Certificate Domain

Only one certificate may be issued per Virtual Server. Thus, we suggest you use your Server's Primary Domain for your Certificate Domain. Of course, you may always use one of your subhosted domains as the domain associated with the certificate, but we don't recommend this.

Note: Once your certificate is issued, we can not change ANY of the identifying information associated with that certificate such as domain, company name, phone number, or address. You will have to purchase a NEW certificate to do so.

Digital Certificate

Digital Certificates require a domain to be associated with them; they are not tied to an IP address. Once you purchase a Digital Certificate, it is yours to keep and may be used on any server with which it is compatible. You can learn more about Digital Certificates from our Virtual Server web site.

You may install one Digital Certificate per Virtual Server.

Disk Space

Extra disk space costs $5 per month per 5 MB. If you want to add more than 175MB to a Server B, we will automatically upgrade you to a Server C.

Document Root

The document root is the folder to which a browser will be pointed when a domain or its cname is entered. Document roots are specified in the web server configuration file (httpd.conf) to tell the server where a domain's files are located in its directory structure.

The document root is the top level of the directory structure for a particular domain; it will contain subfolders such as "graphics" or "icons" or "downloads" etc. The document root for a particular domain or cname usually follows this convention:
    /usr/local/etc/httpd/vhosts/<domain or username>/<doc root folder>
    /usr/local/etc/httpd/vhosts/myphones/public_html
The cgi-bin and other directories that contain executable files are usually located outside the document root for security reasons.
    /usr/local/etc/httpd/vhosts/myphones/cgi-bin/

Domain Name Servers (DNS)

Domain Name Servers are needed to direct browsers requests for documents to the correct server. We highly recommend you use Blue Reef's Name Servers (ns1.secure.net and ns2.secure.net) if you will be using our Virtual Servers. Of course, you may choose to use someone else's Domain Name Servers, but we do not recommend this as it will complicate matters and may cause problems down the road.

Note: If you select Blue Reef's Name Servers and your domain is currently hosted elsewhere, you will need to initiate a domain modification request with InterNIC so that your domain record has the correct DNS information. If you select Blue Reef's Name Servers but do not take action to modify your domain information, your domain may not resolve as you expect.

Login ID

The Login ID, a.k.a. username, is used in conjunction with your Login Password to access your Virtual Server.


The Login ID should be eight characters long and may contain only numbers and letters. The Login ID is also case-sensitive, which means that "joesmith" is NOT the same as "JOESMITH" or "JoeSmith".

Your Login ID is NOT the same as your Server ID.

Password

This password will be the primary password for your Virtual Server. You must use this password when accessing the server via telnet/SSH, FTP, or ACE.

Passwords must be more than six characters long. Passwords, like Login IDs, are case-sensitive.

Bad, or easily crackable, passwords:
  • can be looked up in a dictionary
  • contain the login ID
  • are used in multiple places
  • are so difficult to remember that you end up posting it on your monitor for everyone to read!
Good password include a mix of upper and lowercase letters, as well as numbers. You can also use an acronym for a phrase that's easy to remember but hard to decipher. Examples include:
  • JLmtBtms (Jesus Loves me, the Bible tells me so)
  • Ch9LiwiD (Cats have 9 Lives; i wish i Did)

Server Domain

Enter the primary domain name to be used for your server. (You may add additional domains to your server later.)

Valid domain name characters include letters, digits, dashes, and periods. The domain name cannot begin nor end with a period or dash. If you are requesting a '.com', '.net', or '.org' top level domain name, InterNIC limits you to use 63 characters.

Do NOT include the prefix "www" or protocol "http://" at the beginning of your domain name.

Acceptable examples include:
  • example.com
  • example.org
  • example.net
If you need us to register this domain for you, we will do so, charging only $25 per year. This is a 29% savings over Network Solutions. Plus Blue Reef can register your domain for periods of up to 10 years.

Server ID

Please indicate the Server ID as mentioned in the configuration email you received when you first ordered your Virtual Server. If you have more than one Virtual Server, then you have more than one Server ID. Your Server ID is not the same as the Login ID used to access that server; it is a nickname to identify your Virtual Server.

If you do not know your Server ID, please call us at 305-274-8393 to help you.

Secure Socket Layers (SSL)

Secure Sockets Layers (a.k.a. Netscape Encryption) can be enabled on your server for a one time setup fee of $50. Once you have this feature enabled, you will be able to securely access your web pages via a secure URL (https://www.someurl.com/pages.html).

Data sent via SSL will be encrypted with 128-bit encryption - an extremely secure level of encryption approved by the US Dept of Defense. Sent between the browser and the server, including passwords and credit card numbers) will be encrypted to prevent prying eyes from intercepting the data.

If you order SSL, we HIGHLY recommend you also order a Digital Certifcate.

Webmaster Email

This is the email alias of the webmaster for the Organization. It can either be an off-site email address (e.g. jonsmith@aol.com) or it be an on-site email address associated with the Server's Primary Domain (e.g. jonsmith@serverdomain.com).

If you do not know what to specify then leave the field blank.