ToDo lists),
administration (setting end-user, author, and administrator privileges), and dynamic
content (browse-time WebBot components).
Without the FrontPage server extensions you will not be able to take advantage of the WebBots that are available through FrontPage. Also, without the
extensions you cannot author and administer your web using the tools provided as part of
the FrontPage Editor/Explorer package.
New Accounts
Check the box on the order form indicating that you want the FrontPage extensions. New
domains that request the FrontPage extensions when the order is placed will have the
extensions installed within two days of activation.
Existing Accounts
To have the FrontPage server extensions installed on your existing site, send an e-mail
request to support with the following information:
- Your domain name
- Your userID
- Your request for FrontPage extensions.
- Confirmation that you have back-up of any Web pages currently on the site.
(In most cases it is not necessary to delete files currently on the site to install the
extensions. However, if there are directories or files with special permissions
(.htaccess) these will have to be removed. You can then re-establish permissions and
password protection via the FrontPage Explorer.)
On existing sites, the installation will generally be done within 24 hours.
There is no charge for installing the server extensions. We will also reinstall
corrupted extensions free of charge*.
*Note: There are certain precautions that MUST be taken when
publishing and maintaining your site with FrontPage.
There are some issues that potential FrontPage users should consider:
- Web size -- This seems to be most critical when
a "searchable event" is present in the web (Search, Discussion Forum and Table
of Contents). The lengthy process of updating the indices for these functions can lead to
the connection timing-out (HTTP 500 Error or 'Server has timed-out').
- Disk Usage -- You may create and publish as many child webs as
your disk storage space allows. However, for each child web you publish, FrontPage
duplicates certain information into indices and hidden files. This adds 'overhead,'
increasing the storage space required for your files. Microsoft's documentation notes,
"FrontPage's optional full-text search indexes can take up to the same amount of disk
space as your textual content."
- PRECAUTIONS
There are several precautions which need to be taken to protect the FrontPage extensions
on your site if it is housed on our UNIX servers:
a) Do NOT use the Edit Access or File Manager features found in your Control Panel to set
passwords, limit access, set file permissions or delete directories or files in a
FrontPage web. This should only be done through the options in FrontPage Explorer.
b) Do NOT use regular FTP (such as WS_FTP) to upload files to the server when FrontPage
extensions are installed. This may corrupt the extensions, disabling the interactive
features available with FrontPage.
NOTE: The exception to this is when loading custom scripts to the cgi-local directory on
your site. Instructions for uploading custom CGI scripts is included in the notice
you will receive when the extensions are installed.
Since FrontPage was created for developing Web sites in the Windows environment, some
features are only available when the site is hosted on an NT Server.
- Active Server Pages
- ODBC and MSSQL Database connections (Access, FoxPro)
- ActiveX
- VBScript
- SSL (Secure Socket Layer) Forms Processing (using the WebBot Save Results component)*
*FrontPage sites hosted on the UNIX Servers may use SSL by sending output from forms
through cgiemail.
Other Resources
You may also find answers on many user issues at Microsoft's Web site, from newsgroups and, of
course, in books on FrontPage.
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