2). What methods of payment does TWS Hosting accept?
We are currently accepting VISA, MASTERCARD, AMEX, Pay Pal and Checks.

3). Can TWS Hosting register/transfer my domains?
While we are not a registrar, we can assist clients in registering new domains and transferring existing ones. Call for details.

4). Who provides your network connectivity and what types of connections are they?
TWS Hosting's network is multi-homed using BGP4 routing to both Lightpath and Arbinet at the OS-3 level. Our local loops are at the OC-48 level and allow us to add addition circuits at any time. All servers are connected directly to our backbone via 10/100 Ethernet ports on Extreme Networks switches.

5). Will I have admin/root access to my server?
Yes, that's the whole advantage of going dedicated. You can set up your server to do whatever you need, and have as many accounts as you like. TWS Hosting will provide support with the base system configuration, but cannot guarantee support of any additional software. If additional software causes a problem, TWS Hosting will restore the system to its original state.

6). What is 95th Percentile Bandwidth?
The 95th percentile is the highest value left when the top 5% of a numerically sorted set of collected data is discarded. It is used as a measure of the peak value used when one discounts a fair amount for transitory spikes. This is different from the average.

When the 95 percentile method is used to calculate bandwidth usage, we capture all raw data usage and normalize this into 5 minute samples. At the end of the billing month, those 5 minute usage samples are sorted in an increasing order with the top 5% of the highest recorded usage being completely discarded. This eliminates normal traffic spikes.

The advantage of the 95 percentile billing is that you effectively get the performance of a high-speed circuit connection, while paying only for the “actual” usage. This bandwidth delivering mechanism is inherently burstable, being completely different from the traditional fixed circuits.

The 95 percentile style of billing can be applied to inbound only, outbound only, the greatest of inbound/outbound, or the combination of both inbound+outbound circuit provisioning.

7). Is hardware covered under your guarantee?
All hardware in our hardware inclusive packages is covered by TWS Hosting. We will replace defective hardware within 24 hrs and restore your systems default image if required.

8). How does the Server Monitoring work?
Our server management and notification system will ping your server every minute to verify that it is available. In addition to a basic ICMP ping, we can also have it issue connection attempts to certain service ports (IE. WEB 80, MySQL 3306, FTP 21) to verify that the service is running. If no response is returned, we can have our system email or page you with a detailed message to let you know something is wrong.

9). How does the customer reboot system work?
Once your account is activated, we will provide you with a website, username, and password that will allow you to control the outlet that your server is connected to. If at anytime your server becomes unavailable, you can log in and reboot it from anywhere in the world.

10). What is the limit on bandwidth usage?
We do not rate limit the bandwidth to your server. Your server is capable of bursting to the full speed of its 100Mbs Ethernet connection. Each server package comes with a monthly bandwidth allotment that can be increased as desired.

11). How is bandwidth usage measured?
Bandwidth is metered at the switch port for both incoming and outgoing data transfer to your server.

12). Will I have access to a web statistics program?
All of our LINUX packages include Webalizer as part of their system image. You can find out more information about webalizer at http://www.mrunix.net/webalizer/

Windows packages do not include any statistics software, however we do have a central analyzer server that can be utilized for sites on our network for a small additional monthly fee based on the number of domains involved. Please call for details.

13). If I don't want to maintain my own DNS, what other options are available?
TWS Hosting can provide you with primary and secondary DNS services if you so desire. All DNS entries that point to our own network are FREE. For DNS requests for 10+ hosts or domains, you may be asked to fill out a template with the required information. All changes and information requests should be sent to dnsadmin@twshosting.com

14). Which software is included with my server?
For LINUX, we offer CentOS, Fedora Core and Debian based server which all include apache, PHP, BIND, MySQL, Postgre SQL, Sendmail, PERL, SSH, OpenSSL, and iptables.

Windows 2003 based systems come with IIS 6.0, FTP, SMTP and POP3 servers, MySQL, MSDE, ASP.NET, Remote Desktop, and MS DNS.

15). Is there a web based control panel on all packages?
On the raw LINUX servers, Webmin is installed, which is a freely available and widely supported web management interface that allows you to control many of the standard functions of your server or Direct Admin whic

On Windows servers, there is no web based control panel, however, the Terminal Services Advanced Client is installed which will allow you to log into your server and get a remote desktop from any Active X enabled web browser.

16). Can the servers be used to serve secure pages (SSL)?
SSL is enabled by default on all servers. You will have to provide certificates and install them for any secure sites you are hosting.

17). Does TWS Hosting provide e-commerce software on its servers?
No, we do not provide any e-commerce software, however there are many open source solutions available such as OS Commerce, which are PHP/MySQL based. If you are looking for a commercially supported solution, we recommend Miva.

18). What are your polices regarding IP addresses?
Are policies are no different than the ones that ARIN places on us. You must use named based hosting for all standard sites. SSL based hosts will require their own IP address. More IP's can be purchased at any time as long as 80% or more of your current allocation is in use. There will be a $15 set-up charge for addition additional IP space to your account in addition to a monthly fee based on the number of addresses you require.

19). Can my hardware be upgraded?
YES! Unlike many providers, we do allow for hardware upgrades. More RAM, additional disks, additional NIC's, and RAID are just some of the options we offer. Please call for a custom quote.

20). What is Ensim & Direct Admin?
Ensim WEBppliance Pro and Direct Admin are are sophisticated software solution that transforms a server into a professional Web hosting business. Both includes all the tools and features service providers need to build compelling, professional-quality hosting plans for their shared, reseller and small-business customers.

For more information
Ensim Webppliance Pro: http://www.ensim.com
Direct Admin: http://www.directadmin.com

21). What other services does TWS Hosting offer?
TWS Hosting is a full service solution provider. In addition to basic hosting we provide the following options:

Shared Firewall
- Our shared firewall service places your server behind an Enterprise Quality, Highly Available, UNIX Firewall.
- When requesting the service, our security engineer will go over your needs and come up with the appropriate solution. Once the solution is deployed, rule changes can be made at any time.
- VPN secure remote management is also available as an option as well as VLAN over IPSEC VPN.
- Please call for a custom quote.
- Question and changes to your security policy can be submitted to fwadmin@twshosting.com

Tape Backup
- If you want the extra security of offsite tape rotation, and doing daily downloads from your server just isn't practical, perhaps our backup service is just what you need.
- We will need a separate NIC and an additional switch port to connect your server to our backup network. For performance and security reasons, we have completely isolated our backup network from our public network.

Email Hosting
- For those of you who are looking for just email hosting and don't require a dedicated server, TWS Hosting has the solution with POP3 services.
- Service features Spam Blocker, Anti-virus scanner, and web based administration.
- Please call for a quote.