Mirror Host
Mirrored Web Sites/Web Pages
8/2/96: Special Note
This page is filled with tips about how to help you promote, protect, and assure full time accessibility to your Web Site/Web Page through proper use of
Mirroring Your Web Site/Page
Down But Not Out
Have you ever had a server go down or a service provider go under? As competition builds, it is becoming more and more frequent for service providers to go out of business. I've experienced the latter two times since creating The Construction Site (tm) in May 1995. It's not a very pleasant experience, especially if you have a commercial Web Site with obligations to paying advertisers, etc.
Thankfully, the first provider gave about a 45 day notice and it took 5 weeks to get the domain moved to another server, only to have them (without notice) close their doors after only 4 months in business. Yes they did, just like that. I was temporarily out of business along with them.
Thanks to Bluegate Systems and some of the best service I've seen to date, they had The Construction Site (tm) moved to their server within 2 days. I also credit a special person on the InterNic end for his help.
Following are some ideas, and steps you can take, that will help you avoid some of the above potential problems I encountered.
- The mirroring concept. Many large, high traffic, commercial sites are mirrored to other servers across the globe. This is all done for several reasons, one being to speed up peak hour efficiency and reliability. Another reason is to keep the site up and running (somewhere) at all times. It's just good business and smart thinking to cover your bases in the event of a disaster. More common than natural disasters are technical problems and service providers going down or out of business.
Is the ISP you're using mirrored? Possibly it's not. What would happen to your Web Site/Page(s) in case of technical or other problems on the service provider end? Now is the time to take action to avoid downtime.
Power failures, hurricanes, floodings and sometimes even building bombings are other reasons to prepare for. . Taking preventative action before a crisis is always better than reacting after a crisis. Be prepared, think ahead! Get mirrored somewhere now.
- Mirroring is not the same as linking. If your Web Site/Web Page is linked to hundreds of other Web Sites and your server goes down, you're down all the way. However, if your Web Site/Web Page is mirrored on other Web Sites, not associated or dependent upon your server, you will maintain a reliable Web presence, to some degree, regardless of what happens to your primary server. All outside links are directly related to your sites domain name. Any link to your site has to access your primary server to view your pages, unless your site is mirrored. Again, if your server is down, or any part of the system in between that affects the connection of access to your site, your site is then down all the way. Mirroring does not require having access to your site's domain name. Once mirrored, it is not DNS dependent to your domain name. Access then becomes dependent upon the host site's domain name.
- Bookmarking Advantages When users of your Web Site are dependent upon having access to your site, on a schedule that does not include inaccessibility of your primary Web Site, there is now an alternative.
Simply post a notice and link on your Web Site for the URL of your mirrored location(s). Your users may access and bookmark the mirror sites for immediate access when your primary server or Web Site is not accessible. Sometimes your Web Site/Web Page is not accessible even though your server is fine, e.g., during peak periods, phone connection problems, name server problems, area power outages. Sometimes it's the "Gremlins" that seem to bug the system when least expected. Ironically, these things always seem to happen on holidays, long week-ends and after office hours.
- Be prepared. Get isolated from potential local problems.
GET MIRRORED. There doesn't have to be a next time for you, if your Web Site/Web Page is MIRRORED. Consideration should also be given to where you are mirroring to, in relation to where your primary connection is currently located, for several reasons.
- Held Hostage When services providers go under, they don't usually give advance warning. In essence, if your site is on only 1 server, even if it's your own server, it is subject go down at any time. In other words, if your site is not mirrored, it is subject to being held hostage, thus inaccessible, for any number or reasons.
- Advantages for New Web Sites If you have a new Web Site/Page, you should definitely consider mirroring or at least linking to a related directory that has an established presence on the Web, especially to high traffic directories/sites. You will have immediate access to users you may never reach otherwise. There are other advantages too numerous to mention here.
- Another advantage to mirroring. You have the advantage of using several different approaches to Web Site/Page presentation. Try one thing on one mirrored Web Page and try something else on another mirrored Web Page , then monitor the results. There are ways to "tag" your mirrored Web Pages in order to be able to monitor which one gets the best results.
- Maintenance: Maintaining your mirrored Web Site/Web Pages yourself is not a problem. You can still make the edits as usual. Simply notify your mirroring host of the update after they're completed. The host will simply copy the newly edited page(s) to the hosting site (yes, with images and all).
If your host site's Webmaster is willing to grant the privilege, it is also possible for you to have direct access, password protected access to only your own mirrored files, without compromising access to the host site's files. By setting you up with maintenance access privileges, you would not be dependent upon the host site's Webmaster for changes. However, all host sites may not agree to such an arrangement. You should respect their wishes and don't be pushy on this point or you may get turned down altogether.
