Frequently Asked Questions - Web Hosting
Where can I make changes to my DNS settings?
If your domain was registered through Web-Kong.com you can login to your domain portal from this link:
By default your domain is managed for your Small Business by Web-Kong. If you wish to have this responsibility delegated to you it will be done upon request. Please use our Contact Form or email your account representative to make this request.
PDF versionhttp://cpanel.[yourdomain]
http://cpanel.web-kong.com
If your domain's DNS has been configured to use Web-Kong.com Web Hosting's DNS servers the default administrative URL is http://cpanel.[yourdomain].
If not you may always use http://cpanel.web-kong.com which actually accesses the same site, just via a different name. Many users enjoy accessing their administrative cpanel via their own vanity URL, which may be easier to remember, but ultimately these both access the same service.
Once at this site you must login with your master web hosting username and password, or any delegated logins you created afterwards.
cPanel is a web based administration portal for all your website's management needs.
cPanel is proprietary licensed software included in the cost of your Web-Kong.com Web Hosting fees. There are several competing administration portals but cPanel is the most popular and the most preferred for it's simplicity and ease of use.
cPanel permits "themeing" thus it might vary in look from hosting provider to hosting provider but a typical login has a left menu bar showing general statistics for your site such as disk usage and number of databases. The main portion of the screen has an assortment of categorized icons for individual management tasks.
Having trouble finding a management need? There's a search text box in the left column which narrows the number of icons shown specific to your search!
How do I install applications to my website?
How do I get started with a CMS (Content Management System)?
How do I start a mailing list?
Fantastico is a web application management utility available via cPanel- your website's administrative portal.
Such applications include Content Management Systems (CMS), Blogs, Shopping Carts, Mailing Lists, Wiki's, Billing Systems, and much much more. A full list of the available application packages can be seen in your cPanel login.
Fantastico is the preferred means to install and manage applications to your website. You also have the ability to manually install any application supported on the web server's platform but then the burden of installation, configuration, and maintenance are on your shoulders.
Fantastico simplifies installation by only requiring the core information such as creating and admin user. For instance, if installing "phplist", a mailing list management utility, it maintains it's own administrative interface for creating lists and managing users. You'd be asked for the username and password for this application when Fantastico does the initial installation.
Likewise upgrades are simplified through Fantastico. Most web software packages are under constant development and security patching. When a new release becomes available it's simple a matter of using Fantastico to do the upgrade. It will detect the currently installed version perform the necessary steps to bring you to the current version.
Yep.
But only upon special request. 99.999999% of users never use it thus there's no need to open our web hosts to the security concern of password hacking. But if you need it- we're happy to enable it and make your life easier.
Once enabled you can ssh into your account with the same username/password used to login to cPanel.
Hostname: [yourdomain.com]
(assumes your DNS servers point to our web hosting service).
Port: 7822
NOTE!! The default port is typically 22. You must make sure to specify port 7822.
Need an ssh client? We suggest the following:
Linux Users- ssh is usually installed via OpenSSH and can be accessed from the command line.
MAC Users - Same as Linux it can be accessed from the command line.
Windows Users - Download the free utility Putty. This is one of the most popular and free clients for Windows. Once installed lauch it via the icon, fill-in the above Host and Port, then login with your username/password.
ssh is assumed to be for the advanced and experienced user. If this is not the environment in which you're comfortable we suggest you stick to cPanel and Fantastico.
Should you require some special install, support, or customization we offering per diem consulting services. Please Contact Us to discuss your needs. 201-755-KONG.
You went to WebDisk in the cPanel Administration Portal for your website and downloaded the ".vbs" script to automatically create a WebDisk icon for your page. However, you ran it but hit a dead end- you are asked for a non-existent security certificate.
You're not crazy... To resolve the problem, you will need to download a patch from the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
When done, you may need to reboot. Then download a fresh copy of the ".vbs" WebDisk installer and you should be good to go.
Domain Parking is a means to have multiple Domain Names all access the same website.
This is a common means many companies use to have common mispellings of their domain names still get to the right place. Try going to googel.com (note misspelling). You'll find you still end up at google.com (correct spelling). This is Domain Parking in action.
