rackshack woes - ticket now open for 48+ hours and unresolved. fuck this
 

Hmmm... so much for getting excited about rackshack's $1 setup. :( I've had a trouble ticket open for 48 hours and the customer service guys say that the network team "may be a while." My 700Gb/mo server is effectively a 300-350Gb/mo server at the moment due to some weird network problem which is choking my outbound bandwidth at a maximum ceiling of 1.2Mbit/sec.

I can't afford to wait 48+ hours if something like this happens again... I have to move elsewhere. I'll be paying twice as much and getting less download, but at least I know I can get a result if something goes wrong.

Prior to this I was all for rackshack, because I know how to run a server. However, now that a network problem beyond my control has reared its ugly head, I see the real problem with rackshack - their support team is *very* busy answering elementary support questions and escalating an unusual technical issue seems to be very difficult. The frontend guys just say "it's being worked on, we can't tell you more."

I asked nicely for a pro-rated refund (I've only been on for 7 days, and 2 1/2 of those have been useless) but they have refused.

Get on the phone to em and if that don't work... dump em now!

Fuck all that crap!

Ok, I just saw they've closed the ticket. 48 hours since I reported it, hasn't been resolved, just closed. Great.

Did you try chat support?

:glugglug

genomega - yeah, they are just the frontline guys. They can't really do anything (I don't blame them), just tell me that it's being worked on by someone higher up. I haven't had any contact from these 'higher up' people, the ticket has been closed but the problem still exists.

Rowan,

Hit me up...Ill have you in a server and back on your feet in no time.

ICQ ME.

:thumbsup

It make me time to speak on the phone (better fax em!) to the "Operations Director" or whatever title they have?

Yea.. can appreciate the problems.. they can happen, but I been there done that and the only resolution in the end is with whoever claims to be King there.

The ticket closing kinda smells like "avoidance" till proven otherwise :glugglug

I opened a ticket to upgrade one Plesk server's licence to unlimited domains, it was supposed to take 48 hrs max.

I edited the ticket twice with polite requests to inform me of what is happening, and no one even bothered to say anything.

Their service is starting to suck more and more. Maybe if we could do basic stuff like add our own DNS records without constant problems they wouldn't have to spend all this time doing insignificant tasks like these and they could concentrate on stuff that matters.

are you sure that your httpd.conf is as it should be?
the standard settings of rackshack isnt fit for 300gb/mo at all.
If you want me to look at it id be happy to do so - uin 4646141

Bucho - it was doing fine pushing out 3Mbit+, then suddenly it was like it was capped. Check out this MRTG graph I saved...

<img src="http://satin.sensation.net.au/64.246.52.245_14-day.gif">

Just to throw a spanner in the works, a few isolated tests work fine at full speed (see the spikes), but apart from that it's like a 1.2Mbit/sec outbound cap.

is this a bad time to ask if i should move to rackshack?

:1orglaugh

I have some friends who swear by RackShack and have never really had any problems, although they are tech Gods.

i really don't have any problems managing my own servers, although i'm used to FreeBSD. the only thing i need to figure out is dns & bind... and i can get a book for that.

i just want someplace cheap for gallery listings.. that's all :)

People say use them if you know how to admin a server, but what happens when something beyond your control goes wrong?

Before this latest server I was a rackshack customer for something like 10 months. I had one issue with them, they unplugged my server because they thought it was part of a DoS attack. I tried IRC and called, but they said the only way that the server would be re-enabled is if I emailed abuse. It took 4 hours for them to respond and switch it back on... and another half a day for them to admit they made a mistake and unplugged the wrong server.

How do admin skills help there? They don't... if you have backup servers and you can live with outages like this, then go for rackshack. I have backup servers so the problem is not killing me (although it's costing me overage on my more expensive and more transfer limited server), but I am not impressed with the way they have handled my problem.

You promoting Rackshack? :1orglaugh

Thanks for your experiences.... another place to avoid! :glugglug

Nothing personal but if your dumb enought to use them for anything important you get what you pay for.

