Verio Web Hosting Virtual Server Handbook

Blue Reef Internet Services

The Virtual Server Handbook

Blue Reef's Virtual Server System
"Plunge into the Possibilities"

COPYRIGHT © 1999 BLUE REEF CONSULTING, INC.

VIRTUAL SERVER USER’S GUIDE BLUE REEF CONSULTING, INC

Table of Contents
Document Conventions................................................................ 8
1. Introduction ............................................................................. 9
The Virtual Server System vs. Your Own Solution .......................... 10
The "do-it-yourself" approach.................................................. 10
The ISP approach .................................................................... 11
The Blue Reef approach.......................................................... 12
How the Virtual Server System works ............................................. 13
Virtual Servers vs. Virtual Hosting .......................................... 13
Virtual Servers vs. Virtual Hosting– a technical perspective ..... 14
Virtual Server Core Internet Services............................................... 16
The Virtual Server HTTP (Web ) Service................................. 16
The Virtual Server FTP Service ............................................... 17
The Virtual Server POP Service............................................... 17
The Virtual Server IMAP Service ............................................ 17
The Virtual Server SMTP (e-mail) Service............................... 18
The Virtual Server Administrator .................................................... 19
2. Before Getting Started............................................................20
virtserv.bluereef.net......................................................................... 21
Home ...................................................................................... 21
Products .................................................................................. 21
Orders..................................................................................... 21
Technical Support ................................................................... 21
Search............................................................................................22
Customer Service............................................................................23

Services...................................................................................23
Technical Support........................................................................... 24
The Problem Tracking System................................................. 24
3. Getting Started........................................................................26
Understanding your E-mail Configuration Letter ............................. 27
E-mail Configuration Letter Terminology ................................ 28
Registering or Transfering your Domain.......................................... 29
What is a Domain Name? ........................................................ 29
Registering or Transfering Domains with the Order Wizard ..... 29
Other Registration tools on the Blue Reef Virtual Server Site ... 30
Registering Domain Names with InterNIC............................... 30
Administering Servers Remotely ..................................................... 32

http://virtserv.bluereef.net
COPYRIGHT © 1999 Blue Reef Consulting, Inc.

VIRTUAL SERVER USER’S GUIDE BLUE REEF CONSULTING, INC.

Telnet...................................................................................... 32
FTP......................................................................................... 34
Windows File Share ................................................................ 37
GUI Administration Tools ....................................................... 38
The Virtual Server Directory structure............................................. 39
The UNIX file System............................................................. 39
File Ownership and Permissions .............................................. 40
Virtual Server Directories and Files ......................................... 41
Directories outside of the Virtual Server .................................. 43
Basic UNIX commands................................................................... 44
Editing files online .................................................................. 45
4. Managing your Virtual Server with iRoot and iManager ........46
iManager ........................................................................................ 47
Running iManager................................................................... 47
Editing and deleting a File ....................................................... 48
Copying and Moving a File ..................................................... 49
Linking or changing permissions to a File................................ 49
Uploading a New File to your Server ....................................... 50
Making a New Directory ......................................................... 50
Using iRoot..................................................................................... 51
5. Maintaining your Virtual Server .............................................53
Managing Quotas............................................................................ 54
Sample Quota Command......................................................... 54
Exceeding Quotas because of Logs .......................................... 55
Managing the Virtual Server Load................................................... 56
Sample top command .............................................................. 56
Memory and Processes ............................................................ 57
Managing Users .............................................................................. 58
Adding Users .......................................................................... 58
Troubleshooting the Virtual Server.................................................. 60
Checking the quota.................................................................. 60
Checking the log files.............................................................. 60
Checking the processes............................................................ 60
Managing with Cron ....................................................................... 62
Backups.......................................................................................... 66
6. Using the Virtual E-mail Service.............................................67
Protocols......................................................................................... 68
SMTP server ........................................................................... 68
POP server .............................................................................. 68
IMAP server............................................................................ 68
Exploring SMTP server software..................................................... 69

