Occasionally, the topic of UK Hosting comes up. It is seen in social media and online forums - "Can anyone recommend a good UK host?" - and we sometimes get the direct question here at OrcsWeb. The interesting thing to consider though is that, due to the nature of managed server hosting, it doesn't necessarily matter where the host is physically located.

Managed dedicated server and Windows cloud server hosting is actually location independent. What matters is a managed hosting provider with quality infrastructure, including multiple redundant Internet connections that assure an optimal experience for users worldwide, regardless of their personal location.

At OrcsWeb we have clients in over 70 countries, including some rather large clients in the United Kingdom. One client in particular is credEcard, Ltd. It is a crucial factor for this six-year client that they can rely on the system availability for both uptime and connection speed. Their entire business model - processing financial transactions - depends on a quality managed hosting infrastructure. Being in the financial services business, security is critical, which is why they depend heavily on a tightly controlled PCI compliant hosting solution. This solution assures adherence to industry standards safeguarding credit card transactions.

To find out more about credEcard, their solution, and why OrcsWeb managed hosting in the US is actually a great "UK Hosting" option, read their case study here:

http://www.orcsweb.com/Case-Studies/credEcardLtd.pdf

To find out more about our solutions, check out the links below our contact us at sales@orcsweb.com

Managed Windows Dedicated Server Hosting
Managed Windows Cloud Server Hosting
Managed Shared Windows Hosting

If you would like to speak with a couple of overseas (non-US) client references - which is always a great idea when selecting a key business partner such as a hosting provider - just let us know and our sales team can certainly provide those references for you.

In Managed Windows Server Hosting it is critical for the supporting teams to be current on the latest technologies. At OrcsWeb every one of our support staff are Microsoft certified, some with advanced certifications covering topics like Microsoft Windows, Microsoft SQL Server, Cisco, and others.

Recently Desiree, one of our dedicated support specialists, passed the required tests to upgrade her older SQL Server administrator (MCDBA) certification to the MCITP:Database Administrator 2008 level. As Microsoft states about the MCITP certification level:

"The Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP) certification helps validate that an individual has the comprehensive set of skills necessary to perform a particular job role, such as database administrator or enterprise messaging administrator. MCITP certifications build on the technical proficiency measured in the Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) certifications." Furthermore, MCITP certified professionals "are IT professionals capable of deploying, building, designing, optimizing, and operating technologies for a particular job role. They make the design and technology decisions necessary to ensure successful technology implementation projects."

Desiree spans multiple groups here at OrcsWeb to assist with advanced issues as needed. Clients running Windows cloud servers and physical dedicated Windows servers with SQL Server installed have a further level of comfort and confidence knowing that their support team is comprised of top-notch individuals like Desiree.

To learn more our managed dedicated Windows or Cloud Servers, or our Complete Care Managed Services, contact us at sales@orcsweb.com or 888-313-9421

We recently received an email from long time client Jim McJessy of GolfTech, Inc. It brought so many smiles to our team we just had to share it with you...

"Up on the rooftop I heard such a clatter, I ran to the window to see what was the matter. And what in my wondering eyes do I see but eight Webteam professionals looking down at me. And I heard them exclaim as they rode out of sight, we migrated your broken web server and everything is alright!"

Happy hosting!

Here's a good tip for our managed dedicated server and Windows cloud server hosted clients from Rick, one of our many top-notch support specialists working to assure Remarkable Service and Remarkable Support here at OrcsWeb!

While working on your server you may come across the following error in the Application logs.

Event Type: Error Event Source: Group Policy Local Users and Groups Event Category: (2) Event ID: 8194 Date: 11/26/2011 Time: 6:37:36 PM User: NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM Computer: SERVER1 Description: The client-side extension could not remove computer policy settings for 'Domain Policy Name {SPID}' because it failed with error code '0x8007000d The data is invalid.' See trace file for more details.

For more information, see Help and Support Center at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.

This is usually caused by a corrupt or malformed XML file in the local server's group policy cache. This usually happens when there is a crash or unexpected shutdown of the server while a Group Policy update is taking place.

To resolve this issue, clear the Group Policy cache on the local server and have the Group Policy cache repopulated.

1) Open Windows Explorer 2) Paste %ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Application Data\Microsoft\Group Policy\History in the address bar 3) Delete all the sub folders in that location 4) Open command prompt 5) Type the following gpupdate /force 6) Verify that sub folders have once again shown up in the Group Policy cache location above.

The above clears the Group Policy cache on the server and puts a fresh copy of the Group Policy preferences on the local server.

