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  1. #1

    * United Hosting - Service Issues

    What's up with United Hosting these days?! I have recommended them to others for sites that either they do or I am contracted to do - I was getting *great* service. But in the past few months - ever since this move to supposedly better servers - their service has gone down the toilet

    On 2 of my domains - after my domains were moved to new servers, some of my CGI and PHP apps would no longer work. While trying to rectify one of the programs today, I was apparently shut out by their firewall since I was running the configuration wizard in my Gallery program (that had been messed up for some unknown reason) and had FTP open as well (trying to check and or create directories per the wizard).

    I was finally given access again - only to be blocked yet again within 10 minutes. I have not received a reply to my report, nor has anything been fixed. Of course - the ultimate would be for them to have properly moved my domain over so that I wouldn't have to be trying to reconfigure Gallery

    I have also experienced more downtime on my domain since this server move - how disappointing to see this go on after I had been so happy with them. I hope they get their $hit together soon.

    Venting,

    RLynn
    borzoi.cc

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Albany, New York
    Posts
    3,026
    I heard the same thing about them.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2002
    Posts
    645
    RLynn, while it's good to vent, have you contacted their support department. This doesnt sound like they intentionally did this; perhaps they have had an overwhelming volume of tickets since the move.

    We just completed a server move and the volume went up, but nothing that couldn't be taken care of in a timely manner.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2003
    Location
    Australia
    Posts
    365
    These thing happen, I’m sure the owners will get their “$hit together soon” – I understand your frustration though, but venting here only makes their/your situation more difficult, needing to respond to these threads. There reputation is solid on these forums... Don't panic.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    May 2003
    Location
    Sweden
    Posts
    185
    It could be a problem with the new servers, or they just have not had time to get "up to speed" after the move. If they have performed well before, then contact them and ask if this could be the case. Ask them if they have an estimate on when this could be resolved and then consider what to do next.

    I suggest that you give it a while longer and let them work things out as they have been good to you before, but in the end the decision is yours and yours alone.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2001
    Location
    Ohio
    Posts
    8,535
    United Hosting will get ya fixed up. Moving 30 some servers to a private rack with Ev1 will cause some issues. But I'm sure Matt, Simon and Ryan will get the problems fixed soon. Like Matt said in another thread, Short term pain for a long term gain. Once this "painful" period is over, they'll be back running in top shape again.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2002
    Location
    UK
    Posts
    505
    I beg to differ. If he is suffering, and has done so repeatedly, he has every right (even duty) to report it in the public domain.

    A solid reputation should not be a shield against justified criticism if a host stops performing because of a change (and lets face it, usually designed to increase profitability long term).

    We were looking at United, but have help back because of other reports on them. As far as I am concerned this is a plus of this forum.... the ability for people to post their own experiences, even if they are critical of current favorites.

    Hopefully the host will sort themselves out, or give a full explanation fo the specifics here. But slapping a guy down for raising a problem that apparently has not been resolved by the host is not the way forward.

    >> perhaps they have had an overwhelming volume of tickets since the move. <<

    Exactly, That's the host's problem (who initiated the move). The problem should NOT become the customers problem.
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  8. #8
    Join Date
    Apr 2003
    Location
    Atlanta, Jawja
    Posts
    3,074
    Jenni, if you knew what Matt is going through with this migration, you probably wouldn't be so harsh on him, to be honest. I agree that when a mass move is done, pains should be taken to ensure that most of the problems don't happen. HOWEVER, it's next to impossible to eliminate every potential problem in foresight.

    I know Matt and UH will fix the problem, they have way too much of a solid reputation to NOT let it be fixed. To the original Op, I didn't see any notes as to whether you opened a TT or not. Have you tried to resolve this with UH's support team yet?
    Doug Hazard - "retired" Web Hosting Master
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  9. #9
    I don't think Jenni was being harsh on UH, it was more directed at those that said the thread starter should not have voiced his perspective on the move and how it affected him. At least that is how I read her post...

