Frequently Asked Questions

What type of support do you offer? Average Response Time?
Marnick Technology offers support to our clients 24/7/365 via  web based ticket system, email, IC. A pager number is also available for dedicated server clientele. We strive for response times of no more than a few hours.  The Marnick Technology administration carefully monitors that the Marnick Technology support staff maintains a fast response time, with courteous and helpful service.

What are the hardware specs of the servers?
Every server at Marnick Technology has different specifications. Whenever a server reaches what we feel to be the limit, another server is built. Marnick Technology is constantly upgrading the server hardware on our network. If more drive space, memory, or faster processors are needed, they are added in at that time. The average shared server is a QUAD XEON processor system, with 4048MB RAM, and RAID hard drive(s). All Marnick Technology servers run spare hard drives for backup requirements.

Can I have adult content on my website?
Yes, you can have adult content on your websites.

May I view your Terms Of Service?
The Marnick Technology terms of service (TOS), including policy and service guidelines, are available online at: http://www.hostforweb.com/terms.html.


Do you support International domain names and clients?
Marnick Technology can host all international domains on its servers. Marnick Technology can accept foreign clientele, just please be advised that all correspondance must be conducted in English. The client is responsible for handling the registration process of foreign domain name(s). This must be pointed to nameservers on the Marnick Technology network as assigned, or you can use other nameservers and route the domain name to the IP address you are assigned. Marnick Technology cannot handle the foreign domain registration process for you, due to the fact that we do not speak all of the potential foreign languages that may be involved. Marnick Technology will assist you however, with any technical information need to accomplish this.


What if my site breaks your "acceptable usage policy" rules?
Users' sites may be suspended for violations of policy, or if extreme, or second time offenders, sites may be cancelled. Each occurance is dealt with on a case by case basis, and we try to work things out with every client. Notifications will be sent, if Marnick Technology takes any action on your account.

How is my website monitored?
Marnick Technology maintains internal and external monitoring systems for every server in the Marnick Technology Data Center. The servers are checked every 5 minutes via network monitoring software. Marnick Technology monitors uptime as well as individual features and services running on each server. Marnick Technology staff is notified via alarms, email, screen popups, and paging, if a problem occurs.

What is the uptime?
Marnick Technology strives to maintain a 99.5% network and server uptime service level. This uptime percentage is a monthly figure, and does not include any scheduled hardware/software upgrades, nor "Acts of God". Our definition of "Act of God" includes; fire, flood, tornado, earthquake, telco fiber issues (ie...Verizon™ cutting a fiber line somewhere), backbone peering point issues (ie...UUnet™ having a router go down in Virginia that wipes out internet service for the entire East Coast), hard drive failure (faulty hardware is rare, but cannot be predicted nor avoided), as well as network floods, hacks, and attacks. If Marnick Technology fails to meet it's 99.5% uptime guarantee, and it is not due to one of the above reasons, partial downtime credits will be made available to each client, upon request, on a case by case basis. Marnick Technology does not credit a full month's service if we only have 99.4% uptime. This would not be financially healthy for Marnick Technology, and in turn would only negatively affect the service level Marnick Technology provides to you. "Partial refunds for partial downtime" is our standard policy.

Do you have a Service Level Agreement (SLA)?
The Marnick Technology terms of service (TOS), including policy and service guidelines, are available online at: http://www.hostforweb.com/sla.html.

What is your connectivity to the Internet?
Marnick Technology uses Chicago’s premier hosting provider, providing reliable, scalable solutions for customers of all sizes and services. Located in the carrier-neutral Equinix Chicago Data Center, Marnick Technology has access to all the major carriers in Chicago without the need for local loop circuits.

Do you have battery backups and generators?
Our Network Operations Center is backed up and protected by UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) systems. In a very rare case of utility outages, our auto-start generators start automatically, taking over for the UPS system and supplying all necessary power for our Network Operations Center. APC™, Tripp-Lite™, & Liebert™ UPS Systems provide the power backups, along with Kohler™ generator systems.

What kind of security do Marnick Technology websites have?
Marnick Technology websites are hosted in a  high security facility. Double metal security doors, with interior gating, protect the main entrance to the facility. The windows-less facility has advanced security, fire, temperature, and flood alarms, directly piped into the Security Monitoring Company via phone, cellular, and internet connections. A 16-camera digital video system monitors the interior and exterior of the Data Center. This video system is monitored internally at the facility and externally from the Marnick Technology Sales/Support office. The video data is recorded live both on and off site, and stored for several months ahead. Visitors cannot gain access into the faclity without employee escort. The physical servers and equipment area is secured from the visitor's area by huge metal doors, as well as metal sheeting and bulletproof glass walls.

What about software upgrades?
Marnick Technology handles all software upgrades/patches on the shared hosting servers. We fully follow all trends in the industry, and monitor all support/bug announcement groups. If a new bug or security vulnerability is found, Marnick Technology immediately upgrades our systems. Microsoft™ regularly release patches for the Windows™ based systems, and Marnick Technology auto-updates the Linux systems every night from security patch websites. As new software is released, including new versions of operating systems, Marnick Technology evaluates the new software. If the software's new version does not have any security issues, or bug problems, the upgrade is implemented.

What if the server my website is on gets hacked or attacked?
Individually hacked websites are rare. If such occurs, usually they are a target for a reason; hate sites, pirated software, etc... Marnick Technology does not host such websites. If such materal is found on a Marnick Technology server, it is deleted immediately and the user's account cancelled. Usually the target is the whole server itself. Hackers usually go after a server just to say that "they did", or to use the server to bounce off of to hack something more important. Rarely are any users' files on the server damaged, erased, or modified. For this reason, once a hacker is detected, a server can usually be cleaned up and the hacker locked back out within a matter of hours. At that time the server is restored to full security levels, as if the hack has never occurred. Most hackers get into a system thru valid user accounts. We recommend you use complicated passwords for your account. Marnick Technology strictly reviews all orders for new clients, to make sure they are legitimate. Unfortunately, some fake orders do get thru the system, and that is one way a hacker can gain initial access.  Security checks  are run on the servers daily, so even if a hacker does get in, they are found and dealt with quickly. Most hackers are not malicious, they are just playing or testing their abilities. If an individual attacks the whole  Data Center, measures are in place to cut off such floods and attacks automatically at the backbone level and the router level. Firewalls are also used to fend off most common methods of flooding and attacks to the network.

What is included in my website package?
Marnick Technology provides full hardware, software, support, and system administration for your Marnick Technology shared hosting solution. The software provided includes the operating system, ftp & email software, web server software, and a control panel. Marnick Technology even includes free e-commerce shopping cart software. Everything you need to conduct business on the Internet, or maintain a personal website, is included in your Marnick Technology hosting solution. Marnick Technology will provide basic support on services/software that we provide you with your account. Marnick Technology does not develop your website for you, nor provide tech support on how to use software products that we do not provide to your directly...even if we do support them. We are always more than willing to help you if we can though with external issues, time permitting...

How many sites are currently running on per server?
Marnick Technology does not have a set quantity of domains running on each machine. We find that ten domains can utilize more resources than 200 others. Marnick Technology monitors each server's performance levels and attempts to maintain a low server load average and high cpu availability. As needed, Marnick Technology will upgrade the hardware, to increase server performance. Individual domains that become to much for the server to handle, and utilize too much server resources, are moved to servers set up specifically for such resource intensive accounts.