COPYRIGHT © 1999 Blue Reef Consulting, Inc. 3


Commands and Utilities for managing E-mail.................................. 70
Creating E-mail mailboxes .............................................................. 71
Changing E-mail mailbox passwords ....................................... 71
Managing E-mail accounts ...................................................... 72
Configuring E-mail clients....................................................... 73
Aliasing E-mail accounts................................................................. 74
Creating Mailing Lists............................................................. 75
Creating Autoresponders ......................................................... 76
Creating E-mail Address Mappings or Virtmaps.............................. 78
Using Wildcard Mappings ....................................................... 78
Combining Mappings and Aliases............................................ 79
Differences between virtmaps and aliases ................................ 79
Virtmaps Summarized ............................................................. 80
Unsolicited Commercial E-mail ...................................................... 81
Blocking Incoming Spam ........................................................ 81
Maintaining the ~/etc/spammers file ........................................ 81
POP(IMAP)-before-SMTP Relay Blocking.............................. 82
Managing POP-before-SMTP.................................................. 83
Maintaining your E-mail Log File ................................................... 85
7. The Virtual FTP Service ..........................................................86
Naming your Virtual FTP service .................................................... 87
Anonymous and Non-Anonymous FTP.................................... 87
Your Anonymous FTP Directory ............................................. 87
Making customer-accessed directories............................................. 88
Creating Log-in banners and directory messages ...................... 88
Creating Non-Anonymous FTP Accounts ................................ 89
Monitoring Anonymous FTP Activity...................................... 91
8. The Virtual Web Service .........................................................93
Using Virtual Web Server software ................................................. 94
Understanding the Virtual Web Service directory structure .............. 95
Maintaining Virtual Web Server Configuration Files ....................... 96
Learning Apache Directives..................................................... 96
Learning the Server Resource Configuration File (srm.conf)
..............................................................................................103
The Access Control Configuration File (access.conf) ......108
The MIME Types File (mime.types) ..................................109
Using Apache Loadable Modules ...................................................110
Listing Statically-linked modules............................................110
Using Dynamically-Loaded Modules ......................................111
Loading the Dynamically-Loadable Modules ..........................111
Compiling modules ................................................................113

COPYRIGHT 1999 Blue Reef Consulting, Inc. 4


Understanding Virtual Hosting.......................................................114
Limitations of Virtual Hosting ................................................114
Adding and setting up domains ......................................................117
Adding virtual hosts to httpd.conf ...........................................118
Setting up additional options for virtual hosts..........................118
Using Other Resources for Additional Information .........................119
Official Apache Web Site .......................................................119
Additional Apache Sources.....................................................119
9. Managing Server Logs .........................................................120
Configuring Log File Directives .....................................................121
Using the Error Log................................................................121
Using the Transfer Log...........................................................122
Understanding the Agent and Referer Logs .............................123
Analyzing Log Files.......................................................................125
Using WebTrends TM ..............................................................125
Additional Log Analysis Programs .........................................131
Getstats ..................................................................................131
Rotating and Clearing Log Files .....................................................137
10. Creating and Publishing on the web..................................138
Creating web pages ........................................................................139
Using HTML Books.......................................................................140
Using HTML On-line References and Style Guides ........................142
Understanding HTML Editors and Tools ........................................144
Publishing Web Content.................................................................146
Publishing with a HTTP Put capable editor .............................147
Microsoft® FrontPage® .........................................................147
Installing the Extensions on your Virtual Server......................147
Installing FrontPage 98 Server Extensions for Virtual Hosts....148
Connecting to the virtual server with FrontPage ......................148
Publishing a FrontPage Web...................................................149
11. Advanced Web Server Configuration ................................151
The Common Gateway Interface (CGI) ..........................................152
Installing CGI Scripts on your Web Server .............................152
Overcoming Problems with Perl Scripts .........................................154
Troubleshooting "500" Server Errors..............................................155
Common errors ......................................................................155
CGI Security Issues ................................................................156
Handling Multi-Language Web Content .........................................158
Imagemaps.............................................................................160
User Authentication................................................................160
Server Side Include Commands ..............................................160



12. Using Virtual Server Extensions ........................................161
Why mSQL?..................................................................................162
Obtaining mSQL ....................................................................162
Other Database Solutions .......................................................164
What is Miva?................................................................................167
How Does Miva Work? ..........................................................167
Sample Miva Templates .........................................................168
Ongoing technical support ......................................................169
Swish-E .........................................................................................170
Indexing SWISH-E ................................................................170
Using the HTML source for the Search Form..........................175
Installing the Search CGI........................................................176
Excite ............................................................................................178
Installing Excite .....................................................................178
Configuring Excite .................................................................178
Excite Documentation ............................................................179
13. Programming on the Virtual Server ....................................180
The Virtual Server vs. the physical server ......................................181
Scripting on your Virtual Server.............................................182
Creating or testing in the virtual server environment ...............184
Scripting using PERL.....................................................................185
Duplicating the virtual environment........................................185
Common problems and solutions with PERL scripts ...............186
Installing Perl5 Modules on Your Virtual Server.....................187
Programming with Java Virtual Machine ................................191
Understanding Shell Languages .....................................................194
C-shell ...................................................................................194
14. Electronic Commerce .........................................................199
Bolt-on E-Commerce .....................................................................200
Features and Benefits .....................................................................201
Design & Build ......................................................................201
Advanced E-commerce...........................................................201
Back Room Services...............................................................202
Secure Transactions................................................................202
System Architecture & Support ..............................................202
System Requirements .............................................................203
Demo Store ............................................................................203
iSTORE Service Level Pricing ...............................................203
Reseller Opportunity ..............................................................203
Ordering.................................................................................203
Other Turnkey E-Commerce Solutions ...........................................204



A Secure Server (SSL and Secure Server ID’s) .......................204
PGP ...............................................................................................209
PGP Installation and Configuration.........................................209
Basic HTTP Authentication............................................................210


VIRTUAL SERVER HANDBOOK BLUE REEF CONSULTING, INC.

