General FAQ
Where can I pay my invoice online by credit
card?
Who do I contact with my billing questions?
Where is sample code for ASPMail?
How much SQL Server space do I get?
How do I utilize RichTextBox and the shared License?
What is a POP email account?
How do I set up a POP account in the webmail interface?
What mail server should I use to send email
via my website?
Where is sample code for ASPEMail?
Where can I find more information on the shared
COM objects?
How do I set up a default mail address
(for mail that doesn't match a valid address)?
How can I create a DSNless OLE
DB connection to Access?
Where is sample code for ASPUpload?
How do I configure my email client?
I'm getting a 500 error - The page cannot be displayed.
What's wrong?
How do I move my domain name to ORCS Web?
What is a sample SQL Server connection
string?
How can I access my email from the web?
How do I enable SMTP Authentication in Outlook/Outlook
Express?
I have enabled SMTP Authentication but it keeps
prompting me for a password.
Why do I see "No Items" in Database List?
My SSL will be expiring soon. How do I begin
the renewal process?
I would like to set up an SSL certificate, how
do I go about
this and what are the costs involved?
How do I backup my Database using DTS?
How do I configure my ASP.NET application to use
WSE 2.0?
How do I change the password on my SQL Server
Username?
I want to be able to access email addressed
to more_sales@[domain].com
with an existing POP (sales@[domain].com) account. How
do I do that?
What is the AOL Blocking/Whitelisting Process?
Do you support 3rd party and custom components?
How do I read email headers?
Where can I pay my invoice online by credit card?
You can make credit card payments safely and securely online at:
https://www.orcsweb.com/payonline
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AOL - Blocking/Whitelisting Process:
AOL has instituted various email blocking processes in their response to the growing spam problem. One of their policies is that if they receive too many complaints
in a given period of time from their customers, they will block mail from the sending
mail server.
The AOL policy is such that it doesn't matter if their customer registering
the complaint initially requested the mailing. Once the criteria is met, the sending
mail server gets blocked. To minimize the risk of AOL blocking our mail server,
we notify our clients of any complaints received from AOL and request that the AOL
address be removed from their mailing lists.
We recommend that mailing list sign
up processes use a double opt-in to ensure that all sign ups are legitimate. We
also recommend that the actual email messages sent out include a way to identify
the recipient, since AOL does not provide the email address of the customer that
complained; they only provide the message itself.
AOL maintains a "whitelist" process associated with their spam filtering for bulk
mailers. We will be applying for "whitelist" status on behalf of our clients, and
need everyone to be aware of AOL requirements included in this program.
A number
of rules have to be complied with and attested to, to be "whitelisted" by AOL. Bulk
messages must:
- Be RFC compliant -
http://www.rfc-editor.org
- Comply with the CAN-SPAM act of 2003 -
http://www.spamlaws.com/federal/108s877.html
- Comply with AOL's "community guidelines" -
http://legal.web.aol.com/aol/aolpol/comguide.html
- Comply with other AOL rules, such as "Bulk mailings must specifically state how
the AOL members' e-mail addresses were obtained and must indicate the frequency
of the mailing. Such details as the date and time when the e-mail address was obtained
along with the IP Address of the subscriber and the web site they visited to sign-up
must be made available to AOL upon request."
Click here to review details of the AOL "whitelist" program.
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What mail server should I use to send email via my website?
When sending from your website, use 'localhost'. Each web server is configured to
handle its own mail. Please do not use any of our POP mail servers as they are dedicated
for POP and SMTP, and not meant for website generated email.
Sample code for various components can be found here:
- ASP.NET
http://www.orcsweb.com/articles/aspnetemail.aspx
- ASPNetEmail
http://www.orcsweb.com/articles/emailasp.aspx
- ASPMail
http://orcsweb.com/support/faq.aspx#ASPMAIL
- ASPEmail
http://orcsweb.com/support/faq.aspx#ASPEMAIL
- CDOSYS
http://www.orcsweb.com/articles/cdosys_cdonts.aspx
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Who do I contact with my billing questions?
You can direct all billing related questions to:
billing@orcsweb.com
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How do I utilize RichTextBox and the shared License?
ORCS Web has made a shared license available for RichTextBox. To accommodate the
licensing method with version 2.0, this is placed in the GAC. This means that there
shouldn't be a copy of the DLL placed in the /bin folder of individual sites. For
development purposes,
click here and download the evaluation version.
The download provides all the features of a purchased copy of the Server
Professional Edition and will work for at least 30 days. If you want a
version without a time limit, you can purchase it here. For more information, see v3.0 Release notes
Click here for demos and code examples
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Where is sample code for ASPMail?
