Frequently Asked Questions
Do you offer backups?
Yes. First, all storage is RAID10, meaning you get protection from disk failure. Backups are offered as an add on service and priced according to Slice size. They give you the ability to automatically run a backup without disrupting the system. At any given time, you have access to 3 images of your system: a daily (less than 24 hours), a weekly (less than 7 days) and a snapshot (variable). Monthly pricing is $5/$10/$15/$30 for 256/512/1024/2048 slices. You can also create a new slice from the backup of another slice (cloning).
Can I upgrade down the road?
Sure – you don’t even need to reinstall everything. We take your Slice down, expand the RAM and disk, then start it back up. Simple as pie.
Can I buy extra IPs?
Yes, contact support and provide justification for the extra IPs. They are $2/month.
Do you host DNS or register domains?
Yes. Our SliceManager application has a DNS menu for handling domains, records and reverse DNS for your Slices. We also recommend DNS Made Easy, should you prefer a third party provider. They have a simple interface, excellent network and very low cost. We do not currently register domains, any registrar you choose will suffice.
It says you’re sold out of Slices?
We place server orders once a week based on demand projections. Sometimes our estimates are off or shipping is delayed. No worries though, you can always grab a Slice within a few days time. More info on the blog.
Do you support Ruby on Rails?
Absolutely. We’re Rails developers and all of our Slices can be configured as Rails development stacks, database servers and web servers. Apache, Lighttpd and Mongrel are all options.
What if I go over my bandwidth amount?
Our bandwidth limits are soft caps. You’ll receive an email notification when a slice reaches 80% of its limit and again should it exceed the limit. If you trickle over because your site is Dugg or Slashdotted, congratulations! Send us a note with an explanation, we’re reasonable people. Overages are .30/GB. If you anticipate excessive bandwidth and would like to plan for this, please let us know. Additionally, consider things such as mod_deflate to serve content more efficiently and maximize bandwidth.
Can I buy extra storage or bandwidth?
Not at the moment on the storage, we’re evaluating options. Regarding bandwidth – shoot us an email and let us know your needs, we’ll work something out. Pricing starts at .30/GB.
What if I mess up my Slice?
You can reboot it. You can restore from a backup. You can erase it and start over. You can boot into an emergency rescue mode and fix the problem.
Can I reboot my machine?
Yes. All Slices can simulate both soft and hard reboots. These are performed instantly and handled via the Slice Management Portal.
Do you provide Console access?
Yes – via an Ajax web terminal. See this blog post for details and a screenshot. Note: console access is different from SSH and can be used if you lock yourself out.
How many users go onto each machine?
It depends on the Slice size each user buys, but there is a fixed limit of resources on each machine. Our current production servers are 16GB quad core servers.
How does the CPU scheduling work?
Each Slice is assigned a fixed weight based on the memory size (256, 512 and 1024 megabytes). So a 1024 has 4x the cycles as a 256 under load. However, if there are free cycles on a machine, all Slices can consume CPU time. This creates a leveraged environment that allows smaller Slices to likely consume cycles as needed, but still protects larger Slices that require higher loads.
Can I contact support 24×7?
Yes – you can contact support via the Management Portal at anytime. If you feel that your issue is not being addressed properly or are experiencing an outage with no explanation, call 888-82SLICE and request an escalation in the Customer Support menu.
Do you offer an SLA?
Not for Slices and here’s why: most hosting SLA agreements are just plain silly. They promise things like 99.9% uptime, but downtime excludes: scheduled maintenance, network outages, hardware failures and software trouble. Well what exactly is left to cause downtime? Here’s our SLA: we’ll do our best to keep your machines running smoothly for as long as possible and get them up ASAP should something go wrong.
Why are you so much cheaper than other VPS providers?
Good question. We wrote our own backend and management applications to handle a significant amount of grunt work. This means we can channel our resources towards support and enhancing services.
Which distributions do you offer?
Currently the following distributions are available for install
- Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) LTS
- Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon)
- Ubuntu 6.06 (Dapper Drake) LTS
- Debian 4.0 (Etch)
- Gentoo 2007.0
- Centos 5.1
- Fedora 8
- Arch 2007.08
Referral program?
Yes. After 3 months of the new customer’s service, you’ll receive a credit to your account based upon their first Slice size (25%). Have them enter the email address you used to create your personal Slice when they are signing up.
Can I reinstall a different distribution or start over?
Yes – you can perform a fresh reinstall.
Do you have a control panel?
Yes – we have a web based management interface for restarting your slice, starting support discussions, viewing stats and scheduling backups. However, we do not offer a control panel like Plesk or Cpanel. You’re free to install such packages for your own Slice. For screenshots and an overview check out Pickled Onion’s article on SliceManager.
I’m kind of new to this, will it be too hard?
Maybe. Our Slices are full distros with root access. Many people coming from shared hosting are used to a cPanel type control system and limited shell access. We’re geared for people who want to start from scratch and tune a system for their purposes. However, everyone has to start somewhere. A 256slice is a great place to cut your teeth on building production boxes from scratch. Tweak, explore, learn. If you screw up, login to SliceManager and restart the box. If you really screw up, login and reinstall ;). You’ll be a Linux guru in no time.
Tell me about billing
Billing is handled monthly based on the day your account was created. Services added during a billing cycle are prorated for the remainder of the month, services removed are credited back to your account. Credit cards are stored using asymmetric encryption, we take your security and privacy VERY seriously. You can also prepay your account should it be more convenient. Prepayments of $240 or more receive a 10% account bonus.
Can I firewall my Slice?
Definitely and we encourage it. Every Slice includes iptables.
Can I control my Slices from a phone?
Yes – we offer a mobile portal for slice stats and rebooting.
How many domains can I host?
This is a question familiar to those who use shared hosting. There is no limit, since you are in control of everything on your Slice.
Can I pay in advance or annually?
Yes, you can prepay on an existing account after sign-up. Prepayments of $240 or more receive a 10% account bonus, which can be used for free months of service.
Do you offer multi-slice discounts?
Yes. Customers with monthly charges of $240 or more (in any combination of Slices) are credited a 10% bonus.
Can I buy several Slices for…
Definitely. Several customers use multiple slices for redundancy or load-balancing. Other require distinct production and development environments. Slices are almost always deployed on separate servers, but feel free to ask us to double check.
Are you hiring?
Yes – check out our jobs page.
Question List
- Do you offer backups?
- Can I upgrade down the road?
- Can I buy extra IPs?
- Do you host DNS or register domains?
- It says you’re sold out of Slices?
- Do you support Ruby on Rails?
- What if I go over my bandwidth amount?
- Can I buy extra storage or bandwidth?
- What if I mess up my Slice?
- Can I reboot my machine?
- Do you provide Console access?
- How many users go onto each machine?
- How does the CPU scheduling work?
- Can I contact support 24×7?
- Do you offer an SLA?
- Why are you so much cheaper than other VPS providers?
- Which distributions do you offer?
- Referral program?
- Can I reinstall a different distribution or start over?
- Do you have a control panel?
- I’m kind of new to this, will it be too hard?
- Tell me about billing
- Can I firewall my Slice?
- Can I control my Slices from a phone?
- How many domains can I host?
- Can I pay in advance or annually?
- Do you offer multi-slice discounts?
- Can I buy several Slices for…
- Are you hiring?