Document Conventions
This user’s guide uses the following conventions:
♣ Commands are always shown in code font or bold code font
if found within a paragraph
♣ User supplied variables are usually in italics
♣ Terminal sessions, scripts, and file contents are in screen font
♣ "yourdomain.com" means the domain name of your virtual server.
♣ Items in royal blue are hyperlinks.
♣ Many commands are explained as if you were entering them from a
telnet command prompt. The command prompt would look something
like this: "virtualserver {1}% command." For simplicity this guide
will show this simply as "% command."


BLUE REEF VIRTUAL SERVER HANDBOOK Chapter 1 - Introduction

Chapter

1
Introduction
Blue Reef Consulting, Inc. now offers the Virtual Server System, a unique
technology that enables companies to create their own Internet presence as
though they had their own dedicated server. The Virtual Server System is more
than just a hosting solution; it is a complete Internet server solution, giving
each web site its own Web, FTP and E-mail capabilities.
This guide contains reference and procedural information that enables you
to fully use the Virtual Server System. This guide also helps you use the
Virtual Server Administrator to control and maintain your Virtual Server
environment.
This chapter contains the following information:
♣ The Virtual Server Solution vs. Your Own Solution
♣ How the Virtual Server System Works
♣ Virtual Server Core Internet Services
♣ The Virtual Server Administrator



The Virtual Server System vs.
Your Own Solution
Blue Reef Internet Services is your Internet server partner.
Many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) spend thousands, even millions of
dollars to purchase and maintain their own dedicated Internet servers, lines,
and staff to keep it all running. Smart companies and individuals know that
the Virtual Server System is a powerful and cost-effective alternative.
You too can avoid the high financial and human resources of a dedicated
server by using our Virtual Servers, thus gaining the same flexibility, control,
and power.

The Dedicated "do-it-yourself" approach
Many small and medium-sized businesses install and maintain a dedicated
server and Internet connection to their offices, believing that it is the only
way to establish a powerful Internet presence. Most businesses don't realize,
however, the high expense of a dedicated server. The following table and
diagram illustrate the complexity of the dedicated server solution and its
costs.



The Dedicated server approach
Setup Cost
Internet server $5,000
Router $1,500
CSU/DSU $1,000
T-1 installation $300-$1,000 per line

Monthly Cost
Frame relay $200
Common carrier charges $300-$1,000 per line

Yearly Cost
Network engineer $55,000+
Software and hardware upgrades (Thousands)

The ISP approach
Another alternative to purchasing your own dedicated server is to "co-locate"
your Internet presence with you Internet Service Provider (ISP). ISPs usually
have aggressive hosting prices and often bundle hosting services with dial-
up services at little or no extra charge. As attractive as the price may appear,
the ISP co-location option usually lacks the performance and technology
necessary to establish an effective Internet presence.
Because ISPs must accomodate the traffic of their hundreds of dial-up
customers, its equipment is overloaded with the task of delivering millions
of web pages that are passed through from other servers. At Blue Reef, our
servers can focus on just delivering pages which reside on our servers.



The Blue Reef Virtual Server approach
Blue Reef Internet’s Virtual Server Solution offers you the power of a
dedicated server at a shared server price. The Blue Reef Virtual Server
System gives you full control to remotely manage your sites without the high
cost of maintaining your own server and staff to keep it all running.

The Virtual Server solution
Setup Cost
Web Hosting Virtual server $50

Monthly Cost
Web Hosting Virtual server $70 to $245 with discount for Resellers

Yearly Cost
Web Hosting Network staff $0
Web Hosting Support staff $0

Building your own Internet business
Blue Reef Internet Services ensures that you have the best Virtual Servers on
the Internet without the hassles of maintaining them. You can make money
creating and maintaining web sites for companies all over the world with
nothing more than a PC and a dial-up connection to the net. You won’t need to
purchase expensive servers, routers, or dedicated connections. Blue Reef Internet
handles it all--even the occasional headaches.



How the Virtual Server System
Works
Virtual Server technology enables Blue Reef to partition a single physical
server computer into multiple virtual machines. This enables small and
medium-sized businesses to pay just a fraction of the cost of hardware,
software, system maintenance, and bandwidth of a dedicated server yet
still have all the power and control of a dedicated solution.
The Virtual Server System utilizes the following:
♣ Updated hardware components
♣ Fast network connectivity
♣ Innovative software
♣ Remote administration
♣ Security solutions

Virtual Servers vs. Virtual Hosting
Essentially two types of shared hosting solutions are available: Virtual
Hosting and Virtual Servers. Though the terms seem similar, the underlying
functionality of the two solutions is very different. Your Internet site is
likely an integral part of your business, so understanding the differences
between Virtual Hosting and Virtual Servers impacts your hosting decision
(a decision that can be as important as choosing what content you place on
your site).
Web Hosting solutions consist of two components:
♣ Hardware (CPU, memory, disk drives, etc).
♣ Software (the web, FTP and POP servers, the e-mail gateway, and any
third party applications such as CGI scripts).