Letme tell you.. I am disappointed with them.. I bought a unlimited bandwidth server the beginning of June.. the whole month I was complaing that the server wasnt fast, it always time out, etc.. They keep giving me solutions to the problems that didnt work.. first they told me I didnt have apache configured correctly, then they told me that I was getting to much trafffic for a 10mbps connection (bullshit.. I was doing only 60,000 uniques 40GB a day). my machine maxed out at 300KBps instead of 10mbps, then they told me it was a bad network cable... Finally like 6 support tickets later.. they said I had a bad nic.. and other hardware ... and they swapped out my server.. Now my new server Ive had for 2 days just went down over the past 2 hours.. completely amazing... waiting for a reboot as we speak. I want a refund or credit to my account for paying for a 10mbps connection to my machine for a month and not getting it until 2 days ago and now the new machine is down..

One.
Rpet

See Sig.

:glugglug

I solved all my rackshack problems real easy - I left.

you get what you pay for

when i first got a server with them it was fucked up, since the os and shit was created from a corrupt image. They fixed that. I later learn they assigned me the wrong ip's. They fixed that. Mostly smooth sailing ever since... I had some trouble changing the DNS but eventually got that going so I wrote up a popular tutorial about it (for ensim servers) at their forums.

Anyhow... anytime I had a major problem with them, fuck their chat, fuck their trouble tickets. I call them directly and speak to them.

If you are still looking for hosting elsewhere hit me up on icq (36837470). We'll work something out.

Risque Hosting? :1orglaugh

It's obvious they just have y ou capped at the router or something.

$1 setup and dirt cheap pricing, this is one possible outcome of that business model. LOL

Brad

And then one always comes out of the woodwork like myself who says, "If you know how to manage a server, Rackshack is fanastic".

I have nothing but good experiences with them, and I have all of my servers maxed out to the brim of exploding.

Yes, sometimes they screw up..but remember how many thousands of servers they have. I would guess their screwup to server ratio is probably a hell of a lot lower then most others out there.

You cant beat their rates.. but I have been with them a month and had a ton of troubles.. I can only hope it gets better.. Ps... they finally got my server back up.. but now it is experiencing heavy packet loss like 25%...

heheh..

ONe.
rpet

I once had the same 48 hour problem ... with RackShack ... just hang in their live support room ... and every 15 minutes post ...

NOW 24 HOURS 45 MINUTES for support request ...

both times I needed to do this were ...

"NIC" conflicts and "IP THEFT" ... by "gurus" including ranges of IP's in there config files ... which interfered with mine ...

I am not a tech guru but I have had no problems with RS for quite some time now ...

Eventually they just shut down all the offending servers until mine was working ..

Dad@

I do not believe there is such a thing as a perfect web host. When I went out looking for dedicated hosting, I was looking for 4 things.

1.) Cheap/competitive/reasonable pricing
2.) 24/7 techsupport by phone
3.) Non cogent bandwidth and no capping
4.) Hosting company that was already established and trusted

I searched and searched and searched and couldnt find a host that suited all 4 requirements. I just eventually settled with Candidhosting and although I cant say they've been fantastic, at least I can say they've been satisfactory. I think the most you can expect these days from a webhost is good uptime and a correctly configured server. With everything else, you're pretty much on your own.

dupe

there is no such thing as "lifetime" or "unlimited" ...

if you buy such a farce ... you get what you buy ...

RackShack.net and iServer.com have been the best hosting companies I have ever delt with ...

Hands down ...

And trust me ... I have tested MANY over the years ...

What you have to realize about RackShack.net is that their tech support works REMOTELY ... all online ...

RackShack is NOT for newbies ...

1. Their tech support does NOT work remotely. All folks who are there are in-house.

2. Rackshack does not give refunds - ever. For any reason. It's in the TOS and AUP that you have to agree to when you sign up. I've been there for years and I've seen times when someone genuinely deserved a refund, but they stick to their rules - no refunds.

3. Rowan, these are the people you need to contact. CC all of them with a POLITE letter clearly stating the details of what has happened and giving a link to your graph screencap:
Patrick [email protected] Sen. Sys. Admin
Mario [email protected] Customer Service Manager
Greg [email protected] Support Team Manager
Robert [email protected] Rackshack CEO

Don't get mad or abusive in the letter. This is the first time these four fellows have heard of you and your problem. Don't threaten to leave, but tell them that from the referrals you honestly expected better service than this. Give them the opportunity to make things right, and they will.

