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  1. #1

    Thumbs down IPS - I Provide Sucky Service

    Mazda626.net, an enthusiast forum for Mazda 626 owners has been hosted by Invision Power Service Hosting (the company who makes IP.Board) for about 7 years now. Up until now our only complaints would be the occasional downtime, but this time it's the icing on the cake.

    Recently IP.Board's software has been attacked by spammers, using the PM system to spam all the members on the board. IPS has fixed this issue, and I assumed they would automatically update our site for us. Oh boy was I wrong. Just yesterday our site was down. When inquired about it we got this simple message in a ticket:
    Hello,

    Your account on IPS servers has been suspended for resource usage. The server was taken offline due to a large volume of email being sent out. These emails appear to be from a PM sent to all of your members. The amount of email going out caused the server to go offline. This is not the first time the resources your site is consuming has caused server issues.

    We will be unable to host your site any longer.

    Thank you,

    IPS Hosting Team
    We haven't even received a ticket warning us of the pm spam before today! The prior outages reinstated our site without any explanation, and we assumed they were server-side issues. We serve over 22k members, and essentially IPS is telling us that their software is unable to handle large communities, and that because their software sucks, we should go find other hosting / switch forum software.

    Great job IPS. Thanks for the wasting my $20/month for 200mb of diskspace. YOUR SOFTWARE SUCKS.
    Last edited by smarttart62; 05-08-2009 at 11:17 PM.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2008
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    You host a forum with 22,000 members on a $20 hosting account and you're suprised when they shut you down for affecting other accounts on the server?

    I suggest you find a Dedicated server or a high-end VPS to host your forum from now on. There is no reason you should not be making enough money from that forum to be able to pay for a dedicated/vps hosting solution .
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  3. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
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    Get a backup and find another host. Many shared hosts will have limits on emails for example 500 emails/hour. Consider a VPS or a dedicated server if budget allows.
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  4. #4
    We've had a dedicated and have had issues with getting the DNS moved and under our control to change the nameservers.

    It's not like we haven't invested into dedi's, I personally own a quad-core and we've been meaning to move the forum there, but again, issues with dotster I didn't post in IPS's review.

    I have a backup anyways.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
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    Quote Originally Posted by smarttart62 View Post
    We've had a dedicated and have had issues with getting the DNS moved and under our control to change the nameservers.

    It's not like we haven't invested into dedi's, I personally own a quad-core and we've been meaning to move the forum there, but again, issues with dotster I didn't post in IPS's review.

    I have a backup anyways.
    If you have issues ask in the Technical forum. People are always more than willing to help.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    EU - east side
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    21,920
    IPS is telling us that their software is unable to handle large communities
    No, they're telling you that they can't continue to host you due to your forum's usage. This could have happened with any host.

    We haven't even received a ticket warning us of the pm spam before today!
    That can be a valid point of contention. See if it works, though note they didn't say that the previous issues were about PMs.

    and I assumed they would automatically update our site for us.
    I this sort of action advertised as being part of the service? If so, you may have another argument going in your favor. All you need is to find a reasonable IPS representative.

    We've had a dedicated and have had issues with getting the DNS moved and under our control to change the nameservers.
    If you control the domain, you can eventually sort that issue out, and you're not stuck to shared hosting or IPS. If you need server admin services, you can also start a thread in the appropriate advertising section.

    We serve over 22k members,
    You've got a decently sized community there that's worth fighting for.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Devon, UK
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    Ok, I going to point out to people the difference between the size of the member base, and how many people are online at any given time (ie concurrent users).

    The size of the database means next to nothing with a good web host, the only thing that will force you up the upgrade path is the amount of concurrent users a forum is handling. That is what creates load.

    Shared hosting should be able to support up to 50-60 concurrent users if it's with a good provider, then you should consider moving up the ladder.

    Hope that helps,
    Mike

  8. #8
    Sheesh, tough crowd. I want to just remind everyone that I wasn't getting into details on my part due to the fact that this is a review on IPS. With that said, I'll continue...

    @ldcdc
    If IPB's product is allowed to send a mass PM that causes so much trouble that it can crash a server, how is that not their software's fault? It means their software wasn't intended to communicate with a forum of that vast of a size.

    Furthermore, finding a "decent IPS agent" is like finding a needle in a haystack.

    @Coldkill
    22k members, but only around 20-50 online at the same time.

    @txitcs
    This is a review, I'm not asking for DNS help. The reason the DNS hasn't been moved over is merely due to the lack of cooperation with the previous owner, in addition with what seems like IPS moving our DNS registration out of their service for some reason. We're still working with both to resolve this issue.

  9. #9
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    Mar 2009
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    Quote Originally Posted by smarttart62 View Post
    Sheesh, tough crowd. I want to just remind everyone that I wasn't getting into details on my part due to the fact that this is a review on IPS. With that said, I'll continue...
    Everyone is just simply trying to provide you with reasoning as to why they would have suspended your site.

    @ldcdc
    If IPB's product is allowed to send a mass PM that causes so much trouble that it can crash a server, how is that not their software's fault? It means their software wasn't intended to communicate with a forum of that vast of a size.
    They have a feature...a) doesn't mean you HAVE to utilize it. b) isn't necessarily there for you to send 22k PM's to EVERY user, but rather just a couple.

    I don't use IPS, but I'm sure it has a way to disable sending mass PM's just like vB does. WHT has mass PM's disabled. Take a guess as to why.


    @Coldkill
    22k members, but only around 20-50 online at the same time.
    A VPS would be ideal for you and your site.