Virtual Hosting
In a Virtual Hosting environment:
♣ Hardware and software are configured and customized by the server
administrators (removing your control over the configuration of
the services).
♣ Each physical server has a single set of shared software applications
(limiting the choice of software you have to work "behind the scenes"
of your web sites).

Virtual Servers
In a Virtual Server environment:
♣ Just the hardware is controlled by site administrators (so you can
have your own web server without maintaining any equipment).
♣ You can add any software you need to customize the function of
your web site (letting you expand as your web sites' needs grow).



♣ A Virtual Server is partitioned from the root of a physical server. This
provides additional file security as well as Telnet capability.
Configuration at the client level empowers the client to use a Virtual Server
just as he or she would use a dedicated server. The table below compares
the capabilities of Virtual Hosting with the Blue Reef Virtual Server System.

Virtual Servers vs. Virtual Hosting--a comparison

Server Items Virtual Virtual
Server Hosting
System
Control of your own server environment YES NO
Private-labeled Web server (HTTP) YES NO
Private-labeled FTP server YES NO
Private-labeled POP server YES NO
Private-labeled IMAP server YES NO
Private-labeled SMTP gateway YES NO
"Virtual Root" access YES NO
Complete Telnet access YES MAYBE
Access to your Web server configuration files YES NO
Full CGI-BIN access YES MAYBE
Complete log files YES MAYBE
Access to your PASSWD and ALIASES file YES NO
and SENDMAIL.CF

Virtual Servers vs. Virtual Hosting–
a technical perspective
Because a single dedicated server is partitioned into multiple Virtual
Servers, each Virtual Server is given the following:
♣ IP address
♣ Domain name
♣ Web server (complete log and configuration files)
♣ FTP server
♣ POP server
♣ SMTP gateway
Not only does a Virtual Server have virtual domain hosting capability, the
Virtual Server also enables you to create the following:
♣ Virtual web hosts
♣ Virtual e-mail
♣ Virtual FTP logins and anonymous FTP logins
♣ Quota support

Note: A true Virtual Server is not simply a "virtually hosted"
(Virtual Host) site on a web server that you don’t control. You have
"virtual root" access and control on your Virtual Server.

When you access your Virtual Server via Telnet, the following directories
are displayed just as they would be on a dedicated server:



♣ dev
♣ usr
♣ bin
♣ etc
Your PASSWD, ALIASES, and SENDMAIL.CF files reside in your Etc
directory. Because you are given access to such files, you have the
flexibility to add the following:
♣ POP accounts
♣ Email Aliases
♣ Email Autoresponders
You can access the entire usr/local/etc/httpd directory structure
including the following:
♣ HTTPD.CONF
♣ SRM.CONF
♣ ACCESS.CONF
♣ CGI-BIN
The Virtual Server behaves just like a dedicated server, giving you
complete control of your web, FTP, and e-mail services. The biggest
differences between a dedicated server and a Virtual Server are the disk
space and price tag.



Virtual Server:
Core Internet Services
The core Blue Reef Virtual Server System services include the
following:
♣ HTTP (web)
♣ FTP
♣ POP
♣ IMAP
♣ SMTP (e-mail)
Each of the services above is linked to your own domain name. The
services are outlined in detail in the concluding portions of this chapter.
Core virtual services capabilities are complemented with the following
utilities:
♣ iManager
♣ iRoot
♣ ACE
♣ Microsoft® FrontPage® server extensions
♣ CGI scripts (customized for our clients)
♣ Java applets (customized for our clients)
The Virtual Server environment also supports popular third-party
applications (or what we term "contrib" programs).

The Virtual Server: HTTP (Web) Service
The World Wide Web project has taken the Internet by storm. That is good
news for your business if you are able to take advantage of it. With the
Blue Reef Virtual Server System, customers can access your company's
web service with greater ease and confidence than before. The Virtual HTTP
(Hyper Text Transfer Protocol) service provides all the power and
bandwidth your company needs for a private-labeled web site.
The Virtual HTTP Service enables your business to private-label its web
service. This service allows you to reach the millions of homes and
businesses that are online each day without hassling with the cost of
maintaining a dedicated server. Not only will you benefit from cost savings,
the Virtual Web Service displays a more professional appearance to your
customers. Your home address appears as www.yourdomain.com not
www.bluereef.net/~yourdomain as it would with a non-virtual shared service
or web mail.
You can add Netscape Compatible Encryption or SSL to your Virtual
Server. With SSL, your customers feel confident sending sensitive
information online such as passwords and credit card numbers for payments.
Many other extensions, CGI scripts, Java applets, and popular third-party
applications are included with your Blue Reef Virtual Server.



The Virtual Server FTP Service
Another popular use of the Internet is the File Transfer Protocol (FTP),
which enables users to download files made available to them on other
computer systems. These files can be in any format you choose.
With your Virtual FTP service, your customers can download your manuals,
whitepapers, applications, and more! For example, customers can
download a catalog of your products or a price list of your se rvices. This
enables customers instant access to vital information, and saves you printing
and mailing costs.
The Virtual FTP service enables you to maintain a simple FTP address such
as ftp.yourdomain.com. Your FTP address appears to customers just as it
would with a dedicated server. Both anonymous and non-anonymous
capabilities are available.