Mispelling control is one of the more common uses of Domain Parking but it can just as well be used to have Small-Biz-Phones.com, Small-Biz-Security.com, and Small-Biz-IT-Services.com all go to one place: Small-Biz-Technology.com.
Keep in mind it's still required you register/own the Parked Domains and have their Domain Name Servers pointing to your web hosting account.
(And yes- that mispelling was intentional :)
A Sub Domain is usually a division of your main site accessed by an alternate domain name, aka sub-domain.
Traditionally most websites' domains are assumed to be preceded with "www." This is not absolutely necessary but is by far and wide a universally accepted norm (and we don't recommend deviating casually).
But let's say you want to expand your site, "abc.com," with some separate content... maybe a blog. One way to do this is create "blog.abc.com" which can appear as a completely different site or an integrated part of your existing site. Other examples might be "catalog.abc.com" or "store.abc.com."
To setup a sub domain:
1) Login to your cPanel portal (cpanel.yourdomain.com).
2) Find the "Domains" section and click the "Subdomains" icon.
3) In the form fill in the Subdomain name (just the part *before* abc.com).
Note: If you entered "store" as the subdomain name you should notice that the second form field, Document Root, automatically gets filled in with "/public_html/store." Caution- While this can be overridden we don't suggest changing this default to avoid confusion.
When someone goes to your site via www.abc.com they receive the content stored in your /public_html folder. By the same token, when someone now goes to store.abc.com they will receive the content stored in /public_html/store.
The astute reader may be asking, "Does that mean someone can also access this content by going to www.abc.com/store?" Well, YES, you're exactly right. ;)
Add-on Domains permit you to host multiple websites from one account.
What happens is your web hosting account (ie: The Web Server) is intelligent enough to know which web site is being requested and serve content from different directories based on this knowledge. For example, let's say your primary account is SMB-IP-Phones.com but you also registered Technolog-Services.com and want to have a separate website for that domain. Your primary site is served from web hosting account's your public_html directory (sames as www directory), but your new site would live in public_html/Technology-Services.com. The web server selectively determines which site is being requested and delivers the site content from the relevant directory.
Add-on Domains are very similar to Sub-Domains (see FAQ for "What is a Sub-Domain?") in that the content they serve is that from a sub-directory of your account's public_html folder. It's still required you have the alternate domain name(s) registered and their DNS configured to point to the same Name Servers as your parent domain (primary account domain name).
YES!
These are referred to as Add-On Domains.
Look for Add-On Domains FAQ in this section.
- Login to your account's cPanel.
(see other FAQ on how to do this) - Under the "Mail" grouping of icons you'll find one for "Forwarders." Click this.
- On the configuration screen click "Add Forwarder."
- In the "Address to Forward" field create a recipient name (it must not already exist as a mailbox or user).
- From the drop-down list of domains choose the one for which this email address will operate.
(Most users only have one entry or choice here). - Under Destination choose "Forward to email address" and enter an existing and valid email address where the email will be sent.
(Only advanced users should be concerned with the other options). - Click "Add Forwarder." You're done! :)
Want to forward all mail for your domain?
You may have noticed another option for "Add Domain Forwarder." This is similar in nature except it will direct any and every email to the forwarded address. For instance, if someone sends and email to anyone@yourdomain.com or someone@yourdomain.com it will be directed to the forwarded email address.
BE WARNED! Domain forwarding may recieve ridiculous amounts of spam. Many spammers guess common email addresses such as info@yourdomian.com or admin@yourdomain. Enjoy sorting through these in your morning email sessions. :(
In a word: storage.
A Virtual Email Address never really stores your email anywhere- it just forwards it to another address/account which handles storing it for you. A traditional email account has storage (aka "An Inbox") associated with it. The mail is received there and stored waiting to be opened. Note that a traditional email account may also do it's own forwarding but with additional processing and/or configuration.
Which one should you use? In most cases a Virtual Email with forwarding is most desirable but there are pros and cons to each. It all depends on whether you prefer keeping accounts separate or having mail for different accounts show up in one place. We all have personal address books with home phone numbers, work numbers, mobile numbers, fax numbers, weekend numbers, ugh! The same can be said for email addresses these days but the nice part about a Virtual Email Address is it doesn't require maintaining or checking a separate account- everything just shows up in once place. How convenient.
