Knowledge base
Financial
Q. Is there a benefit for me in introducing new clients to host their web sites with Utopia?
A. Yes - Our offers an excellent commission for customers you refer to us for hosting.
Q. What payment methods are there for my account?
A. You can pay your account by internet banking, credit card, cheque, or automatic payment. To confirm payment options once you have joined Utopia you should e-mail accounts@utopia.co.nz.
Q. What are your bank account details for me to pay by direct credit?
A. Account Name : Laurus Technology Ltd
Account Number : 060996 0593570-00
Our Bank : National Bank, Westgate
Q. How do I check my account online?
A. Go to My Utopia and login using the usercode and password you were supplied when you joined.
Scripts and programming
Q. I have uploaded a CGI that needs to know the path to my hosted web space. What is it?
A. Your path will be /virtual/htdocs/customerid/ - where customerid is the name you use to login to the members area.
Q. I found a script I can use to make message boards. It tells me to chmod two files - do I do this or do you have to? Also, once the chmod has been done, can the files be altered?
A. Yes the files can be altered without problem once you have done the chmod. You should consult your FTP application for details on how to do the chmod that the CGI script requires.
Q. How do I password protect a directory?
A. Log on to the members area and click the signup link next to Password Protect a Directory.
Q. Uploaded a CGI script and I have to change its permissions. How?
A. You should consult your FTP application for details on how to do this.
Q. What Perl modules are available on the server?
A. We have too many modules pre-loaded to list here. We suggest e-mailing us at support@utopia.co.nz if you have any specific module requirements. We can include extra modules free of charge.
Q. What are the paths for sendmail and perl?
A. Perl is located at /usr/bin/perl; Sendmail is at /usr/bin/sendmail
Q. What does "500 Internal Server" mean when I call up a page on my web site?
A. The file has probably been uploaded in the incorrect format. You should upload scripts, CGI and images in binary format and all others - text, html, PHP etc - in ASCII format. Consult your FTP application on how to adjust this.
Q. When running my CGI I get "access forbidden to cgi-bin/....". What does this mean?
A. The file has probably been uploaded in the incorrect format. You should upload scripts, CGI and images in binary. Consult your FTP application on how to adjust this. Another possibility is that you have not used your FTP application to tell our server that what you uploaded is a script. You will need to make it executable. Again, consult your FTP application on how to adjust this as well as the install notes that came with the CGI.
Q. Do you know of any websites that can help me with setting up CGI's and PHP?
A. We suggest visiting http://www.cgi-resources.com for Perl, PHP and more scripts.
Q. Can I set up image maps for images?
A. Yes - see http://www.apacheweek.com/features/imagemaps
Q. How do I activate the page counter for my page?
A. Signup for the page counter on the members area and follow the details.
Q. How do I make a web form send an email message to me?
A. Paste the following into your page and replace the text after the value= parts with your own requirements:
<form action="http://www.utopia.co.nz/vcgi-bin/mailto.pl" method="POST">
<input type="hidden" name="followup-page" value="http://www.yours.co.nz/thanks.htm">
<input type="hidden" name="recip" value="you@yours.co.nz">
<input type="text" name="subj" value="your subject">
.... other form attributes here ...
</form>
Q. Do I have SSI (server side includes) enabled for my hosted web site?
A. Yes
Q. Can I have my own CGI?
A. Of course. Just put it in to /cgi-bin and let us know.
Spam
One of the most annoying things about using e-mail is spam. This unwanted communication affects everyone who uses e-mail. Spam has many definitions and can come in many forms, shapes and sizes. In some cases one persons spam is another persons treasure (and in some cases livelihood). Spam has to be eliminated otherwise the Internet will suffer.
To give some idea on the amount of spam out there, Utopia's email servers processed 700,000 email messages over the holiday period. Of this, 71% were tagged as spam. Without our current anti-spam technology there would have been around 500,000 unwanted email messages delivered to mailboxes.
Utopia uses a range of technology to fight spam. Our overall goal is to limit the amount of spam that gets delivered into your mailbox using these techniques:
- POP-Before-SMTP - This means you cannot send email through our servers unless you have come in and picked up email from us already during your internet connection. This stops spammers using our servers to send spam.
- Spam Assassin - This is one of the worlds most popular anti-spam tools. It filters email and uses a scoring system to decide if a message is spam or not. Spam is deleted straight away.
