Q. What is a VPS?
A: VPS (Virtual Private Server) hosts are comprised of several isolated server environments hosted on one larger partitioned server. A VPS functions essentially as it is own standalone server since each user will have root and full control over everything running on their environment. As far as support goes, it will essentially handle the same way the company handle the company-dedicated servers. cPanel clients will have fully managed support and clients who do not choose a control panel will have limited support (i.e. hardware, major operating system issues, etc.)
Q. What is Virtuozzo?
A: Virtuozzo is a proprietary system & control panel to host VPS’s access much like WHM/cPanel used for shared/reseller hosting. It will provide the HostGator Team on the administrative side with a control panel and will provide the users with a more limited set of functions on their own “Power Panel”. Virtuozzo used to manage the container. With it, the user can start, stop, reboot, reload and do many other things to its VPS container itself. The user can also view resource usage or restart services as well as install new software. The user will still however need to use cPanel/WHM to create new accounts or add new domains to its account. Virtuozzo is just for maintaining the container; cPanel/WHM still used for most day-to-day account functions.
Q. How does the user access Virtuozzo Power Panel?
A: To access the Virtuozzo Power Panel, the user should go to the following URL https://(SERVER_IP_HERE):4643 and Login with the user root (root is the Linux super user), and the password sent to the user in its welcome e-mail.
Q. How many clients will host on a single VPS server?
A: This will vary highly depending upon the weighting system that the company uses to ensure that servers are not oversold. The user needs not to worry. The company will provide the user with a nice, stable environment to house its VPS’s
Q. How does the user view the bandwidth usage for VPS?
A: To view the bandwidth usage on VPS, the user has to login the Virtuozzo Power Panel. VPS bandwidth calculated by billing cycle; not calendar month. Here are instructions on checking the current bandwidth usage for a VPS container:
1. Login to its root VZ on the VPS server (where the container exists).
2. Click on the container hostname under the server hostname, under “Infrastructure” on the left menu.
3. Click on the “Network” tab for the container and then click the sub-tab “Traffic Usage”.
4. Change the “Show Traffic For” to “Period”; and enter the start and end dates of the billing cycle in question (be sure the end date is the day before the next billing renewal date).
5. Leave “Traffic Class” as “All” and change “Traffic Unit” to “GB”.
6. Click the “Update” button.
7. The User will then see the bandwidth usage for both incoming and outgoing connections. Add these together and the user has the total bandwidth usage for the billing cycle in question.
If a container is suspended for being over bandwidth, the user will need either to upgrade to a higher-level package or wait until the next billing cycle for the bandwidth usage to reset.
Q. Should the user go with a VPS or Dedicated Server?
A: This really depends. If the site is newer or is currently on a shared environment, the next natural step is to a VPS. If the site needs its own dedicated environment, it is always possible to upgrade from VPS to a dedicated server once the traffic warrants it. With a dedicated server, the user will have full use of the entire server. A VPS is still a shared solution (albeit one with much more flexibility) and resources are shared with other VPS’s hosted on the server.
Q. What are VPS automatic updates?
A: For VPS customers: Its cPanel updates automatically. The company does kernel updates for the server when they needed, not just for one account, and the company is proactive about it.
Q. What can the user do on a VPS?
A: The user can do anything on a VPS that the user could do on a dedicated server. The only limitation is disk space, CPU, and memory. In most cases, this will not matter. (This is not a solution to overly resource-intensive accounts.)
Q. How can the user order a dedicated IP address?
A: The user needs to contact sales@hostgator.com with this request. The company can sell one IP for $1 per month (it is not necessary to order blocks of 8).
Q: Why does VPS get dedicated IPs cheaper than other HostGator plans?
A: This is a promotional price, and will likely go up to $2 each in the future.
Q. Does the user get reboot request?
A: The user can stop and start its own container via the VZ Control Panel, which is attached to the hardware node, so the problems on the VPS would not prevent the user from getting into its VZ Control Panel. Managed VPS users can still have their container restarted (like a reboot) by submitting this online form.
Q. What do I get with a unmanaged VPS?
A: An unmanaged VPS is any level 1 or 2 VPS or a level 3+ without cPanel, and these come with limited support from HostGator. The following software package is included on all unmanaged VPS accounts.
* Perl – v5.8.8
* Python – Python 2.4.3
* Apache – Apache/2.2.3
* Sendmail – 8.13.8
* MySQL – No
* PHP – No
* Exim – No
* Backups: The Company still backup unmanaged VPS accounts every Sunday.
* Transfers: Unfortunately, unmanaged VPS accounts do not qualify for the free site transfer, the user (the HostGator client) will be responsible for transferring its data.