Set Mailer = Server.CreateObject("SMTPsvg.Mailer")
Mailer.FromName = "Your Name"
Mailer.FromAddress= "YourEmailAddress@YourDomain.com"
Mailer.RemoteHost = "localhost"
Mailer.AddRecipient "User Name", "UserEmail@SomeDomain.com"
Mailer.Subject = "This is the message title"
Mailer.BodyText = "This is the message body"
if Mailer.SendMail then
Response.Write "Mail sent..."
else
Response.Write "Mail send failure. Error was "
Response.Write Mailer.Response
end if
Set Mailer = nothing
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How much SQL Server space do I get?
Our Platinum Shared Hosting Plan gives you 500 MB of shared SQL space. This is the amount of space that you have available for actual data - we
do not count space occupied by transaction logs. We also do not set a "hard limit"
on the SQL space. If you run over your limit you will be notified via email that
you should update your account or adjust the data to fall back within the limits.
(Most other hosts set this as a "hard limit" such that when the limit is reached
your application would generate errors.)
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What is a POP email account?
A POP email account is an actual e-mailbox that will store messages until you decide
to retrieve them. Messages can be sent and received from either a provided web interface
or from any standard mail client software.
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I need to set up a POP mail account called sales@[domain].com. How do I do this?
- Log into your assigned mail server using the administrator username and password assigned to you.
- Hover over "Settings" at the top
- Select "Email Accounts"
- Click on "Add User"
- Create the user with the settings you prefer. (Username and password/confirm password
are the required fields.)
- Click "Save"
- You now have a POP account for the email address that you created.
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How do I enable SMTP-AUTH (authentication) in Outlook and/or Outlook Express?
- Select "Tools" on the menu bar
- Select "Accounts"
- Select "Properties" In the Mail Tab
- Note - if there are multiple account entries, Highlight/Select the entry for ORCS
mail
- Select "Servers Tab"
- Verify "Account name" and "Password" are entered
- Verify "Remember Password" is checked
- Check "My server requires authentication" (below "Outgoing Mail Server")
- Click Apply
- Click OK
- Click Close
Your mail client is now configured to support SMTP-AUTH - which is a security method
used to deter spammers.
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I have enabled SMTP Authentication but it keeps prompting me for a password.
Make sure that your username is less than ten characters. There seem to be some
issues with authenticating long usernames.
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Where is sample code for ASPEMail?
Set Mail = Server.CreateObject("Persits.MailSender")
Mail.Host = "localhost"
Mail.From = "YourEmailAddress@YourDomain.com"
Mail.FromName = "Your Name"
Mail.AddAddress "UserEmail@SomeDomain.com", "User Name"
Mail.Subject = "This is the message title"
Mail.Body = "This is the message body"
On Error Resume Next
Mail.Send
If Err < 0 Then
Response.Write "Mail send failure. Error was "
Response.Write Err.Description
else
Response.Write "Mail sent..."
End If
Set Mail = nothing
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Where can I find more information on the shared COM objects?
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How do I set up a default mail address (for mail that doesn't match a valid address)?
This is called a "Catch-All".
Please note that spammers take advantage of Catch-All's and spam volume is generally
higher for a domain with a Catch-All configured.
- Log into your assigned mail server using the administrator username and password assigned to you.
- Hover over "Settings" at the top
- Select "Email Accounts"
- Ensure that you have already created an Alias where the Catch-All will point to.
You can create a new one for this purpose or you can use an existing one.
- Click on "Set Catch-All"
- In the drop down box, select the Alias that the Catch-All will go to.
- Click "Save".
- Only Aliases are listed. If you want to set the Catch-All to forward to your User
account, first create an Alias which points to your User account, and then set that
Alias as the Catch-All.
- Now all email addressed to an email address that isn't a User/POP Account or an
Alias will be sent to the Catch-All Alias.
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How can I create a DSNless OLE DB connection to Access?
You can place the code below into your global.asa file to build a OLE DB DSNless
connection string for an Access database. Once this code is in the global.asa, you
can use the value stored in Application("ConnString") as your connection string.
Sub Application_OnStart
Dim sWebPath
Dim sDbPath
Dim sConn
sWebPath = Server.MapPath("\")
sDbPath = "\database\MyDatabase.mdb"
sConn = ""
sConn = sConn & "Provider=Microsoft.Jet.OLEDB.4.0;"
sConn = sConn & "Data Source=" & sWebPath & sDbPath & ";"
sConn = sConn & "User Id=admin;"
sConn = sConn & "Password=;"
Application("ConnString") = sConn
End Sub
Click here for more information about connection strings.