- Spam databases - We subscribe to systems which track computers that are known to send spam. The email from these computers is deleted also.
Fighting spam also requires some understanding from you, the customer, on how spam works and how you can also fight it. Here are some things you should keep in mind when managing your email:
- Do not submit your websites to FFA's (free for all sites) unless you want 70 pieces of spam in your e-mail on a daily basis
- Make sure you do not have a catchall on your email. e.g. anything@yourdomain.co.nz goes to your mailbox
- Do not reply to spammers
- Never buy anything advertised in spam
- Never use "remove" options in a spam
- Distrust everything from people you do not know
From time to time our anti-spam systems report messages back to you when you are sending e-mail. These messages can be acted on as follows:
- "Please pickup your email before sending" - Our email server believes you have not yet logged on to pickup your email from us. If you have it may be that you disconnected from the internet before sending your email. Simple stay connected while picking up and sending email and this message should not appear.
- "Blocked by Spam Assassin" - Using a variety of spam checking methods our servers have tagged your computer and internet connection has having sent spam in the past. Simple disconnecting from the Internet, waiting a few moments, and reconnecting should resolve this message.
E-mail
Q. How do I setup the email aliases
A. Go to http://members.utopia.co.nz/ and login using the usercode and password you were supplied when you joined up. Then, click on Email Aliases and you can add and update existing aliases from there. Changes do not come into effect until midnight - to give you a chance to setup things without breaking your existing email configuration.
Q. How much would it cost for additional addresses?
A. You can have unlimited aliases on your hosting account (eg sales@... and info@...) - without incurring any extra charges. You are also allocated free of charge 25 individual email accounts / mail boxes.
Q. Can I change my password and user name?
A. Please email support@utopia.co.nz if you wish to change your password.
Q. Is it possible to get "wildcard e-mail" so that "anything at all" sent to a domain name reaches a specific mailbox?
A. Yes - when you setup your email aliases just leave the alias part blank so that it reads @yourdomain.co.nz. This is typically called mail bagging or catch all.
Q. Can I forward my email to my ISP instead of collecting it on Utopia?
A. Yes - Log on to the members area and click on Email Aliases. Click on the alias to update and instead of selecting a local POP mail box you can enter in any internet email address to forward your email to.
Q. How do I configure Outlook to send and pickup e-mail through Utopia?
A. Open Microsoft Outlook; Select Tools from the menu bar; Select Accounts; Select "Add"; Select "Mail"; Enter In your Name and click Next (it can be anything you like); Select "I already have an e-Mail address that I'd like to use"; Enter in your e-Mail address (eg JohnSmith@mydomain.co.nz); Click on "Next"; Select "POP3" for the type of server; Enter "pop.utopia.co.nz" as the name of your incoming mail server; Enter "smtp.utopia.co.nz" as the name of your outgoing mail server; Click on "Next"; Under account name enter in your login name (eg vxxxx1); Enter your password in the Password field; If you don't wish to be prompted for your password; whenever you check e-Mail, tick the "Remember Password" Box; Click on "Next"; Select Finish - Your account has now been set up.
Q. What are the pros and cons of my email hosted on Utopia vs it forwarded to my ISP?
A. If you have your emailed collected at Utopia for you to pick up then you will need to modify your existing email application to connect to our server. If you do not want to adjust settings in your email application then it would be better for you to have your email forwarded to your existing ISP. Your ISP can then not charge you for the domain name hosting etc. If you change ISP then you can use the members' area to change the forwarding address for your email. Hosting your email with Utopia and not forwarding it means you do not need to change anything when you change ISP.
Q. Is there any virus and spam checking on emails?
A. Yes - we use a product called SpamAssassin to stop spam getting into your mail box. This typical captures over 5000 emails a day!. The product also includes simple virus scanning for rogue attachments etc.
Domain names
Q. I would like a domain name to be pointed at a folder in my web site - does this cost any extra?
A. No
Q. Is it possible to put an extra word in front of my domain name - e.g. http://someothername.mydomain.co.nz ?
A. Yes - log on to the members area and signup for a domain alias.
Q. What is a registrar ?
A. A registrar is the company that manages the billing and renewal of your domain name. This can be a different company than the one that actual hosts your website or e-mail.
