Need a Server Administrator to talk with

[xwintk]

Hey there, is there a Server Administrator tbat is free to talk with? I am really willing to help improve HelioHost, since I have pretty much a lot of time and can use it to improve HelioHost. Krydos didn't like me much so I would prefer to talk with someone else, thank you

[wolstech]

Helping out on the forums and discord is probably the best way to help around here. All of us are volunteers and started that way. Users who provide meaningful help and are frequently active are also the ones who are considered for staff positions when we go looking for new moderators and admins.

 

That said, if you have ideas feel free to post about them and we'll be happy to read and comment

[xwintk]

Yeah I know, just Krydos did not like the fact that I said one guy that in case he is not satisfied by his VPS from heliohost which took a while to process simple commands, he could always cancel his subscription and try another VPS provider - Hetzner. Krydos really thought Hetzner was my thing haha. Anyways my idea is to automatize the VPS ordering process as well as add a VPS console which will help ease the whole VPS control really, unlike needing to contact a Server Administrator to reinstall or change an IP, as well as I would like to improve website interface etc. The time when Ricky wasnt done yet, I wanted to help finish that stuff since many people dont have the time and I get it. But Krydos felt that I need to be a helper, then a moderator then maybe I would get to help with that stuff. I dont really care about roles and stuff, I just need my name to be credited in the work I have done, nothing much. I just want to help improve HelioHost. And I am willing to make the site redesigns etc. Ofcourse for free if someone is concerned about it.

[xwintk]

Btw, here are a few screenshots to get you understand what I mean

 

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/825048519945355353/844289508388503552/Screenshot_20210518-230421_Discord.png

 

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/825048519945355353/844289508974395392/Screenshot_20210518-230427_Discord.png

[wolstech]

Yeah, Hetzner has been around for a while, just a standard commercial host.

 

As for automation, that's already under development (in fact, creation of a VPS is fully automated, it's basically a script Krydos feeds IP/hardware/OS choices into and a VPS comes out), we just don't have the payment stuff connected to it. The website has also been rewritten already, and the forum was upgraded too, but it was put on hold due to the Ricky project and an issue associated with the server that was hosting the replacement sites.

 

With Ricky done, I suspect the website, forum, and our paid hosting offering will probably be the next things on our list. VPS automation isn't top of mind since we sell so few compared to users wanting cPanel accounts with better performance. That said, I don't really deal with the inner workings of the servers too much except Lily, so I don't know what Krydos is working on or even how much of the system works, and I've been here 10 years! Krydos develops most of the stuff himself, though the wiki has been a team project by many over the past few years and turned out reasonably well.

 

Most of my time is spent on abuse prevention (improving and maintaining our custom anti-phishing software, abuse cleanup, reports, etc.) and customer support.

[xwintk]

Yep, I know that. Plus, why not to make an automated anti-abuse system? I have a few things that could be added to the trigger list to help ease the development of it, as long as the VPS creation goes, PayPal has got a section called Seller Tools, you could make the individual subscription sets with the redirection set to a specific URL with a token, and voila.

[Krydos]

I am really willing to help improve HelioHost

I guess I'm not understanding. Explain to me again how you trying to convince paying vps customer to cancel their subscription improves HelioHost? Without money we go out of business entirely. Is that the improvement you're intending?

[xwintk]

You definitely did not understand, after trying to explain you in the Discord Server. I am saying that in case the guy is not satisfied with the service, they can always cancel their subscription, then I recommend Hetzner as an alternative. Or you think its allowable when someone's VPS literally takes minutes to respond to simple commands, in the case when he is not being DDoSed etc. I understand what is the cause of it, that someone is being DDoSed which results into the whole physical server lagging, but normal customers mostly don't understand that. I am just being honest and if I see an alternative that is good or even better, I will tell that. EVEN if it touched my personal income for example. I do not see anything wrong in being honest, do you?

 

It is really disappointing me, I thought you were a really great guy. But, maybe my expecations were high...

[wolstech]

K is likely mad because of how you approached it, not necessarily because you suggested an alternative. We welcome constructive criticism as well as discussion of alternative services and what they do differently/how we can learn from their offering, however directly suggesting someone cancel our services to use a specific one makes it appear as if you are affiliated with them (which can get you treated as a spammer). It's all in the approach

 

Yep, I know that. Plus, why not to make an automated anti-abuse system? 

