Site hosting news, tutorials, tips, How Tos and more
Do you have an Android mobile device? If so, have you installed the Amazon App Store? Why not?!
Every day you can get a free app, which normally sells for $0.99 to $9.99. Each day the app changes, so it is best to check back often.
First, you need to allow your device to install application from unknown sources (not the normal Play Store).
Open up your settings and go to either applications or security (this depends on what software version you are running, I am showing this to you in version 4.2), in my case it was security.
Next, you want to check the box for Unknown Sources.
Once you have done this, you can proceed to the next step which is downloading and installing the application!
To install this awesome application, in your mobile device’s browser go to http://www.amazon.com/getappstore or use your favorite search engine and search, “Amazon app store.”
Click on the link to Download the Amazon Appstore.
Once the download is complete, click on the AmazonApps-release.apk and click install.
Now you can check this app every day and see what is available for free! At the time I wrote this article, Osmos HD was the free application, a very fun game!
Enjoy!
The following instructions apply to both our Windows 2008 IIS 7 servers & our Windows 2012 IIS 8 Servers.
In this tutorial I’m going to show you how to back up your SQL database and web site files. Then we’ll use the IIS Manager to back up your site and SQL Databases all in one shot. These instructions will place a .zip file locally on your computer for safe keeping. The .zip file will contain the .bak file of your SQL database.
Step 1: Use our SQL backup tool in Control Panel to back up your SQL Database. When using this tool the .bak file will be stored in your App_data directory. Please read our knowledge base article on how to use the backup SQL Tool in our control panel.
Step 2: Once you’ve created the .bak file in your App_data directory on your site account using the SQL backup tool in our control panel, you’re ready to connect to your site using IIS Manager. Please read our knowledge base article about Using the Microsoft IIS Manager.
Step 3: In IIS Manager Right click on your site. Selected Deploy and click on Export Application…
Step 4: In the Export Application Package window click the Next button (do not change any settings).
Step 5: Click the Next button in the Select Parameters window (again, do not changing any settings).
Step 6: Click the Browse… button and select a directory on your local computer (this is where the backup .zip file containing your site’s web files will be placed on your local computer). Select a file name with today’s date for your reference. Now click the Save button.
Step 7: Click the Next button in the Save Package box and wait for your site to be saved locally on your computer. Now click the Finish button when you receive the notice “The package was created successfully.”
The .zip file that you saved locally will also contain the SQL database backup (.bak) file that you created when you used the SQL Backup tool in the control panel. It’s important to back up your SQL database at the same time as your web site files to maintain consistency for your site.
If you ever need to fall back and restore your web site to a previous state from a certain date, you can use the same tool in IIS Manager, but this time you will need to select Import Application in the Deploy option in IIS Manager.
Instructions for restoring your site:
Step 1: Right click on your site in IIS Manager. Select Deploy and click Import Application.
Step 2: Click the Browse… button and select the .zip file located on your computer of the web site backup you created in IIS Manager. Then click Next.
Step 3: Do not change any settings in the Select The Contents of the Package box and click the Next button.
Step 4: On the next page Enter Application Package Information you will need to remove the text from the box so the backup is restored to the root of your hosting account. So you should only see:
HostingAccountDomain.com/ [Empty Text Box]
Now click the Next button.
Step 5: You will receive the following warning from IIS Manager: “This application will be installed into “HostingAccountDomain.com”. Most applications are usually installed into a folder beneath the root, such as “HostingAccountDomain.com/Blog” Are you sure?” Go ahead and click the OK button.
Step 6: In the next box, Overwrite Existing Files, choose the option, “Yes, delete all extra files and folders on the destination that are not in the application package.” This will delete any extra files or folders that don’t exist in the backup .zip folder (we’re choosing this option because you want to restore the entire site as it existed on the date that you created the .zip files).
If you don’t wish to delete the extra files then select the option: “No, just append the files in the application package to the destination.” Now click the Next button.
IIS Manager will now restore your site files to the state they were in when you created the .zip file. It will also contain your .bak file too, if you created the SQL backup first using the SQL Backup tool in the control panel on the day you created the .zip file in IIS Manager. To restore the database, read our knowledge base article on how to restore your .bak file to the SQL database.
