Oct 10 2008
FAQ on cPanel Hosting
This announcement is for BizPartner customers only.
If you buy a new Honda Civic, would you want the iDSi or Variable Timing Injection Engine? Can you make a decision?
This question is what a customer threw me after I sent offer to customers to convert their existing hosting to cPanel-based hosting free of charge. How do non-technical people know whether to choose cPanel or not? Just like how would I choose an injection engine if I don’t know what is inside a car 
There have been many similar questions from customers on cPanel. So I suppose I will answer all common questions here. If there is anything else you wish to know, please let me know and I may add below.
What exactly is cPanel?
Just a web-based software to manage your domain name and hosting. Currently you are using webcp to manage your web hosting and mailadmin to manage your email hosting. cPanel? All in one!
What is cPanel so good over the current hosting?
Told you some good features here before. But best if you can try it out for yourself. Please contact me and I’ll send you a trial account right away. Login and experience it for yourself. Those who have tried the demo account have commented it’s very nice and user-friendly. One customer migrated because of its pre-installed content management system (CMS) such as Wordpress and Drupal.
Which version of cPanel are you using?
cPanel 11 - check it here if you like to read the technical document. Below is a screen shot.
What happens to my email accounts after migration to the new server?
It’s a totally new server. You need to recreate your email accounts. But if you can provide me the list of your current accounts, I’ll do it for you.
What happens to my emails then?
If you download all your emails to your PC just before migration, the emails are safe with you. But if you don’t, your emails are still on the old server and can’t be migrated over. So you must download all your emails before DNS is changed.
But if you really need to access the old server to check emails after the migration (only a few days allowed at most), I’ll give you the IP address of your old mail server. You can change the “incoming mail server” setting in your Outlook from pop.domain.com to the IP address. Then you can receive the emails as usual.
What happens to all my settings - FTP, MySQL and so on?
It’s a totally new server. Everything is to be recreated on the new server. I will send you the new server settings.
Will you help me to transfer my web site, database and emails?
Some hosting companies charge you for such help. But I’ll do it free for you. Just let me know your FTP and database settings and I’ll transfer for you.
But I’m doing the physical transfer of files only. I will not be responsible for any web site problem due to difference in server settings. Please consult your web developer first before deciding to migrate or not.
I’m hosting on a Windows server now. Can I still run my web site on the new server?
The new server is a Linux server. If you are using any Windows-specific technologies, such as ASP, ASP.NET and Microsoft Access, your web site will NOT run on the new server.
How long does it take to migrate everything?
Please decide your preferred migration date and time (night time preferred). The next morning you should be able to use the new server.
Is there any downtime during migration?
Yes, there will be. This is due to a process called DNS propagation, which can take a few hours to finish if you are lucky, or one whole day (or night) normally. I have no control over the process. So I suggest you migrate at night time. The next morning everything should turn out fine.
Can I migrate everything myself?
DIY? You are welcome. Just let me know when you want to migrate. I’ll send you the new server settings including the domain name server (DNS) settings. You can then upload your web site and create your email accounts using a temporary cPanel web address. Make sure your web site is running fine at the temporary address.
Then you change the name server to the new settings at the time you want to migrate. After changing DNS, you domain will be down and won’t be able to do anything. Wait until DNS propagation is over, then it’s done!
Will I still get the same hosting package?
You still get the same hosting package you subscribed to. For example, if you purchased the Standard Web & Email Hosting (6GB) on the old server, you will get the same 6GB on the new server.
The only difference in space is that, on the new server, there is no more division between web and email hosting space. You can use 1GB for web and 5GB for email if you like
I want to keep my web hosting (or email hosting) with the current server, but migrate email hosting (or web hosting) to the new server. Can I do so?
Yes you can. Please contact me for technical details.
Until when is this free migration offer valid?
If you are already using our hosting on the old server, you can migrate to the new server anytime when you are ready.
I registered a domain name with you but don’t use your hosting. Can I migrate my web site to the new server?
If you have a domain name with us without our hosting, you can take advantage of this separate offer to get 100MB web & email space free of charge! But the last day of the promotion is TODAY. So act now!
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