    I sure don't envy Matt with the headaches that must have accompanied this move he undertook, I'm also sure it was for the better in the long run. I'm also pretty confident he'll do what it takes to get things running along smoothly again. That said I also think that the thread starter can discuss the move from his perspective.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    EU - east side
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    21,920
    Yes, the move might even mean that UH will lose a few customers, but I'm sure they'll be back on their feet soon enough. Also I'm sure they'll respond in this very thread to clear things up...

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Aug 2002
    Posts
    645
    Idcdc, yes, but even through a move, losing customers should never be an option. I understand where you're coming from, but taking note of clients problems (as routine as it sounds) should be taken with full effort and noted before the move itself.

  12. #12

    re: UH service down

    Oh yes - I have contacted Support and today filled out 3 different support tickets on 3 different issues.

    First was regarding being locked out by their firewall while trying to fix the Gallery program. They say it's a problem on my end - that their firewall is suspecting a DOS attack? I've done nothing different than I have before and have never had a problem. I work at a university and will work on other web projects while on break or at lunch. I don't work in the IT department and according to a friend who has more experience (although he doens't work in IT either) - nothing has been changed on our servers either. Odd that this would begin in the middle of the day - so it sounds like an issue on their end in regards to the firewall. They need to do something with the settings!!

    Then I get home from work. I had been gone for almost 2 weeks so I tried to download my email via Outlook for the first time in a while. I cannot download anything from my domain

    Then I decided to try and work on the Gallery problem from home - I cannot log into my domain through FTP. Just great I can't do a damn thing - and the response I got from them on the last 2 issues was:

    "If your IP is being blocked by our firewall you will not be able to access anything on the server. The server will not recognise any traffic from your IP."

    Well those problems are from a different #@$&#*@$^ IP!!

    I responded (more politely, I might add) regarding my being on a different IP - but have heard nothing.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    EU - east side
    Posts
    21,920
    even through a move, losing customers should never be an option.
    It's not an option indeed and you have to take care of the customers and try to make the move as seamless as possible, but such a big move without any problems is not to be expected.

    We don't live in an ideal world so one must expect some problems and those problems might determine some of the customers to decide not to use your services anymore. This is a thing that a host must take into account. I was not saying that customer satisfaction should count less while you're moving. Customer satisfaction should always be a top priority.

  14. #14
    All I know is that if I can't get access tonight or download my email, I am taking my newest web design client to a different host. I still haven't heard back and am beyond frustrated and just don't know what else to do

    I am tired of sitting here just receiving error messages that are making my eyes water and causing me to scream out of pure rage

  15. #15
    Originally posted by gryffyn
    All I know is that if I can't get access tonight or download my email, I am taking my newest web design client to a different host. I still haven't heard back and am beyond frustrated and just don't know what else to do

    I am tired of sitting here just receiving error messages that are making my eyes water and causing me to scream out of pure rage
    Give them sometimes and you will be fine.
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  16. #16
    What is interesting to see is how it is non-UH customers who are defending UH.

    When I joined UH a year ago their support was superb - but gradually it has eroded into a completely impersonal system that I found very unfriendly.

    Add to that I had a big disagreement with Matt about bandwidth theft a couple of months back - although I can appreciate that both of us completely underestimated the realities of the specific issue, I still found his attitude very aggressive and quite unacceptable. I had multiple accounts at UH - a reseller, silver, and bronze - but have since moved everything out because I lost confidence in their support service.

    Yes - the server move is no doubt painful, and I can appreciate that there is an immense amount of stress involved - and technical issues to address. But that shouldn't mean sacrificing quality in support.

    Replies to support tickets are practically mono-syllabic, and threads on the support board of their forum are locked without resolution, or moved to other boards for customers to answer, rather than staff.

    A company cannot expect its old reputation to carry it through. Although I would still regard UH as a solid and reliable company for the most part, they could really do with putting emphasis back onto support.