Q. What is an UDAI ?
A. This is the password for your .nz domain name. With the password you can move your domain name billing to and from different registrars. If you are moving an existing .nz domain name for example to Utopia, you simply get the UDAI from your current provider and forward it to us.
Q. How do I register a new domain name
A. Log on to the members area and scroll down to see the type of service you want for the new domain e.g. domain parking. Click on the signup link and you can enter in the details of the domain name you wish. When the domain name has been registered you will receive an e-mail indicating the domain name has been registered.
Q. How do I transfer an existing domain name to be hosted at Utopia?
A. Log on to the members are and select the service you wish the existing domain name to be on (eg email hosting, subhosting). Click on the Signup link and make sure you specify that the domain name is already registered. Here you can then elect to have Utopia be the billing registrar for the domain name, or leave the billing for your domain name where it is and just let Utopia host the website. Having Utopia as the billing registrar means all your hosting would be on a single account. Using your .nz UDAI Utopia will move the domain name as and when you request it.
Q. How can I check if a domain name is available for registering?
A. Please use our domain search facility of Utopia's homepage at http://www.utopia.co.nz/
Q. How much does it cost to register a domain name?
A. Full domain registration charges are on our domain search page.
Q. How do I find out the details about domain names I have hosted with Utopia?
A. Go into the members area and view them there - the details for this were sent with your setup application.
Q. What domain names can Utopia host?
A. Any domain extension that the Internet supports i.e. .nz, .com.au, .com , .as etc
Q. Can the legal owner of a domain name change?
A. Yes - you will need to complete the Change Of Registrant form and submit to us.
E-commerce
Q. Do I need to know a special language to setup my e-commerce store?
A. No. However, PHP is an advantage for having 100% control over the store design.
Q. What can you offer regarding shopping basket software, Can you point me to some sites that are using it?
A. Simply go to http://www.utopia.co.nz/ecommerce.php for a full online demo of the e-commerce store.
Q. What do I need to do to make my web site a secure website, securing credit card facilities?
A. You can sign up for our secure order form package. This means we take your existing insecure web order form and put it on our secure server. You then adjust your web site to point to our secure server and then your customers can then make online orders over a secure Internet connection. The credit card details are stored on our server and you can pick them up for manual processing with your bank. Our unique encryption system means that we do not store all the credit card details on our server - instead, some are sent to you via email. This reduces the chances of any theft.
Q. How can I get secure form order notifications on my mobile phone?
A. Signup with your mobile phone provider for an email address which get routed to your mobile. Then, update your secure form with a tag as follows - replacing the yyy with your mobiles email address:
<input type="hidden" name="sms" value="yyy">
Website maintenance
Q. Can I use any provider I want and have access to your server for editing my website or do I need to dial your server to have access?
A. You can use any provider and just need an application that supports FTP e.g. Dreamweaver, CuteFTP, Frontpage etc
Q. Will I need something like FTP to do the transfers?
A. Yes - Applications that support FTP include Dreamweaver, CuteFTP, Frontpage and the FTP command line in Windows.
Q. Is there support for Frontpage Extensions?
A. On the Advanced Hosting package
Q. Can I build my website using Microsoft Publisher, FrontPage, or Dreamweaver?
A. Yes
Q. Can I login to my site using Telnet or SSH?
A. No
Q. I tried to upload a web page I get"550 Permission denied". What does that mean?
A. Rename the file you are transferring to remove the spaces.
Q. How can I change my site?
A. On joining you are supplied a login and a password. You then use these with FTP to connect with Utopia. Applications that support FTP include Dreamweaver, CuteFTP, Frontpage and the FTP command line in Windows.
Content Management System
Q. How do I enable the CMS on a website I host?
A. Signup online from the members area or email support@utopia.co.nz with the details of the website that will be using it.
Q. How do I create editable content for the sites owners to use eg for updating a monthly newsletter?
A. Log on to the admin area of the CMS and click on the Add Page link. Enter in a suitable name for the content and click on Save. You will now see the name appear in the main index. You and the website owner can then click on this name to update the content eg update the newsletter.
Q. I am a designer - how do I add pages for my client to update?
A. Log on to the admin area and use the page http://www.yourdomain.co.nz/utopia/cmsbasic/pageadd.php
Q. How do I insert an editable content into a specific page on the website eg make the editable newsletter content appear on the homepage?