The Virtual Server: POP Service
Post Office Protocol (POP) enables users to read their email without
having to learn a server's cumbersome mail program. Instead, the user can
access her email using any computer and by using any POP email software
she likes, such as Netscape Messenger, Eudora, Outlook, or Pegasus.
The Virtual POP service enables your company to establish a dedicated
private-labeled mail system without the cost of maintaining on a constant
Internet connection. With your Virtual POP service, you can establish unlimited
password-protected mailboxes on the Virtual Server (except Server A). These
POP accounts would reside on a server with your address: pop.yourname.com.
The mail stays on the Virtual Server until you retrieve your messages with an
email client, similar to the concept of retrieving your mail from a P.O. box.
The Virtual POP service also gives your company the flexibility to create
unlimited email addresses and aliases (have mail forwarded to any POP box
you choose). This would allow you to collect email sent to multiple addresses,
such as info@you.com and sales@you.com, from one email account instead
of having to log into and collect mail from multiple email accounts.
The Virtual POP service allows you to establish these multiple email addresses
at no extra charge. Without the Virtual POP service, you would have to
purchase multiple POP accounts from your local ISP, which could be very
expensive.

The Virtual Server: IMAP Service
Internet Message Access Protocol or IMAP is a method for accessing
electronic mail that is stored on a remote mail server (your Virtual Server).
IMAP permits a client email program to access remote message folders as
if they were local. For example, email stored on an IMAP server can be
manipulated from a desktop computer at home, an office workstation, or a
traveling laptop computer, all without the need to transfer messages or files
back and forth between each computer.
IMAP’s ability to access messages (both new and saved on the Virtual
Server) from more than one computer is important as reliance on electronic
messaging and multiple computer use increase.



Note: If the mail is accessed from one server only, then the Post Office
Protocol (POP) works best. POP was designed to support off-line
messages (i.e., where you download messages to your local computer
and delete them from your Virtual Server).

The Virtual Server: SMTP Service

You can use Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) or email to send
letters across local networks or Internet connections. With your Virtual Mail
Service, you can send outgoing mail to any standard email address
(someone@somecompany.com) in the world. Along with Majordomo, a
server extension, you can maintain a mailing list and email list server.
With this you foster relationships with both your existing and potential clients.
Your private-labeledVirtual SMTP server (smtp.yourname.com) also has
anti-spam features to prevent unauthorized persons from using your mail server.
Your Virtual SMTP Service also gives you the power to create unlimited email
aliases linked to your own domain, without having to create additional POP boxes.
The Virtual SMTP Service can do the following with mail:
♣ Deliver mail to thousands of standard email addresses simultaneously
♣ Prohibit unauthorized users from sending mail from your server address.
♣ Forward mail to your personal email account with your local access
provider.
♣ Forward mail to an existing POP account on your Virtual Server.
With unlimited email aliases, you can assign an email address for
customer support, marketing, or your mother, all at no extra cost. Aliases
forward incoming mail to each address residing on your Virtual Server, or
remote accounts established with your ISP.



The Virtual Server Administrator

The Virtual Server System is a powerful Internet solution that is currently
being used to power tens of thousands of web sites. The Virtual Server
System is more than a simple hosting platform. It is a complete Internet
Server solution. While many administrators simply use the Virtual Server
System as hosting platform for their web sites, the administrator has the
ability to "pop the hood" and control Internet services. The Virtual Server
System provides the best of both worlds since it can be used "right out of
the box" or its environment can be modified to meet specific needs of an
administrator.
The Virtual Server Administrator has the power to control the Virtual
Server environment. Each web site administrator is provided with a
username and password for accessing her Virtual Server UNIX shell
account. This access empowers the administrator with the ability to control
many of the Virtual Server functions. With this power also comes the
responsibility to administer the various server functions, including
but not limited to, the following:
♣ Adding or deleting virtual email and FTP accounts.
♣ Adding or deleting email aliases (forwarding addresses).
♣ Uploading or downloading files to the virtual FTP server.
♣ Maintaining the virtual web server HTML files.
♣ Installing and maintaining Common Gateway Interface (CGI) programs.
♣ Managing Virtual Server log files, including running stats and deleting
logs.

Note: Since the Virtual Server System is a UNIX-based solution, assign
an administrator that has some UNIX and some programming experience. This
will help you get the most out of your Virtual Server environment


BLUE REEF VIRTUAL SERVER HANDBOOK Chapter 2 - Before Getting Started

Chapter

2
Before Getting Started
Blue Reef’s Virtual Server customer service and support program is centered
around its web site: virtserv.bluereef.net. The web site maintains a knowledge
base including all product documentation and contributing applications.
Answers to your most frequently asked questions can easily be found on the
web site. This chapter will help you find the information you need to get up
and running with your new Virtual Server.



virtserv.bluereef.net
The Blue Reef VirtualServer site is designed to be a resource of information
for existing users as well as potential customers and is organized in the
following manner:

Home
http://virtserv.bluereef.net/
Home gives an overview of the Blue Reef Virtual Server. In the upper right
corner of the page are links to all the web site sections listed below. The main
Blue Reef web site, with all our other products services, is at www.bluereef.net.