If you need instructions on backing up your MySQL database please read our blog post article: Using mysqldump to backup and restore your MySQL database/tables.
One really cool thing about this tool in IIS Manager is that you can also use it to transfer your site to our Winhost web servers. Granted, that is only if your current host provides you with the ability to Export your site using IIS Manager. If they don’t, you should be at Winhost!
Have you ever setup your smart phone to connect to a POP3 and/or SMTP server only to get errors? You looked through your email providers’ documentation and spoke with their tech support only to have them tell you that the problem is not on their end.
Frustrating as it is, they are often right. The true culprit is typically your carrier. Often times they either restrict or obstruct certain ports. How to find if your Smart Phone is able to use these ports; you ask?
Luckily for Android users, there are some nifty free apps you can download and install to perform some port checks for you. The specific one I would like to point out is the Android Net Swiss Tool (this was tested using a Galaxy S3).
It’s very easy to use and comes in really handy when you’re wondering if the hot spot you are connected to or your phone carrier is obstructing specific ports.
Once you have Net Swiss Tool installed, tap the icon. You will see on the top a drop down list where you can choose Portscan TCP. You have two options on how you can define the ports. The first and easiest method is to tap on the Port List button. The second is to manually input the port numbers in the blank text box. When you manually type the ports you want to test, separate the port numbers by spaces not commas. Also pay close attention to the Timeout setting. Some servers may take longer then usual to respond back to a port check. If you’re Timeout setting is set too low, the app will assume the port is closed if it has not received a reply back within a short period of time.
Tap the Test bar and you will see whether the port is open or not.
You will need to keep in mind that it will test the current backbone your phone is using at the time. Meaning if you are connected to WiFi, it is testing the ports through that WiFi. If you are away from any hot spots, then your phone is testing through your phone carrier’s backbone.
Here’s a short tutorial on how to link your Microsoft Access database to your Microsoft SQL Server database. (Note: Screenshots from Microsoft Access 2010)
1. First, you will need to create an Access database or open up an existing one.
2. Next, you’ll want to click on the External Data tab and then ODBC Database icon which will start a wizard.
3. Select Link to the data source by creating a linked table and click on OK.
4. In the Select Data Source window, type in the DSN Name and click on the New button.
5. In the Create New Data Source window, select SQL Server and click on the Next button.
6. In the Create New Data Source window, type in the file name and click on the Next button.
7. In the Create New Data Source window, click on the Finish button.
8. In the Create a New Data Source to SQL Server window, type in the name of the database for the Description and enter the fully qualified domain name for the Server.
9. In the Create a New Data Source to SQL Server window, check With SQL authentication, type in your Login ID and Password and click on the Next button.
10. In the Create a New Data Source to SQL Server window, you can leave the options as is or change them. Click on the Next button.
11. In the Create a New Data Source to SQL Server window, you can leave the options as is or change them. Click on the Finish button.
12. In the ODBC Microsoft SQL Server Setup window, click on the OK button.
13. In the Select Data Source window, click on the OK button.
14. In the SQL Server Login window, enter the Login ID and Password.
15. In the Link Tables window, select the table(s) you want to link and click on the OK button.
16. In the Select Unique Record Identifier window, choose the fields that will uniquely identify the record and click on the OK button.
17. You have now created a linked table in Microsoft Access!
In my previous blogs, I showed you how you can tighten up the settings in SmarterMail to help prevent too much spam from ending up in your Inbox:
Content Filtering, the other Spam Crime Fighter
But what happens if legitimate email messages are being marked accidently as spam, and you know it’s from a legitimate email address? Fortunately, there is a way to rectify this problem by using the Trusted Senders feature in SmarterMail. This feature allows you to whitelist email addresses or domains, thus bypassing the spam/content filtering rules you have setup. And here are instructions on how to set it up:
1. Log into SmarterMail with the email account you want to apply this setting to.
2. Click the Settings icon (2 cogs) on the menu to your left.
3. Expand the My Settings folder and click on Trusted Senders.
4. Click on the New button.
1. Enter the email addresses/domains you want to whitelist, line by line.
2. Click on the Save button, and you’re done!
If you want this setting to be applied to all the email accounts in your domain, log in with the postmaster account instead, and use the Trusted Senders under Domain Settings.