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Where is sample code for ASPUpload?
FORM PAGE:
<HTML>
<BODY BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF">
<FORM METHOD="POST" ENCTYPE="multipart/form-d " ACTION="Upload.asp">
<INPUT TYPE=FILE NAME="FILE1"><BR>
<INPUT TYPE=FILE NAME="FILE2"><BR>
<INPUT TYPE=FILE NAME="FILE3"><BR>
<INPUT TYPE=TEXT NAME="DESCRIPTION"><BR>
<SELECT NAME="CATEGORY" MULTIPLE>
<OPTION>Image
<OPTION>Text
<OPTION>Source Code
<OPTION>Archive
</SELECT><BR>
<INPUT TYPE=SUBMIT VALUE="Upload!">
</FORM>
</BODY>
</HTML>
UPLOAD.ASP
Set Upload = Server.CreateObject("Persits.Upload.1")
' Upload files
Upload.OverwriteFiles = False ' Generate unique names
Upload.SetMaxSize 1048576 ' Truncate files above 1MB
Upload.SaveVirtual "\test\upload"
' Process all files received
For Each File in Upload.Files
' Move to a different location
File.CopyVirtual "\test\copyfolder\" & File.ExtractFileName
File.Delete
Next
' Display description field
Response.Write Upload.Form("Description") & "<BR>"
' Display all selected categories
For Each Item in Upload.Form
If Item.Name = "Category" Then
Response.Write Item.Value & "<BR>"
End If
Next
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How do I configure my email client?
To configure an email client such as Outlook Express to check your ORCS Web email:
- Set both the SMTP and POP mail server names to 'mail.orcsweb.com' or 'mail3.orcsweb.com'
(please check your 'Welcome Aboard' email from us to confirm your mailserver).
- Make sure your username is set to your entire email address
- NOTE: If you are using Netscape Mail, replace the @ with %. For example, a valid
username in Netscape Mail would be
webteam%orcsweb.com.
- Enable SMTP Authentication
- NOTE: This is enabled by default in Netscape Mail. Click here to see how to enable it in Outlook or Outlook Express.
These are the only settings specific to ORCS Web. There may be additional configuration
needed depending on your email client software. Please consult the company that
provides your email software, or send an email to
webteam@orcsweb.com, if you have
any troubles.
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I'm getting a 500 error - The page cannot be displayed. What's wrong?
IE 5.x returns a 500 error message as a generic response. To see the real error,
do the following:
From inside Internet Explorer:
Choose Tools
Internet Options
The Advanced Tab
Clear the checkbox from "Show Friendly HTTP Error Messages"
Then visit the same URL to see what the actual error is caused by.
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I want to be able to access email addressed to more_sales@[domain].com with an existing
POP (sales@[domain].com) account. How do I do that?
Log into your assigned mail server using the administrator username and password assigned to you.
Hover over "Settings" at the top
Select "Email Accounts"
Click on "Add Alias"
Create the Alias with Alias Name and Emails that you prefer.
You can have the Alias sent to multiple recipients. To do so, press Enter between
each one so that each recipient is on its own line.
Click "Save"
You now have an Alias account that forwards to 1 or more email addresses. An Alias
can forward to another Alias.
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Why do I see "No Items" in Database List?
Sometimes clients may experience timeouts or see a BLANK database when connecting.
This is usually caused by either a slow Internet connection, or congestion on the
Internet somewhere along the path between your location and the database server.
If you are having problems connecting, make sure you:
- Uncheck "SHOW SYSTEM DATABASE AND SYSTEM OBJECTS" in your connection to help
speed up the viewing of your databases.
- Have access to port 1433 through any ISP, firewall, or proxy server you are running
through.
- Connect through an ISP that DOES NOT throttle traffic on non-HTTP ports.
- Increase your LOGIN TIMEOUT under OPTIONS in Enterprise Manager.
If all else fails, highlight the databases folder and refresh the view (this could
take several minutes to refresh) or disconnect and try reconnecting.
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How do I move my domain name to ORCS Web?
You should visit the register that you used to acquire your domain name - often
www.networksolutions.com,
www.godaddy.com or
www.register.com - then update the domain record
with the information below:
- Primary Name Server
- ns3.orcsweb.com
- 66.129.68.13
- Secondary Name Server
- ns4.orcsweb.com
- 66.129.68.14
Once the record is updated then the "root" name servers are updated usually within
12 hours. It then takes a day or two for all of the DNS servers on the Internet
to update their cache records to reflect the new location.