Servers
http://virtserv.bluereef.net/servers/
The Products section contains information about Blue Reef's different server
packages and also contains useful information about transferring domains,
server add-ons, ecommerce solutions, policies, as well as reseller and billing
agreements .

Orders
http://orders.bluereef.net/servers/index.html
"Wizards" exist that enable you to order new accounts and products for
existing accounts. Several products and agreements are made available
exclusively to Resellers. The use of Wizards enables us to quickly and
efficiently process orders. In fact, your order will often be processed within
two hours. The following wizards will help you place your order:

♣ Server Type Wizard
♣ Domain Name Wizard
♣ Canonical Name Wizard
♣ Additional Disk Space Wizard
♣ SSL Wizard

Technical Support
http://virtserv.bluereef.net/support/
The Technical Support section is designed to help you quickly find answers
to your virtual server questions. This should be the first place to look if you have
teachnical questions about your server. The technical support section includes:
♣ Email Support Form
♣ Getting Started Guide



♣ Virtual Server Help

♣ Add-On/Extension Help

♣ Online Handbook

♣ Solutions of the Month

♣ Support Policies

You will find many common problems and solutions documented in the
support section. Studying the resources in the support section will also give
you ideas on how to improve the capability of your virtual server.

Search
http://virtserv.bluereef.net/help/search.html

Search for any word or concept contained within the Blue Reef Virtual
Server Web Site.



Customer Service
Blue Reef’s Customer Service assists users in maintaining their
Virtual Servers by doing the following:
♣ Processing new domain and server orders.
♣ Billing
♣ Adding products to servers
You can contact Customer Service via telephone, Email or the Problem
Tracking System. Each Server comes with unlimited email support per month.
Unlimited phone
Phone: (305) 274-8393
Email: support@bluereef.net
Email: billing@bluereef.net
Email: orders@bluereef.net

Services
Customer Service processes new orders, bills for all products, and adds new
server products and services such as:
♣ Additional Domain names
♣ Cnames
♣ SSL
♣ Ecommerce
♣ CyberCash
♣ Server upgrades
♣ Additional disk space
♣ Login ID changes
♣ Virtual Server main domain names
♣ Termination/disabling or enabling of servers

Note: For each product that is a billable item, Customer Service
requires you to send an email to record the request. For example, if you
need a domain name added to one of your accounts, there will be a $35
charge. If you call and request the domain name, you must first email
your request before it can be granted. If you have already sent an email
and the domain has not been added, please call Customer Service.



Technical Support
Virtual Server Technical Support provides answers to customers and
resellers by isolating specific problems that may be encountered while using
the Blue Reef Virtual Server System. Technical Support will not assist
customers or resellers in resolving specific programming issues (including
CGI debugging) without issuing an additional charge. Virtual Server
Technical Support provides the following services, free of charge:

♣ Server Maintenance and Monitoring

♣ Problem Tracking

♣ Answers to common web update questions

♣ Directing customers to other resources designed for their
specific needs, (e.g. newsgroups for design, custom
configurations, or programming).

♣ Troubleshooting for programming issues as they relate to
configuration in the Virtual Server environment.

Occasionally, Blue Reef makes third party vendor products available to
customers and resellers at a special low price. The Virtual Server Technical
Support staff will provide installation assistance for these products, but
unless specifically identified, the Virtual Server Technical Support staff can
not provide extended support for these products. For problems related to
running these and other third party programs, customers should contact the
program vendor.

Note: Full Virtual Server phone support is available to Resellers with
20 or more server accounts. The Problem Tracking System or email
support is available to Resellers with fewer than 20 accounts. Blue
Reef will respond to email support requests usually within two hours,
and often within minutes.

Reach Virtual Server Technical Support via telephone, email or the Problem
Tracking System.

Phone: (305) 274-8393
Email: support@bluereef.net

Problem Tracking System
Customer Service and Technical Support use the Problem Tracking System
to organize Problem Tracking Reports and give feedback to customers. The
Problem Tracking System archives all Problem Tracking Reports and keeps
them confidential; Report contents are viewable only by the customer and
Blue Reef.

If a Problem Tracking Report has useful information that can be used by
other customers, then we create a new report, remove identifying
information, and post the report in the Knowledge Base.

The Knowledge Base is a collection of Problem Tracking Reports that is
searchable by all customers that access the Problem Tracking System.



Accessing the Problem Tracking System
To access the Problem Tracking System, you need a user ID and password,
which we issue to you when you become a Blue Reef Virtual Server
customer or reseller.

To access the Problem Tracking System, go to:

http://virtserv.bluereef.net/support

If you are unable to submit a Problem Tracking Report at the URL listed
above, you may also submit a problem via email:

support@bluereef.net

Submitting a Problem Report

The Problem Tracking System guides you through filling out a Problem
Tracking report. The following is a list of the fields with their descriptions.