One caveat when using a Virtual Email Address is that replying to an email may instead use the email address of the account to which it was forwarded. Most free email services (Gmail, Hotmail, etc) have means to have multiple "Reply-To" accounts that can be selected when sending/replying-to emails.
All necessary actions can be performed through your account's cPanel.
It's assumed you already have the new domain name registered and its Name Servers pointing to your hosting account (see orther FAQs on how to do this).
- Login to your account's cPanel. Be default this should be located at cpanel.yourdomain.com.
- Click on the "Addon Domains" icon in the Domains grouping of icons.
- Enter the following pieces of information:
- New Domian Name.
- FTP Username*.
- Document Root (should default to the same as your new domain name).
- Password
- Password Confirmation.
- Click "Add Domain!"
*Your primary/master account will be able to access your Sub-Domain's folder and manage it's content, but by having a separate FTP account/user for this Sub-Domain you can have someone manage the site and only have access to the Sub-Domain's content. This prevents this user from accessing your primary site's folders.
All necessary actions can be performed through your account's cPanel.
It's assumed you already have the new domain name registered and its Name Servers pointing to your hosting account (see orther FAQs on how to do this).
- Login to your account's cPanel. Be default this should be located at cpanel.yourdomain.com.
- Click on the "Parked Domains" icon in the Domains grouping of icons.
- Enter your new Parked Domain in the form field.
- Click "Add Domain!"
SSL is an abbreviation for Secure Sockets Layer.
Most web surfers associate SSL with being a secure encrypted connection between your computer and the server being accessed. Many also associate it with a "lock icon" in their browser's address bar indicating a secure connection. While these facts are true, SSL is also more.
SSL is also identity verification. In addition to encrypting a connection a third party, the Certificate Authority, is vouching the server being connected to is really who they say they are. The Certificate Authority in this scenario is similar to a Notary Public who witnesses a signature then embosses a legal state seal.
While SSL is very common there are similar security protocols such as TLI (Transport Layer Interface) that provide similar services.
If conducting any monetary transcations through your website then having an SSL Security Certificate is considered mandatory. This is both for your protection, your customer's protection, and compliance with varying compliance regulations.
Non-sales parts of your website are open to your discretion whether they need SSL security or not. You may want to secure sections of your site that involve user/customer logins and/or anything considered confidential or private.
Some sites use Self-Signed Certificates which is an option for non-compliance bound parts of websites. These are free to create and maintain on your own, but require the user accessing that part of the site to accept and acknowledge the Security Certificate was issued by an unknown authority (aka YOU).
Web-Kong is an Authorized Partner of DigiCert to sell SSL Certificates.
We sell SSL Serucity Certificates of varying levels of security/validation as well as installation services. You may either purchase an SSL Security Certificate via our Online Catalog or use the from on the Contact tab and someone will contact you to answer all your questions. (Or you can just call too! Phone numbers on Contact tab too. :)
We breifly answer this in another FAQ, but it's worth futher clarification.
The common part of SSL Security Certificates is encrypted transmissions. You'll usually see this visually by either a lock icon in your browser's address bar, or in newer version a "Green Bar" in the same location. This lets you send confidential information over the Internet. In most cases this is when using a credit card to shop online or access your online bank account, but may also include memberships to areas of websites' content.
The less common part of SSL Security Certificates is validation. This means the Certificate Authority, the company issuing the Security Certificate, has exercised "due diligence" in determining identity. For entry level certificates this means they sent an email to an authorized person in the domain (ie: admin@CompanyRequestingSecurityCertificate.com) who clicked a link verifying they received it.
For higher level Security Certificates the Certificate Authority may do any of the following: mail a certified letter to the requesting company/individual with a password, send an email to an authorized person in the domain, check for a company listing in DnB (Dunn and Bradstreet), etc. Typcially the Certificate Authority will also insure the Certificate's Validity. For instance it may state any credit card transactions done with the validated company are insured for up to $10,000.
Anyone can purchase an SSL Security Certificate thus there is still possibility for fraud. This is why higher level Security Certificates offer higher validation backed by guarantees.
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