Did you know that Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome like to display your passwords in plain text? No? Well, they sure do.
If you want to see what I’m talking about, follow the steps below.
Open Firefox.
Click on the Firefox Menu at the top left corner.
Select Options, then click on Options.
Click on the Security tab at the top.
Click the Saved Passwords… button. This will open up the Saved Passwords box. Now click on Show Passwords Button.
Example Below:
Surprise!
Did your jaw just hit the floor? I know mine did the first time I saw what Firefox was hiding from me all this time.
Now let’s open up Google Chrome and click Settings.
Once you get into your settings, scroll all the way to the bottom and click on Show advance settings…
Look for the section Passwords and forms and click the Manage saved passwords link.
Select the site where you saved your password and click Show button.
Okay, I’m done with the surprises.
So how did Firefox and Google Chrome get my passwords in the first place?
To get the answer you must also answer this question: Have you ever seen the following notification in your web browser?
Mozilla Firefox:
Google Chrome:
Whenever you clicked on the shiny button “Remember Password” in Firefox or “Save Password” in Chrome, the site username and password are saved within the web browser – and as you also saw – displayed in plain simple text.
Anyone can walk up to your computer and take a quick look at your web browsers history/settings. Just imagine you’re at the office and you step away from your computer and a nosy/curious coworker gets the chance to take a look. That is why it’s important to always lock down your computer before you step away from your desk.
Additionally, say you’re unlucky enough to have some malicious software installed on your computer which happens to allow the hacker gain remote control of your desktop. The hacker will only have to wait until you are away from your computer to check your saved passwords.
What if you sent your computer out to a repair shop and they “just happened to” take a look at your saved passwords? It only takes a few seconds for them to snoop around on your computer and do who-knows-what with your credentials. There are a lot of different ways these passwords can be intercepted. This just happens to be one method of interception that can be avoided.
So what’s the work-around and how do I keep my passwords safe? Fortunately there are plenty of third party plug-ins people use with their web browsers. Perhaps you can recommend what plug-in works best for you in the comment section below.
I found a plugin called LastPass. With 254,540 users and 827 reviews just for the Firefox plugin alone seems to be a great alternative. Best thing about this plugin is that it also works with the Google Chrome web browser.
OpenCart is an open source PHP based ecommerce solution, and in this tutorial, I will show you how to get it up and running here at Winhost. First, I suggest you create a MySQL database through the Control Panel.
Click on the Sites tab.
Click on the Manage link and then click on the MySQL button.
Click the Add button and enter the values for Database Name, Database User, and Quota. Click the Create button to finish creating the database. Now click on the Manage link and record the connection information (Database Name, Database Server, Database User, and Database Password) on a piece of paper or a text editor such as Notepad.
Next, you’ll need to obtain the source download from the OpenCart website.
Extract the contents using a decompression program such as WinZip or 7-Zip. Navigate to the upload folder of the extracted files. Rename the php.ini file to user.ini and create a web.config file with this configuration:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> <configuration> <system.webServer> <!-- Set the default document --> <defaultDocument> <files> <remove value="index.php" /> <add value="index.php" /> </files> </defaultDocument> </system.webServer> </configuration>
The file structure should look like this:
We rename the php.ini file to user.ini because the php.ini settings are global and cannot be accessed by an individual user. Please read our other blog for more information. If you want a list of settings that you can manipulate in the user.ini file, please see these links on the official PHP site and look at the Changeable column.
http://php.net/manual/en/configuration.changes.modes.php
http://php.net/manual/en/ini.core.php
We add the web.config file so that “index.php” will load automatically. Now upload the files to the root of your site account, preserving the directory structure as shown here:
Now browse to your site using either your domain name (if you have already set it up correctly) or Secondary Web URL to start the installation.
Check I agree to the license and the Continue button to proceed.
After a PHP check, click on the Continue button to proceed.
Enter the MySQL connection credentials you recorded earlier and fill out the information for the admin account. Click on the Continue button to proceed.
The installation has been completed. The last thing you should do is to delete the /install directory using FTP.
You can start developing your site or make other configuration changes.
