How much web space do you really need?
How much traffic per month do you expect through your site and are you offering downloadable content (within our terms and conditions)?
How many scripts or programs are you planning to use on your webspace that will require a MySQL database? For example running Coppermine, PhPBB and Mambo will require 3 MySQL databases.
Do you need Microsoft Frontpage extensions enabled (generally no)?
Do you need SSH acccess (generally no - if you don't know what this is then the answer is definitely no)?

There are other factors but as even our most basic package comes with incredible features, they are unlikely to be a major issue for the majority.  If you aren't sure what webspace and bandwidth you require, then contact us to discuss the type of use you will put your web space to and we wil try to help you decide.

1.3 - I want to purchase a .com or other domain instead of the free .uk domain.  Can I get a credit towards this?
Quite simply yes.  Proceed with the purchase as normal and if purchasing online we will arrange a refund for the price of a .uk domain to your account.  If paying by cheque or Standing Order, then please deduct the cost of a .uk domain from your bill but please mark this clearly in any correspondance.

1.4 - Is your Technical Support 24/7?
Yes and No.

We provide an online database of questions that will solve most issues whcih is accessible through either your Hosting Control Panel or the SONA Customer Centre which is always available.

Our telephone technical support is available between the hours of 8am and 10pm daily including weekends.  On occasions this will not be available and this will clearly be notified to all customers.  Whilst we are office based our staff may often be out on location for several hours, and we will respond to your messages as soon as possible.

Email and Forum support is essentially 24/7 but is only checked between the hours of 8am and 10pm.  Outside of these hours we check at our discretion.
Rest assured, SONA is our obsession! 

We are committed to doing our utmost to deal with every query or problem as a priority, and are confident that the service that we will provide will far exceed that given by "major" web hosting companies.  We aim to resolve all issues to your satisfaction within 24 hours at the very latest.

1.5 - Do I need to back up my web space?
Despite our superb data centre facilities we cannot guarantee 100% the safety of your data.  We are confident however that short of the data centre being destroyed your data is very safe from loss, however a number of factors, particularly user error, can lead to data corruption which over time will be replicated to the backups in our data centre.

We would recommend that you back up your web space via FTP or the Hosting Control Panel every time that you make a change to your web space.  It is the only way to be absolutely sure with any web hosting service the world over.

1.6 - Some of your CGI Scripts are out of date, why?
You are correct to a degree.  We use script versions that are generally the latest fully tested and accepted by the relevant community as being stable, devoid of security issues etc.

For example, recentlyJoomla CMS version 1.5.5 was released but within days was found to have a massive security issue.  Version 1.5.6 was introduced immediately.  We were still using version 1.5.4 which had no major issues, and version 1.5.5 only offered minor functionality improvements.

You can of course upgrade the installed script to the latest version with ease.  Many of the scripts come with these instructions in the administration panel for that script.

1.7 - Why can't I get SSH access through the Hosting Control Panel when it is included in my package?
Since August 2008 we have had to introduce a new policy on SSH access.  Please fill out the form that appears when you try to use SSH and send it to us for full access.

Regretfully this step has become necessary due to abuse of SSH access previously.

1.8 - Your bespoke packages don't quite cater for my needs.  Can I have a bespoke package with the features for my needs?
Most definitely yes.  Let us know what you need and we will give you a price.  We won't charge you the earth either, with our bespoke pricing being very similar to our current package prices, using bandwidth, webspace and MySQl databases as the main denominators in any quotes.

The only proviso with bespoke hosting is that the minimum payment period will be quarterly.

1.9 - How do I pay by Cheque or Standing Order?
Order your services via the Customer Centre as normal.  When you reach payment options select Cheque, or Invoice for Standing Order.

Your hosting package will be activated as normal, however we wil not process your order for the chosen domain name until we have received your payment.

Your web space will still be accessible via the Hosting Control Panel and you will be allocated a temporary address until your domain has been purchased and is active.

We will in due course send you an extra email detailing payment details for both Cheque and Standing Order.

1.10 - What is the "30 Day Money Back Guarantee" and how does it work?
If you let us know within 30 days of ordering your package that you wish to cancel, we will refund you the cost of your hosting package and setup fee minus the cost of any included domains that you received at our standard domain purchase rate.

eg.  If you order our Standard package at £59.99 per year with an included .uk domain, but then cancel, we would refund you £59.99 minus the cost of the .uk domain at £6.49, giving you a total refund of £53.50.  The .uk domain would be yours to be used as you wish.

We cannot refund the cost of domains as they are the property of the purchaser from the moment that we confirm your order with our domain name registrar.

1.11 - How do I cancel my services?
You can cancel your services at anytime without notice.  We will continue your service for the current period for which you have paid and then discontinue your service without further charge to you.

Cancellation can be notified by telephone and we will accept your cancellation as of this date, but we do need a confirmation email from you.