Additional help:

Webserver configuration

What needs to be done to transition a virtual domain to the new web server?

There are four main steps to moving a virtual domain to our new web server.

1) Determining what, if anything, needs to be changed for the site to work on the new server, and making those changes.
2) Uploading the site to the new server
3) Having Montana Internet Support staff repoint your virtual domain to the new server.
4) Testing and verifying that the new web site works correctly on the new server.

What are the main things which need to be changed?

Most of the web pages on our customer's websites will work as-is on the new server. There are some specific things we know don't work the same on the new server as on the old one. Specifically:

1) Forms. If you are using our cgi-email script, the url you use to call cgi-email will change. In addition, having ANY form on a web page is probably a good sign that you should be looking deeper into what is handling the data from that form to determine what, if any, changes need to be made to that page.
2) CGI scripts. We have simplified how customer-provided cgi scripts work on the new server. In many cases, the only changes will be where the script gets uploaded to and how it is referred to in your web page (html) source. Generally, things which dynamically change on a web page are CGI scripts. A good example is a hit counter on a web page, where the number changes each time the page is hit.
3) Secure Server. If you are currently using our secure server, we will need to discuss your options with you. You can tell if this is the case if any part of your web site uses a https:// (as opposed to a http://) url.
4) MIC-supplied search engine. If we are indexing your web page for you, you will need to contact us to arrange for this to occur on the new server. We will be using a different search software on the new server, so your search-related pages will need to be changed.

What do I need to do about my form mail/cgi email?

If you are using the cgi-email provided by M.I.C. we highly recommend that you use FormMail. It is more robust and is easier to make work on the new server. If FormMail does not meet your needs, then you will need to contact us for further instructions.

What do I need to do to my cgi scripts to make them work?

Your cgi scripts will need to be called differently in order for them to work on the new server. Find where the scripts are called from. Replace the line with this in it:
www."yourdomainname"."ext"/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/scriptname.cgi"
with
www."yourdomainname"."ext"/virtcgi/scriptname.cgi
for each script that you want to call, replacing "yourdomainname" with the name of your domain, and "ext" with com, net or org, and "scriptname.cgi" with the name of your cgi script (this will most likely end in .cgi). Follow the uploading directions to place your cgi script in the correct directory.
There may be additional changes which need to be made to your scripts because of subtle differences between the old and new server. If you are using cgi scripts it is important that we coordinate the move with you so that the person responsible for the scripts is available to test the scripts and make any necessary changes.

How is the site uploaded to the new server?

Uploading the site to the new server is very similar to how sites are uploaded to our old server. Follow these steps, and replace the words "yourdomainname" with your domain name, and "ext" with the appropriate extension (com, org, net):

1) FTP to www2.mt.net (FTP is the program that you use to transfer files across the internet. It can be winFTP, Fetch, WSFTPLE or any other FTP program.) You should make your initial directory be /home/virt/www."yourdomainname"."ext"/htdocs.
2) Put all the .html files in this directory, and/or subdirectories.
3) If you have any cgi scripts, move to /home/virt/www."yourdomainname"."ext"/virtcgi Put all your cgi scripts there.
4) You are done, disconnect.

How do I contact M.I.C. staff to have them repoint the name server at my site?

You can contact us at (406) 443-3347, or you can email us at support@mt.net. Please make sure that when you contact us, you let us know exactly which domain you are moving. We recommend that you call us and remain on the line so we can verify that your domain is correctly working on the new server.

What do I do if my virtual domain doesn't come up after all of this is done?

Please contact us, by phone, or by email and we can work through this so you can enjoy the speed and new services that the new server will provide!