How To Upload a Database to a Virtual Hosting Server

How To Upload a Database to a Virtual Hosting Server? Its easy!

But I'm jotting this down to avoid having to figure it out again in the future!

For the record, I'm using www.winhost.co.za as my hosting company which gives me a PLESK interface, developing in ASP.net with C#, and using a Microsoft SQL Server database. The process should be similar on other hosting provider systems.

Alright, lets get our hands dirty:

1. Create your database in Visual Studio. Don't use the generic name (aspnet.mdf) for the membership database, because when you have a virtual hosting option each database on the server must be unique. Chances are another website using the same host as you already used the generic name.
2. After creating your database in filling it with your content, upload it via FTP to your App_Data folder (the DB's MDF and log file)
3. Now log in to your PLESK panel and create a MS SQL Server database there, too.
4. For your new database in PLESK, create a new username and password. Write down these details.
5. Now, contact your hosting provider to ask them to extract your database. Give them the location of the the database (App_Data\YourDataBase.mdf). Do this as soon as possible, because your ISP support team may be a bit slow for you!
6. When they let you know they're done, you can almost relax!
7. In the meanwhile, go to PLESK again and configure your ASP.net settings to replace the connection string. I use this:
   
   Data Source=(local);Initial Catalog=MYDATABASE;User Id=THEUSERNAME;Password=THEPASSWORD;
   
   All the CAPITOL words must be replaced with your details. Replace MYDATABASE with your database name (without its extension, .mdf). The user ID an Password are those create in PLESK at step 4
   

Now test your website to see if the database is working! It should!
Having trouble? Too bad! But take note of a few things that might help you:

1. After your service provider restored your uploaded database, access it from PLESK to see if all the tables that should be there, are indeed online
2. Always check that the hosting company supports the database version you use
3. In PLESK, be sure to create the same database type that you have on your project (for instance, MS SQL Server and not MySQL)
4. Careful not to upload your web.config file, which contains the wrong connectionstring after you replaced the connection string in PLESK. Uploading the new web.config file will replace your connection string in PLESK, and your web application won't be able to connect to your database

Hope this helps you!

How to Write an Effective 'About Us' page

Your 'About Us' page matters. It matters to the visitors who come to your web site to find out more about you, your services or your products. So it is vital to have a proper About Us page.
Imagine a face-to-face meeting with a prospective client. You meet, introduce yourself, say a little about what you offer, how long you've been in business, mention your unique selling proposition (USP) and upon leaving hand out your business card.

1. Presentation
First impressions count. You wouldn't dress scruffily for a business meeting so the same applies here. A cluttered about us page will do you no favours and it looks tacky. People don't like too much going on in a website, so don't fill every area with a different image or piece of text. Instead, go for a clean, professional look.

2. Introduction
Here you get to say who you are, introduce yourself, your team, your company. You may want to include photos of yourself and/or your team. Keep the content in this section short and to the point. Web surfers can only read so much on a website and you don't want to bore them or send them away with large chunks of text.

3. What you offer
Time to shine. Make your content informative, crisp and clear. Showcase your skills if you are a designer. How about making it visually interesting by presenting your skills in bullet point format or highlighting your USP in another colour.

4. What you stand for
What are your aims? Write your mission statement here. If you have a code of ethics, put it in here.

5. Company History
How long have you been in business? Do you have any awards, statements of recognition, great testimonials that you could put in here? Building credibility and trust in your business is key.

6. Contact details
It is good business etiquette to give out a business card at a meeting. So make sure your contact details are visible on the page. You want to make it easy for your prospective client to contact you. It could be you've impressed him/her and now they want to buy your product. Having an address shows you are in a real place in a real location and that you exist! This creates trust and credibility in you as a company and the client feels safe to do business with you.

Remember to keep it short, though. People visiting your website do not want to feel like they're reading a novel. In fact, if you put too much information on your website, visitors will just scan through most of it anyways.

Ayoba Designs: Web Design in Bloemfontein