Erich Stauffer

Tag: Hosting

  • How to Install WordPress on Root Folder & Sub Folder on a Windows IIS Server at Godaddy

    One of my clients uses Windows hosting on Godaddy. They wanted to host a new WordPress website on a new subdomain when a WordPress website was already installed on the their primary domain. I wasn’t familiar with Windows IIS hosting at the time (WordPress is normally hosted on Linux servers), and so gathering this information took several days and a call to Godaddy Support before I figured it all out.

    Here are the 4 steps to install WordPress on a subdomain in Windows IIS in Godaddy when a WordPress installation already exists on the primary domain:

    1. Upgrade to Deluxe or Ultimate Hosting
    2. Setup the Subdomain and Subfolder
    3. Create the web.config file in the Subdirectory
    4. Install WordPress Like Normal

    Godaddy Hosting Control Panel

    1. Upgrade to Deluxe or Ultimate Hosting

    Because they used Godaddy, they first had to upgrade to a deluxe hosting package as the base, “Economy” hosting plan does not allow you to host websites on subdomains. An upgrade was an extra $2 a month. Thanks to Chip O’Toole for this tip.

    2. Setup the Subdomain and Subfolder

    In Godaddy, this is done in the hosting control panel under “Manage Domains”. Click the domain you want to manage, and then create a new subdomain. It will prompt you to create a folder with the same or different name after that. Once a folder is created, go back to the control panel and setup a new FTP user account to access that folder if needed.

    3. Create the web.config file in the Subdirectory

    Once the hosting was upgraded, the subdomain still did not ‘show up’, but simply redirected to the primary domain’s website. To fix that, you have to create a web.config file in the subdirectory you created in step 2. To do that, go back to the hosting control panel and click on “File Manager”. Browse to the subfolder and then click new. Copy and paste the following code:

    [xml]




















    [/xml]

    Thanks to Samrat Saha on the WordPress Forums for this solution, which is based on this “Install WordPress on IIS” tutorial from Microsoft.

    Note:Be sure to change the “www” to your subdomain name, “youranotherdomain.com” to your primary domain name, and “\your\sub…” directory path to the actual path.

    PS. The “R:0” are “back-references to condition patterns“.

    4. Install WordPress Like Normal

    You may not be able to use the one-click install application in Godaddy for a subdomain, but you can still manually install WordPress. First create a MySQL database. Record all of the info from setup such as database name, username, password, and host name. You’ll need all of that to configure WordPress. Next, download the latest installation files from WordPress.org. Unzip the file and upload to your sub-folder using FTP. Once the files have been uploaded, go to [subdomain.primarydomain] and follow the prompts to create a configuration file.

  • How to Host a Website Using a Laptop and a 3G Connection

    Web hosting is best in a redundant, highly scalable, and dependable environment like at 1and1 or Bluehost, but I wondered how successful the other end of that spectrum would be. I didn’t know if a smart phone was capable of hosting a web site, but I knew that there’s not much difference between a laptop and a server besides the mobility. I realize that not all laptops are mobile and that many people use them as desktop replacements, but this article focuses on how you would take a website mobile using a 3G connection.

  • Monthly Website Reports

    Here’s an example of what our customers get from us each month in their Monthly Website Report:

    Good afternoon. I hope your summer is going well. Attached is your monthly Google Analytics report and a special message below.

    A Special Message

    Have you ever thought of an app for your phone that you thought could enhance your business or help your customers? What if there was a way you could see that app come to reality on the iPhone?

    We have recently partnered with a company that develops applications for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch that can be used around the world – for your customers or to turn your idea into profit.

    There are many different reasons why you might want to develop your own app such as a way to help your customers interact with your business (ex. scheduling or bill payment) or maybe it’s a non-business idea you had that you just want to explore to either sell or make money from ads.

    Whatever your ideas are, we’d love to hear about them. What’s your passion? Is there an app for that?

    Depending on your level of service, we may also add the following metrics:

    • Unique visitors
    • Twitter followers
    • Facebook fans

    Don’t have a Twtter or Facebook account? We can fix that up for you to manage for $120 or leave that to us for $60 a month with a six month minimum contract.

  • Self-Hosting Tips for WordPress

    Thinking about hosting your own WordPress domain on your own server? Here are a few things to consider.

    If you use our hosting you are using a linux-based server running WordPress on a SQL database. If you hosted it yourself you would still have to have a linux server with access to a SQL database unless you wanted to convert the site to flat files that could run on any type of server. WordPress is a content management system originally developed for blogging that allows a user to login and make changes to their site, add, or remove content. Flat files are the old way of displaying a web site, which requires manually editing a file, then uploading it via FTP.

    The domain is hosted and registered with 1and1, the largest hosting company in the world. The actual server is in a data center in Kansas City, Kansas. It gets regular maintenance, backups, and has redundant power and cooling systems. We are happy to facilitate the change of your domain, but you should know the requirements of the website first.

    My recommendation is for you or your new IT department to get full FTP and WordPress access to the current account as a first measure followed by signing up for their own hosting account with 1and1, BlueHost, or HostGator (which all support WordPress) before buying and setting up your own Linux server with access to a SQL database. There are other security concerns too to take in consideration when you invite the public into your private network. A capable IT technician should be able to build adequate ‘DMZ’s and firewalls, but the safest, easiest, and cheapest route is to have your own hosting account.

    What we offer is management of a hosted account. This includes keeping WordPresss’ software up to date, checking to make sure your plugins (WordPress programs like web forms) still work properly, checking for uptime, and sending monthly reports. This also allows us to make minor changes to text when you need it. We charge $125 a year for this service. Compare that to buying your own hosting account for $60 a year then having to do all of the maintenance and reporting yourself. If you have the trained manpower and it makes sense to go that route, we will provide the files to do so and unlock your domain when ready. Your IT department would be responsible for pulling the domain over, setting up the SQL database, installing WordPress, and installing the theme. Any assistance to these items would be billed at our $65 an hour rate.

    Just let us know what you decide to do. We are here to help.