    Matt always seemed like a great guy, but I don't wonder that he maybe he's needed more help on the support side for a while now - not an outsourced solution, but instead, additional staff just for handling customers directly.

  17. #17
    Join Date
    Feb 2002
    Location
    Australia
    Posts
    24,027
    Brian, good honest assessment of a company, from your perspective, not keeping the support levels at their "excellent and friendly" level, as they become larger and more successful. I know from personal experience with HTTPme, that it's not easy to maintain that level of service, as your business gets larger. It is a huge challenge and maybe something that UH needs to take into serious consideration.
    Last edited by Aussie Bob; 04-28-2004 at 05:55 AM.
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  18. #18

    ongoing :(

    It's now 12 hours since my initial contact to them from home - nothing has been fixed


  19. #19
    Join Date
    Jan 2002
    Location
    UK
    Posts
    1,541
    I understand both points of view, we had problems with our server move a while back and i know how frustrating it was for customers BUT we took pains to make sure that nothing was lost, there was minimal downtime and customers were kept informed.

    We may not be as big as UH so i know its harder for them to contact customers but maybe they should be taking on more staff? even just in the short term.
    It could only take a few posts like this to wreck their reputation and i am surprised that someone from UH hasn't replied to this thread yet

  20. #20
    Originally posted by tazd9t9
    i am surprised that someone from UH hasn't replied to this thread yet
    The thread is just over 12 hours old, so it is not that surprising Perhaps Matt or whoever has yet to visit WHT today. I am sure they will reply in time

  21. #21
    Join Date
    Jan 2003
    Location
    Montreal
    Posts
    1,376
    Well maybe they need a bit of help. The migration probably took too much human ressources and no one was able to respond to tickets.

    Matt always said he doesn't want other people to touch his servers (If I remember, correct me if I'm wrong Matt) so I don't think we'll see new staff at UnitedHosting soon.

    Although they are well organized, those problems can occur.

    Best of luck Matt!
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    Proven success since 2001!

  22. #22
    What's doubly frustrating is that the support ticket page will not even work anymore

    So this has been 24 hours since my Outlook email problem, and a minimum of 12 hours since getting blocked by their firewall and not having access to the website either through a browser or via FTP.

    Emails have gone unanswered. The "support" chat isn't up either. I'm sitting here bawling at my desk out of frustration and from just being plain pi$$ed off - I have updates and several pictures to upload and news to post. I can't access anything from either work or home. I cannot believe that the UH service has degraded so much - I am completely losing my faith in them. Unfortunately, it looks like all I can do is vent here

  23. #23
    Join Date
    Jan 2003
    Location
    Australia
    Posts
    365
    [i]Unfortunately, it looks like all I can do is vent here [/B]
    Now I am surprised... I’ve been here @ WHT for a few years... UH have been solid… I guess their expansion is causing major problems.

    But still, I do think this will be resolved soon… I’m not going to use the (their) catch phrase, major pain long term gain… It’s getting old now
    Last edited by desman; 04-28-2004 at 10:02 AM.

  24. #24
    Well I will admit to being *very* surprised as well.

    "Major pain" - definitely! [sigh]

  25. #25
    12-24 hours isn't actually all that unusual in webhosting terms for support - the problem is that, as UH customers, support was something United Hosting had really worked on.

    If there are serious technical issues to address then ther's probably little more to suggest than to sit tight. Perhaps Matt or Simon should have replied quicker regarding this particular problem, but if their support page isn't working, then it suggests a wider problem that they are almost certainly tackling now.

    Although I wasn't keen on the way support had been going when I left UH, I still rate United Hosting as a decent company - I certainly don't doubt their dedication or professionalism.

    I don't think the posts on this thread are going to wreck their reputation - it's simply a tough spot they are going through with such a big server move creating a raft of technical issues to address. I've seen plenty of hosts here go through some degree of technical difficulties, but I've never thought less of them for going through them. The most important part is how they move out from it. Matt and Simon surely have that worked out - it's just getting there.

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