- Where you should mirror your site to, depends on the results you want to achieve and finding a willing host. In my opinion most all Web Sites/Pages, especially the smaller sites, should be associated with a directory related to their particular site content, provided you want your Web Page listed in the directory of your hosting site. Personally, I think all construction related sites should be linked or mirrored from The Construction Site (tm). Well, it don't hurt to wish, does it? After all, we already have thousands of regular users.
- An alternative to the above: Your Web Site/Page could be hosted by any host willing to accept your account, but not necessarily have to be related to your subject content. You would just not list your site in it's viewable directory. The host would only serve as a backup or secondary server for your Web Site/Page.
- Now, the BIG Question, How Much? Well, it's like about everything else in life, it does cost money. Unfortunately none of us ever seem to have enough of the stuff. To answer the question, it will depend on what services you would require, e.g., how many pages, images, e-mail address, e-mail forwarding, downloads from your primary server, and other services would be required from the host site. I would imagine each host site would price such services on a case by case basis. See our prices
There are many other advantages to this mirroring concept. I will probably add to this page as time permits, but I think the above will provide you with enough insight to get the general idea of the advantages of mirroring your Web Page/Web Site, especially to those of you who have a revenue producing Web Site/Web Page.
This concept should be seriously considered by those of you who have a Web Site sitting out there in cyberspace, standing all alone. Sadly, most of the Web Site/Page owners are under the misconception that their Web Site/Web Pages can be found by the users via the many, many, search engines now available. Don't bet on it.
Go to Alta Vista and search for "construction" and you'll find over 2,000,000 references to the word. Yet, they only show you a few hundred links to the referenced word. What about the other million plus not shown. Whose pages are the others, where are they, how do I find them, what am I missing, where is your page? If your Web Site/Page is not listed or linked to a related directory, it's a Homeless Page©.
Cyberspace is a big place and you need all the help you can get.
GET MIRRORED TODAY!
Remember, you saw it first on The Construction Site (tm) To the best of my knowledge, no one else has published this information on the Web or offered this service ( on a small scale) before now. So, if you see it offered by other Web Sites, (not that I object) just remember the idea originated here first.
If it works for the Big Boys, it will work for you. NO MORE down time.
Expanding Upon The Above
Reciprocal Mirroring
By expanding upon the above and creating reciprocal mirroring with other Web Sites, each can have affordable (no cost) protection. It's just a simple matter of you mirroring your Web Site/Page with any party that will agree to host your Web Site/Page. In return you reciprocate in kind.
I would advise caution though. Don't over do it and get yourself spread too thin. It could become a monumental task trying to update the mirrored sites.
I recommend only 1 or maybe 2 mirrored locations, depending on your particular circumstances, size of your Web Site/Pages and based on how often you need to update.
I also suggest monitoring the mirrored site before you request a reciprocal mirroring. You may not get the return service you deserve and expect. I would also make the agreement contingent upon cancellation rights by either party, within an agreed upon time-frame. After all, mirroring is not as easy as simply making a link. It also takes up more server space, in addition to throwing more load on the server by newly added traffic. Agreement should also be reached concerning updates, i.e., how many, how often, when, etc. Be fair, be honest and don't expect more than you're willing to give in return.
It would hardly be fair to ask the other party to update your mirrored files on a daily basis, if the other party's needs only required a one time per month update. You should be willing to pay for that type of unequal exchange of services. Don't expect to mirror a 10 megabyte Web Site in exchange for a 2 megabyte Web Site, unless you're willing to pay or give something in return.
If you are seriously considering having your Web Site/Page mirrored on The Construction Site (tm)
and would like to get a price and additional information, please submit your name and the URL of your Web Site/Web Page.
Including the city and state your server or service provider is located in would be helpful and very much appreciated.
Send request now
mirror@constr.com
Sorry, NO reciprocal requests are being accepted by The Construction Site (tm) at this time.
One last thought. If the mirroring concept I'm suggesting becomes a reality and is used across the Web, I would like to see an internationally recognizable logo or icon adopted and used (not necessarily the one I'm currently using) on all participating host sites and mirrored Web Site/Pages. I think a lack of standardization across the entire computer industry has caused unnecessary confusion. A simple, common sense, approach, is almost always the better choice. Leave complicating things to government, they do it better. {:-)
As for the standard logo, some of you good graphic artists could really show your stuff by designing and contributing to the cause. I think there's much room for improvement over what I'm currently using. It does need to be small in size though, like maybe a 35 X 18.
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