    @txitcs
    This is a review, I'm not asking for DNS help. The reason the DNS hasn't been moved over is merely due to the lack of cooperation with the previous owner, in addition with what seems like IPS moving our DNS registration out of their service for some reason. We're still working with both to resolve this issue.
    I'm well aware this is a review. You made it sound like you were having issues setting up the DNS, so I was supplying you with a way to help get the issues fixed. Forgive me for misunderstanding, and apparently hitting a soft spot.


    Usually when people post negative reviews of web hosts WHT users try and assist them by giving them advise. You're in no way forced to take this advise, but theres no reason to get upset about it. We're just trying to be friendly and help.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
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    47
    Quote Originally Posted by smarttart62 View Post
    @ldcdc
    If IPB's product is allowed to send a mass PM that causes so much trouble that it can crash a server, how is that not their software's fault? It means their software wasn't intended to communicate with a forum of that vast of a size.
    The PM functionality would work fine if you were on a system that had the power to process it. This is not a flaw in their software, it is a limitation of the plan you have with them.

    You can't take a Ford Fiesta to a race track, and expect it to perform well next to a Ferrari - It doesn't mean they are in the same class just because they both have 4 wheels and an engine.

    Regards,
    Danny.

  11. #11
    Sorry if I seemed harsh, on the contrary I just wanted to clear some things up.

    Anyways, we have a dedi and we're working to get the DNS moved as we speak. Something you may not be aware of is the Mass PM patch which was a response to the issues which lead to take-down.
    We have received numerous reports from clients regarding spamming on the Personal Message (PM) system in IP.Board 2.3.6 and below. After consulting with reCaptcha (the provider of the captcha system in 2.3.6) we believe that humans are being used to bypass the captcha and then the newly created account is given to an automated script which sends PMs in huge quantities to your members.

    The patch we have released today introduces a flood control setting to the PM system in IP.Board 2.3.6. This will limit how fast a member can send PMs thereby giving you and your moderators time to ban the offending account.
    They didn't have a flood control system up until a month (at the latest) before we were taken down. We couldn't apply the patch due to the 200mb limit imposed on our account, and were unaware that it was happening.

  12. #12
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    Like I said, in the next host you go to you should disable sending mass PM's, or limit the number of people to like 5 or something.

  13. #13
    Join Date
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    I would actually recommend Shared Hosting. Find a good provider and 20-50 concurrent users is fine.

    Sorry if I sounded rude but my comments were directed towards people recommended a dedicated server when the OP doesn't need it. Sure a dedicated server would suit any site and allow it to run quickly etc, but does it really need it? In this case, I would say no.

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Coldkill View Post
    I would actually recommend Shared Hosting. Find a good provider and 20-50 concurrent users is fine.

    Sorry if I sounded rude but my comments were directed towards people recommended a dedicated server when the OP doesn't need it. Sure a dedicated server would suit any site and allow it to run quickly etc, but does it really need it? In this case, I would say no.
    A dedicated would be a bit overkill, but I think a VPS would be ideal. It gives them plenty of room to grow and reduces the possibility of another host cutting them off.

  15. #15
    Join Date
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    Yup, move over to a VPS, you have outlived the shared environment!
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  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by smarttart62 View Post
    Sheesh, tough crowd. I want to just remind everyone that I wasn't getting into details on my part due to the fact that this is a review on IPS. With that said, I'll continue...
    The responses seemed harsh because you didn't do a very good job of separating IPS (the forum software) and IPS (the hosting provider). Although you get both products from the same provider they are in fact two distinct products where you seem to have written a generalized blanket review.

    I do understand your frustrations and I'm not trying to give you a hard time - just telling it like I see it.

    Quote Originally Posted by smarttart62 View Post
    @ldcdc
    If IPB's product is allowed to send a mass PM that causes so much trouble that it can crash a server, how is that not their software's fault? It means their software wasn't intended to communicate with a forum of that vast of a size.
    If you allow one single message to go out to hundreds or thousands of addresses and there is an option to disable that in the control panel then it falls on you. If there is no option to limit the maximum recipients then it would fall on the forum software but then again that would be IPS (software) not IPS (host).

    Quote Originally Posted by smarttart62 View Post
    @Coldkill
    22k members, but only around 20-50 online at the same time.
    A decent VPS or just about any not-super-low-end dedicated server should be able to host the forum just fine.

    Quote Originally Posted by smarttart62 View Post
    @txitcs
    This is a review, I'm not asking for DNS help. The reason the DNS hasn't been moved over is merely due to the lack of cooperation with the previous owner, in addition with what seems like IPS moving our DNS registration out of their service for some reason. We're still working with both to resolve this issue.
    When you discuss an issue that is hosting related on a hosting forum you're bound to get those who want to help or make suggestions.

    Quote Originally Posted by txitcs View Post
    Like I said, in the next host you go to you should disable sending mass PM's, or limit the number of people to like 5 or something.
    From the sounds of it, it wasn't that a limit wasn't set on the amount of users PMed at once but no flood control on sending PMs. So maybe there was a limit to only allow 1 recipient at a time but you could do it hundreds of times per minute which sort of defeated the limitation.

    Good luck, let us know how things work out for you.
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  17. #17
    Thanks for the help again guys. It's an interesting story because we just acquired the site but I do in fact run a small hosting business and own a quad-core dedi server that it will be hosted at.

    Thanks again for all the help though! IPS was nice enough to give us a redirect to our new site while we're still sorting out the DNS issue.

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