Synopsis What is the one-line summary of the problem?

Severity What is the severity of the problem? (Non-critical,
Serious, Critical)
Priority How soon do you need a solution? (Low, Medium,
High)
Issue What is the primary issue of the problem?

Environment Where is the problem? Which Virtual Server
account? Detail the precise location of the problem,
including specific paths to files and directories when
referenced.
Account Your account list is displayed

Sub-hosted (if applicable)
Domain
Description Describe the problem (include error messages as
they appear on the screen by copying and pasting
them into the text box).
How-To-Repeat Enter example code, input, or activities to reproduce
the problem. Include the details necessary to
recreate the problem.
Possible Fix Include possible work-arounds for the problem.

Submit Submits the Report to the Technical Support staff.

Working with the Technical Support Staff
When a Blue Reef Virtual Server Technical Support staff member has
reviewed a submitted Problem Report, answers will be emailed to you. You
may then respond by email to continue working through the issue. All
email communications regarding a submitted Problem Report are archived
with the original Problem Report.


BLUE REEF VIRTUAL SERVER HANDBOOK Chapter 3 - Getting Started

Chapter

3
Getting Started
This chapter’s objective is to walk you through the initial steps of connecting
to your ordered server after it has been activated. After reading this chapter,
you should be able to connect to your server via:
♣ TELNET
♣ SSH (Secure Shell)
♣ FTP
♣ Windows (file sharing)
This chapter also teaches you how to:
♣ Execute basic UNIX commands.
♣ Edit files online.
♣ Upload /Download files via FTP.
♣ Understand directory structure of the Virtual Server.
This chapter includes the following information:
♣ Understanding your Email Configuration Letter
♣ Registering Domain Names with InterNIC
♣ Remotely Administering servers
♣ Basic UNIX commands



Understanding your Email
Configuration Letter
After your Virtual Server order is processed and activated, Blue Reef sends
you and email Configuration Letter as shown below. This letter contains your new
Virtual Server configuration and login information. The information in this
letter is very important--don’t lose it! If you do lose your letter, submit an email
to serverservice@bluereef.net and request a new configuration letter.

E-mail Configuration Letter
From: Blue Reef Virtual Server Order Processing
Reply-To: support@bluereef.net
To: [your E-mail address], archive@bluereef.net
Subject: new account [account ID]
[Last name, First name]
[Company Name]
The Virtual Server you ordered on [order date] has been configured and activated
on [activation date], (the date used to bill you for your first month of service). This
letter contains important information that enables you to fully utilize your new
Virtual Server. Please retain a copy of this letter for future reference.
A server has been configured for you with the following features:
HTML service
E-mail aliasing
E-mail Mailbox capability (POP and IMAP)
FTP service
Virtual Sub-hosting
[ x ] MB disk space
You need the following information to create your web site. This information is also
used by Blue Reef to support your Virtual Server. Familiarize yourself with
the following information:
Account ID: [account id]
Login Name: [login id]
Server Host: [server name]
Domain Name: [domain name]
Temporary: [temporary domain name]
IP Address: [IP address]
E-mail address: [your E-mail address]
In addition to your requested domain name, we enabled a temporary domain
name, [temporary domain name], on our nameservers. Use this domain until
registration for your permanent domain is complete, but please be aware that even
the temporary domain may not be available for up to one day after your initial order.
No domainregistration was requested. You must register your requested domain
name. To get you started, go to the following URL:
http://virtserv.bluereef.net/support/gettingstarted/
If you have a question that you cannot find an answer to on our web site, contact
Blue Reef Customer Service. Use the Blue Reef Virtual Server Technical Support
Problem Tracking System to submit your questions or problems:
http://virtserv.bluereef.net/support/
If you have any questions about your Virtual Server order, please immediately
contact us at: orders@bluereef.net
Warm regards,
Order Processing Department
Blue Reef Internet Services



Email Configuration Letter
Terminology
order date The date you ordered your Virtual Server.

activation date The date your Virtual Server was activated.
Your monthly billing statement will
display your activation date to determine
your first month's prorated service fee.
account ID The account ID of this Virtual Server. Use
this ID to identify your Virtual Server
in the Problem Tracking System.
login name Use your login name to access your Virtual
Server via FTP, TELNET, or SSH. For more
information about how to use FTP,
TELNET, or SSH to access your Virtual
Server, see later sections in this Getting
Started chapter or Getting Started at
http://virtserv.bluereef.net/support/.
server host The name of the physical server or "fish"
which hosts your Virtual Server account.
(we’ve named our physical servers after
fish). When you call Customer Service
to request a Server Health status, please
state on which physical server or "fish" your
Virtual Server resides.
domain name The domain name you selected to use
as the primary domain name for your new
Virtual Server account.
temporary domain name The temporary domain name can be used in
place of domain name until such time that
your domain name is registered. This is
provided as a free service so that you can
access your Virtual Server while you wait
on the registration authority (e.g. InterNIC).
The temporary domain name only functions
for a few weeks following the setup of your
Virtual Server.
IP address The IP address gives the precise Internet
address of your Virtual Server. You will
likely never need to use your IP address, in
part because the Domain Name Server
(DNS) handles mapping between host and
internet addresses.
domain registration info Gives you precise instructions with regard to
your domain registration status. An entire
page is devoted to domain registration in the
the Getting Started area of the support section
of the Blue Reef Virtual Server web site.