We provide Windows hosting for some of the largest eCommerce companies, SaaS providers and full service ad agencies in the industry. One of the reasons these companies trust us with their assets is because our solutions meet their needs and don’t involve unnecessary or complicated procedures to do so.

We have extended these benefits to our new clients by making it even easier to sign up with OrcsWeb. The new design allows you to fully customize a cloud server deployment with all the hardware, software and management options.

We feel this newly designed signup process is the nicest of any hosting provider, and makes building complex hosting configurations easier than ever. After signing-up, leave your feedback below to let us know how we can continue to improve this process.

Go ahead! Signup today, it's really easy.

Our people here at OrcsWeb not only geek-out about providing Remarkable Service and Remarkable Support on our dedicated server and Windows cloud server hosting platforms, but on a wide variety of technology - like iPhone's! Jeff has a great tip to share below...

I've been dealing with an unresponsive iPhone 4 Home Button for some time. Clicking the home button registered roughly one out of every 10 clicks. I had a tough time getting to the home screen or getting the task manager to load. During halftime of last night's Pats/Jets game (Go Pats!) I decided to see if I could find a fix for it.

As I suspected, most resolutions were about heading to the Apple store for a replacement or taking apart your iPhone and replacing the home button PCB membrane & flex cable - not a quick or easy fix. I had replaced the battery on my original iPhone once, so I was not really keen on attempting to take apart the phone and I opt'd not to purchase AppleCare so I'm out of warranty. However, I stumbled across this YouTube video that had an easy fix.

The gist of it is that there's a "gunk" build-up around & behind the home button (makes sense - just look at your keyboard). The user recommends using rubbing alcohol to attempt to clean it out and ensure good contact. I gave it a shot as described in the video, and voila! My iPhone 4 now registers every home button click without issue.

More and more managed hosting providers are depending on Windows cloud hosting, 24/7/365 support and up-to-date data centers to get the attention of new agencies. While all these resources are good, they really should be a given with any managed agency hosting provider wanting to be taken seriously.

Today’s agencies are operating at a new level of competition with more demands than ever. It’s not enough to have fast deployment; agencies need to offer instant turnaround. Whether its launching eCommerce apps, proofing sites or anything in between, how do you differentiate a host with good products from the host that will meet your companies individual needs better than anyone else?

The answer: A provider that goes beyond just managed hosting to offer what we call Web Logistics.

Read more...

As we near the end of 2011, it is worth taking a look at the direction of Software as a Service and what we can predict from today’s economy. We have all seen immense SaaS growth. Public IT cloud services spending is expected to grow from $16.5 billion in 2009 to $55 billion in 2014. The IDC predicts SaaS will overtake traditionally packaged software by 2014 and, according to Gartner, SaaS alone is expected to top $20 billion by 2015. Managed Cloud Hosting providers have announced their SaaS cloud hosting growth higher than any other cloud-based service, and on and on.

With all these signs of unbelievable growth, it's important to ask ourselves; is this success attributed to SaaS being a recession-friendly service with lower upfront costs and no long-term commitments, or can we really look to see this new trend become tomorrow's standard?

Read more...

Google continues to expand its reach, and this time, it's showing up in eCommerce. Earlier this month the ever-expanding company announced a new certification program for ecommerce companies, "Google Trusted Stores." From what little that is out so far, we know the basic idea and enrollment requirements, but not much else.

Consumers will be able to quickly view ratings of the eCommerce site based on quality customer service and reliable shipping. The certification is represented with a badge, which will give a letter grade for their rating (Customer service: A, Shipping A+).

What might be even more impressive for online shoppers is Google's customer purchase protection guarantee. Essentially, Google plays the middleman between consumer and vendor when a dispute arises. In their words, "Google will help you resolve the issue, which can include a full refund or item replacement." That full refund is good for up to $1,000.00.

The project is still in beta and eligibility seems rather narrow at this point. We are still waiting to hear what criteria will deem ecommerce vendors eligible. It would be safe to assume PCI compliance will be a staple for companies carrying the Google Trusted Stores badge. The coming months will give us a better indication. As a company specializing in managed eCommerce hosting, we look forward to seeing what the future holds for this potential trend in shopping confidence.

Shopify, an ecommerce platform with a powerful API, recently announced the integration of payment acceptance through Stripe. This addition comes shortly after Stripe comes out of Beta. The newly updated platform allows you to customize your storefront, track and respond to orders, organize products and accept credit card payments from all the major credit cards.

Read more...