Shard Outtages

[Admin Acacia]

I know we all get upset when the shard goes down, especially if it's long term.   Marlenus and I are really frustrated with it.   He isn't really sure what is going on, but it has been a very bad winter in our neck of the woods and that has played a part in some of the problems.  We have discussed trying some other things, like a new router and battery back up.  These things do cost, so we'll get them as we can.   

As always, I love all you Sylvan players and your patience with us on this.  Be assured that we don't take these drops lightly and we are trying to sort them all out.  This shard is nearly four years old, all because of you, and the fantastic staff we have here. Thanks for your continued support.

[Anagami]

Hi Acacia.

I think it could actually save money & frustration to have the server hosted on a Windows or Linux VPS.  I used to run servers out of my home and the electricity bill alone for each desktop was about ~$25/mo, which is about the same price of renting a VPS.  I used a nifty gadget for measuring the # of kwh used on an outlet.  Some of the benefits of having the server hosted on a VPS include: Tier 1 redundant bandwidth, automatic data backups, battery backup, no costs for failed hardware, free electricity, and more. It's also very "green" to use a VPS because your OS image is hosted with about 6 others on a high-end server--making optimal use of natural resources.  If you google search Windows or Linux VPS you can browse the packages offered out there.  Hope this helps, --Ted