Registering or Transfering your
Domain
You may have already registered a domain and need to transfer the domain
to the Blue Reef Virtual Server name servers or you may need to register a
new domain name for your virtual server. Blue Reef has tools on its web
site to help you get the job done. You can also register your domain name
directly at InterNIC's web site. The following sections explain how to use the
Blue Reef Virtual Server web site for registering or transfering domains and how
to contact InterNIC for domain registration.

What is a Domain Name?
Internet servers have a name and a number associated with them. The
number part is called an IP address and the name part is called a domain
name. Valid domain name characters include letters, digits, dashes, and
periods. The domain name cannot begin nor end with a period or dash. If
you are requesting a '.com', '.net', or '.org' top-level domain name, InterNIC
limits names to 26 characters (including the top-level suffix).
Domain names are registered with a domain name registry (e.g. InterNIC,
RIPE, CDNNET). Depending on the type of top-level domain you request (the
suffix of the top-level domain name such as 'com', 'net', 'uk', 'de') you will need
to consult the domain name registry for specific guidelines. The '.com", ".net",
and '.org' top-level domain names are registered with InterNIC. Other interna-
tional top-level domains are registered by other regional agents.

Examples of domain names that the InterNIC will register:
example.com
example.gov
example.edu
somelongname.net

Examples of names that the InterNIC can NOT register:
www.example.org
http://example.gov
example.us
illegal_characters.net
a-name-longer-than-twentysix-characters.com

Why not?
InterNIC will not register the name "www.example.org" because it contains
an improper prefix (www.). If you wanted a web site whose address began
with "www." you would simply register the domain ("example.org") with
InterNIC and then ask your System Admininstrator to setup your account to
allow both "www.example.org" and "example.org" point to your web site.
InterNIC will not register "http://example.gov" because the "http://" part is not
part of the name but rather a command that requests a file using the HTTP
Protocol (in effect, a web page). InterNIC will register "example.gov".



InterNIC will not register "a-name-longer-than-twentysix-characters.com"
because domain names with fields longer than 26 characters are not
allowed.
InterNIC will not register "illegal_characters.net" because it contains an
illegal character. Domain names can only contain letters, digits, and dashes.

Registering or Transfering Domains

When you submit an order for a new Virtual Server or to add another domain
to an existingVirtual Server, we will look up the domain. If the domain is
registered, Blue Reef will ask you if you want to transfer the domain.
Transferring the domain means a request is sent to the registar to modify the
nameservers to point to the Blue Reef Virtual Server nameservers. None of the
contact information is changed during the transfer process.
If the domain does not exist, Blue Reef will ask you if you would like
to register it. If you say yes the registration template will be sent to the
registar. The registar will send you additional information on registering
the domain. You are responsible for completing the registration process
and paying all applicable fees to the registrar.

Other Registration tools on the Blue
Reef Virtual Server Web Site
If you are still trying to decide on a domain name you can check to see if a
particular domain is registered or available by going to this URL:
http://virtserv.bluereef.net/servers/dns.html
If you need some additional help on modifying or transferring a domain use
this URL:
http://virtserv.bluereef.net/servers/dns_transfer.html

Registering Domain Names with
InterNIC
As mentioned before, InterNIC is the organization that registers Internet
Domain Names with the ".com", ".org", and ".net" suffixes. You may choose
to work directly at InterNIC's web site when managing your domain. Below
is some information on how to work with InterNIC.

To register a domain name
1. To register a top-level domain of .com, .net, .org or .edu go to
http://www.internic.net/help/domain/new-domain-reg.html.
2. To register a top-level domain name with a country code (e.g. ".uk"),
refer to the registrar for that country’s top-level domains.
3. Ensure that the domain name has the correct name servers listed. The
name servers for Blue Reef Virtual Servers are as follows:
♣ NS1.SECURE.NET



♣ 192.41.1.10
♣ NS2.SECURE.NET
♣ 192.41.2.10

To add the domain name as a subhost for your Virtual Server
Send a request either by email (orders@bluereef.net) or the Blue Reef
Web Store (https://orders.bluereef.net/virtserv/domains/).

To modify existing domain names
1. Go to http://www.internic.net/help/domain/mod-domain-reg.html.
2. Complete the wizard.

To add the modified domain name as a subhost for the Virtual
Server
After you have modified the domain name to point to Blue Reef's name
servers, send a request by email (service@bluereef.net) or through the
Blue Reef Web Store (https://orders.bluereef.net/virtserv/domains/).

To transfer existing domain names from one party to another
Go to the following URL:
http://www.internic.net/reg-change/instructions.html.


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