If you have any trouble with this process, please contact us at
webteam@orcsweb.com for assistance.
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What is a sample SQL Server connection string?
You can place the code below into your global.asa file to build a OLE DB DSNless
connection string for an SQL Server database. Once this code is in the global.asa,
you can use the value stored in Application("ConnString") as your connection string.
Replace <server name or ip> with the name or the IP address of the database
server.
Replace <database name> with the name of the actual database on the database
server.
Replace <username> with your database logon name.
Replace <password> with your assigned password.
Sub Application_OnStart
Dim sConn
sConn = "Provider=sqloledb;"
sConn = sConn & "Data Source=
,1433;"
sConn = sConn & "Network Library=DBMSSOCN;"
sConn = sConn & "Initial Catalog=
;"
sConn = sConn & "User ID=
;"
sConn = sConn & "Password=
;"
Application("ConnString") = sConn
End Sub
More information about connection strings can be found at:
http://www.able-consulting.com/ADO_Conn.htm
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My SSL will be expiring soon, how do I begin the renewal process?
You will need a renewal CSR from the server in which your site is hosted. You cannot
use the CSR from your current SSL. Please send your request for a renewal CSR to
webteam@orcsweb.com
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I would like to set up an SSL certificate, how do I go about
this and what are the costs involved?
The process is very simple and done with no additional charge from ORCS Web:
- Send an email to webteam@orcsweb.com
requesting a CSR.
- We will generate the CSR from the server that your site will be hosted on and
email it to you.
- You will submit the CSR to the certificate vendor that you choose. Such vendors
as www.geotrust.com,
www.thawte.com,
www.verisign.com
- The certificate vendor then processes and issues the SSL certificate.
- The SSL will be sent to you by the vendor or it can be sent directly to us if
you have us listed as a technical contact. *(If it is sent to you, please send it
in an email to us as an attachment.)
- We will send you an email once we have installed the SSL. You can start using
https:// to call pages in your code that you would like secure.
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How do I backup my Database using DTS?
- In Enterprise Manager right click your database and select "All Tasks" then "Export
data...". The DTS wizard will open.
- In the "Choose a Data Source" window leave the settings as default and click
"Next".
- Select the destination server. If the server is local then you can leave the
"Use Windows Authentication" selected. If the server is not local then you will
need to select "Use SQL Server Authentication" and enter your password. Select the
database your are exporting to and click "Next".
- In the "Specify Table Copy or Query" select the third option "Copy objects and
data between SQL server databases" and click "Next".
- For a backup copy, you can leave the default settings on the "Select Objects
to Copy" window. You can also select individual objects by clearing the checkbox
for "Copy all objects" then clicking "Select Objects".
- In the "Save, schedule, and replicate package" window, leave "Run immediately"
and click "Next" then "Finish"
Additional Notes
a. If you get an error saying "The login 'SQL_username' does not exist.", then you
will need to create a DBO user account on the destination server that matches the
source user account.
b. If you want to DTS your tables but they are owned by your DBO user account instead
of "DBO" then in the "Specify Table Copy or Query" window of the DTS wizard, select
the first option "Copy table(s) and view(s) from the source database". Select the
checkbox in the source column then manually change the username to "DBO" in the
Destination column.
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How do I configure my ASP.NET application to use WSE 2.0?
- The component has been registered in the GAC so you will not need a copy of the
component in your /bin folder.
- The below code will need to be in your web.config file:
<configuration>
<system.web>
<webServices>
<soapExtensionTypes>
<add type="Microsoft.Web.Services2.WebServicesExtension,
_
Microsoft.Web.Services2, Version=2.0.1.0, Culture=neutral,
_
PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35" priority="1" group="0"/>
</soapExtensionTypes>
</webServices>
</system.web>
</configuration>
-
Click here to download a copy of WSE 2.0.
This download also contains
sample code. You will have the option to install the sample code during the setup wizard.
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How can I access my email from the web?
Email is accessible on the web using your assigned mail server. If you are not sure what it is, please
email us.
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How do I change the password on my SQL Server Username?
Most security experts' recommendations include changing passwords frequently to
enhance security. It is easy to change the password on a SQL Server Username via
Query Analyzer. Changing the password with Query Analyzer makes it easy to coordinate
changing the password on the database server at the same time as it is changed in
the connection string. This approach provides the flexibility to change the password
at the most appropriate time for the application.
