West Coast Host Inc.

| How can i pay for my hosting account/server?

We currently accept Visa, MasterCard, and American Express credit cards for payments. If you would like to ask about a different payment method please contact us.

| How is billing handled?

All packages are billed monthly unless otherwise negotiated with one of our sales reps.

| When will my account be ready?

Our general turn around time is 24 hours or less after your order has been placed and verified.

| What is the difference between a regular hosting account and a virtual server?

A virtual server provides you with the ability to host multiple domains seperately, where as a regular hosting account will only host one site.

| Is there a "control panel" software available with my account?

Our website hosting, and virtual server accounts both come with CPanel™. CPanel will provide you with many options to administer your site with.

| Can I upgrade my account if I need to?

Yes, you will be able to upgrade your account from a basic hosting package to a bigger one, as well as to a virtual server if you needed to.

| Can I transfer an existing domain name to West Coast Host for hosting?

Yes, you will be able to bring all your websites to us if you wanted to. We will help point you in the right direction to transfer the DNs to our servers.

| Will there be any downtime in transferring my domain name to West Coast Host?

If you are transferring a site that has existing hosting then there should be no downtime in making the transfer. You will have the ability to upload your files before the site becomes live off our servers so you can have it setup before the transfer takes place.

| How long does it take before my newly registered domain is active?

Once your domain has been registered and paid for it usually takes 24-72 hours before it is fully active. DNS servers around the world will need to propogate before your domain is available all around the world.

| What is your nameserver information?

Below is the DNS information to give to your registrar to host your domain with our servers:

Primary Name Server: NS1.WESTCOASTHOST.COM
Primary Name Server IP: 66.98.243.64
Secondary Name Server: NS2.WESTCOASTHOST.COM
Secondary Name Server IP: 67.18.40.174

Changes to your DNS usually take 24-48 hours to propogate to all DNS servers in the world.

| Will I be able to access my domain with or without the 'www'?

Yes, you will be able to access the domain address with or without the 'www'. You will also have the ability to setup more subdomains (e.g. store.yourdomain.com).

| Can I bring an SSL certificate I purchased and/or hosted at another host?

Yes. We will ask that you provide everything you were sent when you purchased the SSL certificate so that we may install it into your site and verify that it will work.

| Can I have more than one domain name pointed to my standard hosting account?

Yes. Adding additional domains to your account is no problem. The new domains you add however will sit on top of your current site and cannot be hosted seperately unless you have another account, or a virtual server package.

| Do you support ASP?

Yes. Only on our windows servers.

| Do you support JSP?

Yes. Please ask for this as we will have to turn this on for your website.

Reseller/Virtual Server Questions

| How much money can I make being a reseller?

The amount of money you make with a reseller/virtual server account is almost limitless. With a reseller package you are limited to the size and bandwidth usage your sites can use. As long as you are within these limits you can host as many sites as you want, and charge your clients as much as you want!

| How is technical support handled?

Your clients will talk to you when they have their initial troubles. You can then contact us directly with the problem that they are having and we will do everything we can to resolve their problems. We try to keep the reselling transparent so that your clients do not know you are reselling our services.

| Will I be able to brand the control panel my clients see?

Yes, you will have full control over the branding and looks of the client CPanel. CPanel works off skins so you can create your own new one, or replace images in the current skin with your branding.

| Can I upgrade my reseller/virtual server plan?

Yes you can do this at no cost to you except for the cost of the newer package.

| As a reseller/virtual server do I get my own DNS servers?

Yes, Please let us know so we may set these up for you correctly.

| As a reseller/virtual server can my clients use my own DNS servers?

Yes, once your DNS servers are setup you can ask your clients to start pointing their DNS to e.g. ns1.yourresellerdomain.com

Dedicated Server Questions

| When will my server be ready?

Our general turn around time is 48 hours or less after your order has been placed and verified.

| What comes installed on the server?

We do a standard installation of the Operating System you choose. If you want additional software packages added to your server you must request it. We ask that you request extra packages before you order the server. Clients which order CPanel servers get everything that CPanel includes.

| Can I send you hardware to add to my server?

No, we do not allow customers to add their own hardware to the dedicated servers.

| Are your servers fully managed?

Yes, our fully managed services include, OS updates, security updates, monitoring and more.

| Do I have root access to my server? Can I install my own software after the server is available?

Yes, you will have root access to the server. You may install any software on the machine once it is online. Remember, any 3rd-party software installed will not be supported by our support team.

| Do you monitor my server and notify me of outages?

Yes, all servers are monitored for free with a basic ping. Our tech support team will notify you according to your own escalation procedure.

| Can I purchased ram or a hard drive and have you install it into the server?

No, all hardware components of our rented servers must be property of West Coast Host. You will need to rent the hardware from us and we will install it.

| Do you allow Adult Content on your servers?

Yes, adult content is allowed on our servers.

Miscellaneous Questions

| How do I connect to my Linux server without using a control panel?

SSH is the default way for you to connect to your linux server. If you are trying to access your server from a windows machine you will need an SSH client. We recommend PuTTY for an SSH client. You can download it here. Follow these steps to connect:

Open the program
Enter your IP address in the 'host name' field.
Click 'open'
Enter your username/password when prompted
You should now be logged in and can perform commands under the user you logged in as

| Where are my log files located on my Linux server?

Most logfiles are found in the /var/log directory. However certain program installations may post their logs to a pre-configured directory.

| How do I change my password on my linux server?

To change the password of the user you are currently logged in as type this at the prompt: passwd
Follow the on-screen instructions.
To change another user's password type:
passwd <username>
Follow the on-screen instructions.

| How do I access my CPanel or WHM once the server is online?

WHM
Secure SSL https://<primary IP address>:2087
Regular http://<primary IP address>:2086 and http://<primary IP address>/whm

Cpanel
Secure: https://<primary IP address>:2083
Regular http://<primary IP address>:2082 and http://<primary IP address>/cpanel

frequently asked questions