It might take repeating yourself over and over, but they will make it right. I recently had a problem that caused a 5-page thread in the forums and got Patrick to acquiesce and agree to re-do the hard drive images so that when the box goes online, everything is shut down except for SSH; and when a box is restored, not only is everything shut down but SSH, but only you from your specific IP can access the box - thus giving you an opportunity to clamp down security in case you have someone trying their best to crack in once the box comes back online. It was a great step forward.

Just stop dealing with the techs, and instead take it to the guys who actually have the power to get things done.

PS - If you're going to post your problem to a forum, GFY isn't the place to do it. Nothing is going to get done about it over here.
Instead, post your issue in the Rackshack forums, where the actual Rackshack people will see the problems you're having.

PPS - Make sure to include your RS-XXXXX number and IP address of the server in the email you send so they can look it up immediately without having to write back and ask you for it.

I remember some time ago on another board I posted how I wasn't happy with rackshack due to small 10-15 min network outages on my server, and I moved to another provider.

Simple statement, no attacking no nothing.

Then about 3 people jumped down my throat supporting rackshack saying I "just didn't know how to admin a server", "Why woudln't you hire someone that knew Unix, etc". "The network hasn't had downtime in 2 years". That's odd, my MRTG looked like a square wave some days.

It was reasons like this that I left. Nothing against them - $1 setup and 700gb a month for $99? That's amazing. Great pricing.

But somewhere along the line, I got tired of these small issues that come with going with the cheapest host. Assess what your needs are, and buy based on that. That's my new motto.

I dunno, that's my rant.

yeah I've heard too many horror stories about RackShack so I moved to Phatservers.com last month when my Tera-byte server was too small and they are great to work with and even the simple dumb questions I've thrown at them at 3AM are answered in 5-10min.

Well, I believe I genuinely deserve one. A partial refund, at least - I am no longer using their services due to the fault still being unresolved, and do not wish to use them. Surely it can't be 100% legal to flat out refuse a refund? If you buy a product and it's faulty, you return it for a refund or replacement. Why is a service any different?

I will email those people and try to reason with them, but right now all I want is the refund. I am no longer interested in fixing the problem - it's been over 3 days since it started and they quietly closed the ticket without a solution.

I posted here purely to vent, not really to jog anyone at RS into action. :)

I know what ya mean, Rowan. I was at that point less than a month ago (got unplugged three times and restored twice within 2 weeks) but finally got it all resolved (I hope).
Best of luck with the big guys. ;)

rackshack is busy, they did fucking sell 1800 servers the last week, what do you think, that they can answer a ticket in 1 minute, normal they are really fast, im having 9 servers already for 29 months with rackshack and i will never leave them.

i did read a post from a guy who had problems and rackshack did tell to configure apache, yes configure apache, they are not configured and 40GB traffic a day with apache is really much and you server can die dailly if you didt configure apache good.

i never had problems with rackshack because i know what im doing on my servers and im configuring them good.

First off, I have been running and administering unix servers for over 6 years now... I have ran everything from System V, to FreeBSD, to Linux, Solaris you name it.. I have worked for big companys including IBM and Turner Broadcasting doing Unix administration.. I know how to run a unix sytem.. My apache was perfectly configured for the amount of traffic... I told them what the problem was from the begining and they ignored my comments.. they insisted it was basic problems that I already had went over myself.... Basically what I am saying is provide a quality service.. dont tell a person your going to give them a unmetered 10mbps connection and dont... The server side I realize I am responsible for and I have no problem with that.. but they have to keep up their side of the bargain to.. and thats the network and the network infastructure... But again you get what you pay for... thats why I really am not complaining to much just disappointed..

One.
Rpet

http://www.skimpythongs.com/images/trailer3.jpg

http://www.skimpythongs.com/images/rackshack3.jpg

After all the comotion I have to tell you guys.. after emailing the head guys just yesterday... I got a service credit for the month of june because of my problems... So I take back all the bad stuff about their customer support.. they actual gave me a credit for my june hosting...

One.
Rpet