To change the SQL Server Username password, just connect to the database with Query
Analyzer using the SQL Server Username that is being updated and the current password.
Then run "sp_password" to change the password.
sp_password [ [ @old = ] 'old_password' , ]
{ [ @new =] 'new_password' }
[ , [ @loginame = ] 'login' ]
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?
Here is a simple example that changes the current password from
"currentPSWD" to "newPSWD";
sp_password 'currentPSWD', 'newPSWD'
Be sure to use a strong password, "newPSWD" is just an example. I always like to
test any change like this right away. For a quick test to confirm that the new password
is working, close Query Analyzer and then re-connect with the new password. That
is all there is to it, except for changing your connections string. It is obvious,
but still critical to remember to change the password in your connection string
if this SQL Username is used in your code. Once the password has been changed and
tested with Query Analyzer, update the connection string with the new password and
test that everything still works correctly, and you're done.
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Do you support 3rd party and custom components?
Yes, we support both 3rd party and custom components. Click here for a list of
shared components included
in the price of our Platinum Shared Hosting Plan.
When installing 3rd party or custom components, please consider the following guidelines
for final approval.
3rd Party Components:
- This is available for our shared plan.
- You must provide the license.
- We will do the installation of the component and any necessary upgrades free of
charge.
- We must be able to install the component via a COM+ package. We do not allow regsvr32
registration on our shared servers due to stability and performance concerns.
Custom Components:
- We must first validate the component to ensure that it is acceptable to run on our
shared servers.
- We must receive your approval of the $25 installation fee as well as any necessary
upgrades at a fee of $25 each upgrade.
- We must be able to install the component via a COM+ package. We do not allow regsvr32
registration on our shared servers due to stability and performance concerns.
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How do I read email headers?
One of the great things about email is that there is header information included
with almost every email message with valuable information about what happened between
the time the message was sent and when it arrived at its destination.
The mail headers include information regarding how a message was delivered. These
include the SMTP Servers involved in the delivery, the time the message was received
on each SMTP Server along the way, the IP Address of the sending server, and often
the To Address on the message. The Received Headers can be very helpful in determining
the origin of a message or the cause of delivery delays, for example.
A Received Header is added to an email message when it is received by an SMTP Server.
This results in the Received Headers being in essentially reverse order; the last
Received Header added is the first on the list (on top). To interpret the Received
Headers, read from the bottom (first Received Header) up to the top (last Received
Header).
To view the Received Headers for a message:
A. Using Outlook - right-click on the message and select "Options". Full internet
headers, including the Received Headers are shown at the bottom in the "Message
Options" window.
B. Using Outlook Express - right-click on the message and select "Properties". The
message headers are shown on the "Details" tab, "Internet headers for this message".
C. Using SmarterMail web interface - select the message and click on "Header" in
the upper right-hand corner; the message headers are displayed.
D. Other mail tools have a similar method to find the email headers.
Here is a sample of a typical message’s Received Headers:
Sample Received Headers
(#3) Received: from spam.orcsweb.com [66.129.69.48]
by mail3.orcsweb.com
with SMTP; Mon, 6 Mar 2006 10:40:40 -0500
(#2)Received: from wksmmiller1.Austin.Winternals.Com (unknown [207.235.38.2])
by mailfilter.orcsweb.com (Spam Firewall) with ESMTP id 974961160
for <david@orcsweb.com>; Mon, 6 Mar 2006 10:40:39 -0500 (EST)
(#1)Received: from mail pickup service by wksmmiller1.Austin.Winternals.Com with
Microsoft SMTPSVC; Mon, 6 Mar 2006 09:40:37 -0600
Reading from the bottom-up:
A. Received Header #1 - indicates that the message was
received by the senders SMTP server, wksmmiller1.Austin.Winternals.Com on March
6, 2006, at 09:40:37 -0600 (GMT -6 hours).
B. Received Header #2 - indicates that
the message was then received from wksmmiller1.Austin.Winternals.Com by mailfilter.orcsweb.com
on March 6, 2006, at 10:40:39 -0500 (EST). Meaning the message was received on our
spam firewall 2 seconds later.
C. Received Header #3 - indicates that the message
was then received from spam.orcsweb.com by mail3.orcsweb.com on March 6, 2006 at
10:40:40 -0500. Meaning the message was received on the mailbox server 1 second
later. 66.129.69.48 it the IP Address of spam.orcsweb.com, the spam firewall.
Learning the basics of reading email headers can quickly prove itself worthwhile. Hopefully
this walkthrough has been helpful.
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