A. Note down the name of the content you created under admin and then insert the following code into the HTML file where you want the editable content to appear. Replace xxx with the full name of the page e.g. News.htm
<!--#include virtual="/cmscontent/xxx" -->
Q. How do I make the content appear when displayed in a browser?
A. You will need to rename the page that includes the content to have the extention .shtml instead of .htm or .html
Q. What is the cmscontent folder for that I see under FTP?
A. This folder holds all of the content (text and graphics) that a website owner can edit. It is not accessable to FTP.
Q. How do I define the style that the website owner can use for the content?
A. Download and edit the file called /cmsstyle.css from the main folder of the website. The content editor uses this stylesheet file for displaying what styles the site has. You should put the allowed styles into this folder and keep it in sync with the main stylesheet file for the website.
Q. As a designer, can I re-brand the CMS admin area?
A. Yes, upload a file called /cmshead.htm into the main folder of the website. Make sure it includes the links to the cms pages index.php, imageindex.php and backup.php.
Q. How can I include the same editable content into a PHP based page?
A. Note down the name of the content you created under admin and then insert the following code into the PHP file where you want the editable content to appear. Replace xxx with the full name of the page e.g. News.htm
<? include "/cmscontent/xxx"; ?>
Q. How do I enable the image gallery??
A. Create an .shtml page for each gallery. Then, designate a number to each gallery e.g. gallery 1 may contain all product photos. Next, add the following code into a page to allow it to display the gallery as a set of clickable thumbnails - replace nn with the gallery number.
<!--#include virtual="gallery.php?gallery=nn" -->
Handy tips
Q. How do I show my own "page not found" error instead of the standard browser one?
A. Create a page called 404.htm (for pages not found), 403.htm (for forbidden pages) and 500.htm (for CGI errors).
Q. What are the order of files that the server looks for when a perform just goes to http://www.mysite.co.nz/ ?
A. On our Linux servers this is index.html, index.htm, default.htm, Default.htm, index.shtml, index.sht, index.pl, index.php. On Windows it is Default.htm, Default.asp, index.htm, default.aspx, index.cfm.
General
Q. I have forgotten username and password for members area. How can I get it?
A. E-mail the support desk on support@utopia.co.nz and let us know who you are and what web site you host with us.
Q. I have forgotten username and password for uploading web site. How can I get it?
A. E-mail the support desk on support@utopia.co.nz and let us know who you are and what web site you host with us.
Q. How do I view my web stats and access log?
A. Log in to the members' area to access the web stats. Raw log files are available by FTP.
Q. Is there any software available to analyse the access logs generated by Utopia?
A. You can either purchase a web log analyser tool or use the one that Utopia can supply.
Q. Is there a hit/page counter available for web pages?
A. Yes - simply apply for it using the online application form
Q. Can I stream audio from your server, e.g. .mp3 or .rmj files for Real Player?
A. Yes
Q. What MIME content is supported from the server?
A. The majority of content we support e.g. html, images, movies. Just email support@utopia.co.nz if you need additional ones added.
Q. Can I host PDF documents?
A. Yes
Q. How long will it take to set up additional services?
A. Since you would already have an account with Utopia the services are usually set up on the same or next day.
Q. Can I have new MIME map details added to the web server?
A. Yes. For example many real estate agents are now requiring hosting 360 images from ULead.
Q. What is the name of SMTP, FTP and POP server
A. smtp.utopia.co.nz, pop.utopia.co.nz and ftp.utopia.co.nz
Q. What support is available?
A. We have staff available to fix system problems with every effort being made to correct them within 24 hours.
Q. Can I on-sell my virtual web space?
A. Yes. However, there is an additional service charge per month to cover administration. This is called Sub-hosting. Volume discounts are available.
Q. Is there a reward for getting new clients hosted?
A. Yes, by our Reseller program. See http://www.utopia.co.nz/reseller.php
Q. Do I have to put a link on my site, to Utopia?
A. No
Q. How is Utopia connected to the Net?
A. Currently we are housed with bandwidth from TelstraClear and Telecom NZ and are based in Albany, Auckland, New Zealand
Q. I want to move my site over to Utopia, shall I just fill out the form onsite?
A. Yes - just complete the form and we will e-mail your details about payment etc
Q. How do I go about setting up a sub-hosted site?
A. Simply create a folder on your web site for the sub-hosted site and then fill out the online application form and select "Sub hosting". We will e-mail you regarding the final configurations and sort out the domain name you require.