If you’re reading this it’s likely that your email account was recently hacked and now you’re wondering how it happened, why it happened to you. Or maybe you’re just wondering how you can prevent it from happening to you.
Let me start off by saying that there are many different ways an email account can be compromised. In this article I’ll cover three of those methods.
Also note that these aren’t the only way an email account can get compromised. People are always inventing new ways of compromising an email account/system. So by the time you finish reading this article, it’s likely that they will have come up with a few new techniques.
Now lets imagine you’re at the local coffee shop sipping on some hot coffee. You open your laptop and connect to the coffee shop’s WiFi. Why not, it’s free Internet, right?
Now it’s time to check your email messages because you are expecting important news. You open the email client on your computer and start browsing the Internet for, you know, important stuff. An hour passes by and you go on your way to work, home, or school. But did you notice the person sitting across from you with their laptop? He just took your email credentials while you weren’t looking. But how did it happen?
Did it happen while you were in the bathroom?
No.
Did it happen when you went for yet another cup of joe?
Nope.
So how did that person steal your email information with out even coming close to your computer?
Ever heard of a Man in the Middle attack? To put a MITM attack in simplest terms, some malicious so and so sets up their computer to act like a router and tricks your computer into thinking that the computer actually is the router. Then the router thinks the shady computer – in the middle of the connection – is your computer.
Think of it as someone tapping into your network connection. Once this starts happening they can view all kinds of fun packets coming from your computer to the mail server (or to any server). Each time you make a connection to the mail server you are sending your authentication credentials through the bad guy’s computer.
From there it’s easy to use a program to filter out all packets containing login credentials. This includes your Facebook, Twitter, and bank account login information as well. Everything.
So does that mean it would be better to just stay away from your local coffee shop?
Hey, no need to be drastic! You can still go and you can still surf the Internet but it may be best if you didn’t use the coffee shop’s Internet connection. Personally, I don’t trust any network that I don’t own or control.
A nice work-around would be to use the Internet connection on your smart phone. Most smart phones have the capability of turning into a password protected Wifi “hot spot.” They also have the capability to tether the smart phone to your laptop. But, of course you will be using your phone service provider’s data plan.
So if I protect myself from that shady “man in the middle,” I’m safe, right?
Not exactly.
Another way your email account could be compromised is with a virus/malware being installed on your computer without your knowledge. This method is the most common and likely way that your email account (and everything else on your computer) can be compromised. I’ve seen what some of these viruses and malware are capable of doing, and it’s scary stuff.
Some of the virus/malware infections come with a nice little tool called a keylogger. What it basically does it logs all your key strokes and sends them to a server controlled by whoever infected your computer with the virus/malware. So any time you enter a username and password, the keystrokes are logged before the login request is sent. It doesn’t matter that the connection from your computer to the mail server is encrypted.
So how did this software get onto your system, or how can you prevent it from being installed on your system?
You can start by practicing the following:
The third way an email account can be compromised is by social engineering. Some email systems come with a nifty “Forgot your password?” tool. So what’s the big deal about this feature? Well, when you were setting up your email account you weren’t thinking twice and just answered the security questions truthfully. For example the signup form has the following questions:
You had to pick two of them and answered the two question correctly. No harm done right?
Wrong. The question/answer that you’ve set up with your email account should actually be considered to be your second and third passwords. Why? Because the correct answers to these questions gains access to the email account.
It would be best to answer these questions kind of incorrectly. So, let’s say you chose Which street did grow up on? and What is your mother’s maiden name? and answer to the first question is Main St. and the answer to the next question is Smith.
Instead of using the correct answers, you can add a extra character befor the real answer. For example @Main St. and @Smith. If the system doesn’t allow these type of characters then you can also use a letter before the real answer. For example: QMain St. and QSmith . That way if the malicious person finds out the real information, they will still have a hard time getting into your email account.
You must be wondering how these people even get the information in order to gain access to your email account using the security questions method. The answer is very easy. In this day and age most of us use social media sites Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc. What’s the problem with social media? Well, the problem is we like to give out to much information.
We all like to share share share. Sometimes we don’t realize it, but we give out too much information. So much information that it makes it easy for a malicious person to gain access to your email account using the security question method.
If you keep these things in mind and think about security in new ways, you will protect yourself from a lot of potential headaches.