We have one. Krydos wrote the core scanner, I wrote some crude extensions and also maintain the definitions for it. This is how we end up with users like this guy: https://www.helionet.org/index/topic/43408-my-account-was-suspended/ We don't talk about the details much in an effort to stop phishers from evading it. I can say it's highly effective at finding phishing websites though, and that guy's account is just screaming "I"M GOING TO PHISH" based on its log. We remove ~95% within 24 hours of upload, the other 5% we miss or are false positives...we usually receive abuse reports or user complaints for them, and they are studied so we can improve detection rates.

 

Also, that VPS issue was not necessarily not a DDoS. Sometimes it's because another VPS malfunctioned (we've seen it happen once or twice, where another user's VPS was serving an application with a resource leak that ran away and bogged the server down, rebooting the runaway VPS restores normal function).

 

 

I have a few things that could be added to the trigger list 

 

Send me a PM. I'm always looking for new ways to catch phishing

[xwintk]

Glad to hear you like recommendations! I cant say if the approach was the problem, but the guy did understand what I actually meant. About the VPS, a while ago I actually did buy one, someone was getting DDoSed so the whole server was lagging so that was my main thought on why would the whole server lag. I also made a pretty nice DDoS protection software which uses a few APIs to change the IP of the VPS when attacked, while I know that HelioHost does not have such resources, I have an idea which could be used to implement a quite nice DDoS protection, I will write you about that more in PMs. About the affiliations, I am just 15 haha, cannot see how Hetzner would accept me there, plus I would just use a referral link instead of just saying try Hetzner, if thats what you mean. Or I could just say, go and host with my hosting but yeah won't say anything about it so Krydos does not think I am trying to advertise my service

 

Also I havent seen anything about the new site design or forum so I want to show things I have dkne myself, who knows maybe you will like it? Maybe I would even be the designer of the final website haha.

[Krydos]

My issue is the guy came looking for help, and you didn't even try to help him. Literally the first thing you start doing is trying to get him to cancel. I don't mind discussing alternatives, but it's extremely fishy that you were trying so hard to get him to switch to the service you're currently using, which also coincidently has a referral program. All this coming from the only person I've ever had to cancel your vps subscription on. We've been providing vps service since 2018 to around 100 people now, and you're the only person I've ever had to shut down their vps because you couldn't follow the world's simplest instructions.

[xwintk]

Well at least I made a DDoS protection that actually works, lol. And about the referral, have you even seen me sending a referral link? I literally just said Hetzner as an alternative, plus, I already sent screenshots above, and wolstech is in the Discord server as well, so he could see what happened himself.

[Krydos]

Ok, so here are my main concerns at this point:

• You haven't apologized.
• You haven't admitted wrongdoing.
• You haven't made any assurances that this won't happen again.

If you can't do those simple things I should probably just ban you from discord and the forum right now, right?

 

It's ok to make mistakes, but unless you can admit that it was a mistake you'll just keep making the same mistakes over and over again.

[xwintk]

1. Sorry that I talked in a way that you didnt understand what I meant

 

2. I admit that trying to recommend an alternative service in case that guy wasnt satisfied with HelioHost's VPS is a wrong thing to do

 

3. I will no longer recommend an alternative in case people are not satisfied with HelioHost, I will rather say, "HelioHost is the best, HelioHost is the only thing"

 

This is what you wanted, right?

 

I will just continue in PMs with Wolstech, not here.

[wolstech]

2. I admit that trying to recommend an alternative service in case that guy wasnt satisfied with HelioHost's VPS is a wrong thing to do

 

3. I will no longer recommend an alternative in case people are not satisfied with HelioHost, I will rather say, "HelioHost is the best, HelioHost is the only thing"

 

My issue with this that you immediately suggested another company before we even attempted to fix his issue. 99.9% of all VPS issues are correctable considering the worst case the user needs an OS reinstall or more resources. Most issues are user error, typically configuration problems (uninstalled core components, accidentally blocked their SSH port in their firewall, etc.) or bad code that leaks memory or gets stuck in an infinite loop.

 

There are times where things simply don't work out and users do need to go elsewhere, but a VPS is almost never in that boat.

 

Usually when users are told to go elsewhere, it's because they're on shared hosting and the user has said they don't want a VPS, yet needs something we can't offer on our shared plan (more than 5GB disk space, more CPU/RAM, shell access, exec(), etc.)