www.neomega.net account deactivation!(help!)

andyrose · 07-12-2002, 12:36 AM

First off: I need the site back up! You deactivated my website because I didn't reply to a bandwidth alert email. I haven't even exceeded the bandwidth, guys!

www.neomega.net is now deactivated. My visitors cannot access it. I can't access it. I'm losing people.

I actually did reply to the bandwidth alert email in time, but the funky layout of the email prevented me from putting my reply in the correct area. I sent out another one earlier today with my response in the right place.

I need the site back up ASAP. I haven't exceeded my bandwidth, and my visitors are getting restless.

BTW. The bandwidth problem was caused by a very popular 10MB video download I had hosted. The second I recieved your email, I took it off. There should be no problems now.

One last thing: Why deactivate an account for not responding to an email? What if I had been away on vacation for a few days? I could see taking such actions if my account had exceeded the specified bandwidth, but that did not happen.

**Deb** · 07-12-2002, 01:07 AM

When a Terms of Service Violation is sent out it does require a response as explained in the notice.

The account was in fact going over its bandwidth and past due on payment. With no response and an expected usage of over 60 gigabytes of bandwidth we do in fact need to act accordingly in an effort to ensure the losses are not too great and that the account holder is aware.

Excessive bandwidth fees are expensive and when the cost looks as if it will be exceptionally high we have found it is best to pull the site, if the site owner has not acknowledged the notice.

The same 'shock' of a deactivated account can be much worse over a high hosting fee. FutureQuest does its best to notify anyone that is at risk of going over, and if the over usage looks like it will be a large amount we send a TOS Notice that requires a response to prevent deactivation. Once the situation has been acknowledged it's then up to the site owner which way they would like to proceed.

Without a notice, and acknowledgement, the site owner may be unaware of their usage and end up with a bill they are not prepared to pay. This can hurt both FutureQuest and the site owner due to the high costs incurred. Usually deactivation, after warning of course, is the fastest way to gain the attention of the site owner, if they have not responded, so that the issue can be addressed.

Now that we have your response the account has been reactivated.

Also note, if at any time you are having difficulty responding within the two lines you are welcomed to send a direct email to Service@FutureQuest.net or to use the web based interface located at http://Service.FutureQuest.net

I hope this helps to clarify.

Deb
- The uglier side of procedure

**Deb** · 07-12-2002, 01:11 AM

Oh, I also wanted to address...

Quote:

What if I had been away on vacation for a few days?

We've been in the situation where the site owner was on vacation long ago and they were not happy that the site was allowed to continue running and racking up an enormously large bill. The argument on that side was that we should have deactivated it when they didn't respond rather than "just assuming" they would be willing to cover those costs.. It really can be a catch-22. In the end it's the site owner's responsibility even though we all agree it's not always simple.

*Jeff* · 07-12-2002, 02:12 AM

Maybe in the CNC you could add an option where a site owner could choose what to do if the site gets /.'ed or just goes a little over bandwidth

[ ] Please shut down site when monthly bandwidth is exceeded if I cannot be contacted

[ ] I agree ahead of time I will be responsivble for bandwidth up to [$______] if my site goes over it's prepaid bandwidth - please keep site live until this number is reached if I am not available to respond to the bandwidth overage email.

I suppose putting a system like that in place could take time though and maybe there are some pitfalls which I can't think of right now, but it seems like it would be a nice feature for the site owner to be able to choose.

andyrose · 07-12-2002, 03:23 AM

I understand that, Deb.

Heh, it is true that I would rather have the site deactivated than having to pay 500 dollars in bandwidth costs.

I'll be much more careful of the bandwidth issue in the future.

BenV · 07-12-2002, 10:53 AM

This is how Mindspring Business handles it in their control panel...

Quote:

Bandwidth Limiter for xxxxxxxx

Cycle Day = 1
To Date Bandwidth = 1192.1 megabytes

Current Limit = [ text box ] megabytes *

If I use over my alloted bandwidth, please:

[o] do nothing
[ ] mail me
[ ] turn off my account and mail me.

* This is the limit at which you want to be warned, and does not affect the amount of bandwidth included in your plan.

---
BenV

*TVB* · 07-12-2002, 01:02 PM

The deactivate/bill me option would be a great idea. We have two seperate emails for two people for notices but not getting an TOS email because of holiday scares the heck out me.

Personally, I would choose the bill me option rather than deactivate if an overbandwidth issue came up.

In fact, Deb...on July 31 we will be getting some national media exposure (ABC News!) and hopefully will get a ton of hits afterwards. I will also be out of town that evening and through the 4th. It's likely I will be taking my laptop with me but in case I don't, please don't cut us off if we go over and you don't hear back from me.

Betsy

**Deb** · 07-12-2002, 01:05 PM

Once we have a bit more automation in the area, suggestions like this may become a reality. Currently it's the overworked team manually monitoring usage and for them to have to follow a different guide for many sites could get confusing. When the notices are automated I'd certainly like to explore the ability to add more buttons for the site owners to control.

Note that many sites are able to go over their bandwidth without responding to a notice. If the site is going over we simply send an email letting the site owner know of their options. If they do not respond then it is assumed they want the site to continue, if they do respond, either by upgrading or by requesting temporary deactivation, then we follow through.

It's when the site is expected to go WAY OVER the bandwidth limits creating an extraordinary large bill that we require a response. Even with a CNC check box, if it is not normal for a site to be going that far over we would probably still be safest requesting the site owner to respond and in many cases a payment to continue.

Deb
- There's a difference between going over and going OVER

**Deb** · 07-12-2002, 01:09 PM

Quote:

It's likely I will be taking my laptop with me but in case I don't, please don't cut us off if we go over and you don't hear back from me.

I'd recommend going ahead and sending the details to the service desk and asking them to make a note on your account concerning that time frame. Be sure to include the domain name and account number and send it from the primary email address on file.

For those that KNOW they are going to go over, it also helps to submit a payment ahead of time to help avoid confusion in that area as well and/or if you are not on 'the largest package' you really may want to consider upgrading since it is a lot cheaper for you to do so.

Deb
- A parent often has to watch a teenager closer than they would a younger child

*frankc* · 07-12-2002, 02:06 PM

Along the lines of being notified of a bandwidth/payment/TOS problem I'd like to see FQ add pager notification. I deliberately "unplug" during the weekends as much as possible and don't usually retrieve emails then. With 25 domains (and climbing), a short message sent to my SMS/text messaging-enabled phone or a pager to check my FQ account would be a wonderful addition.

I know it'd be work to add that feature and a TAP interface for pagers, so thanks for considering this!