Web Hosting

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Girish Phadke in this paper explains the various steps in involved in securely hosting and deploying a WCF service. He starts with a discussion on the various criteria used to select an appropriate WCF service host, service bindings and the options available for choosing and provisioning a WCF service account. He examines the merits and demerits of using impersonation in a WCF service along with the different mechanisms available to implement it. He goes on to discuss the common attack vectors in a WCF service and finally examines the provisioning that is required on the infrastructure resources such as File System, MSMQ, Event Log etc. to enable a WCF service to run successfully.

Before a WCF service can be deployed in a production environment, typically there are a number of decisions that need to be made. Such decisions range from selecting an appropriate host for the WCF service, selecting a binding for the WCF service, selecting and provisioning a service account, securing the service against the various attack vectors to provisioning the requisite infrastructure resources for the WCF service.

Selecting a Service Host

WCF Service has to be hosted in a Service Host before it can be deployed and used. A Service Host typically provides the execution environment for the WCF service code. Different Service hosts provide a range of features for service deployment such as:

· Enabling a WCF Service to be exposed to the clients over various wire protocols such as HTTP, HTTPS, TCP, MSMQ, Named Pipe etc.

· Providing a security context for the execution of the WCF Service

· Providing on-demand message based activation of the WCF Service

· Providing a mechanism to configure the WCF Service

· Providing a mechanism to monitor the statistics and health of the WCF service

· Providing rapid fail protection

· Providing process management features such as IdleTimeout, Shutdown and StartupTimelimit

· Providing the necessary tools for WCF Service Management

A WCF service can be hosted in the following types of hosts:

Managed Application / Self Host

A .NET managed application can host a WCF service by creating an instance of ServiceHost class. ServiceHost class is part of the System.ServiceModel namespace. Hosting a WCF Service in a managed application is also sometimes referred to as Self Hosting. Some of the examples of managed applications hosting a WCF Service are Console, Windows Forms and WPF applications.

Self Hosting is very useful during the development and testing of applications but is rarely deployed in production scenarios. Self Hosting can also be used to support disconnected scenarios where a service agent invokes a locally self hosted service when the application is in disconnected mode. In Self Hosting, the Service Host has to be instantiated at the time of the managed application startup and closed before the managed application shutdown. The Service Host in a managed application can be configured via App.Config file for service host base address and various end points. Managed application acting as a service host does not provide features like message based activation, mechanism to monitor service health or service host resources or recycling of the service host process upon detection of error conditions.

The security context for the Self Hosted WCF service is the identity under which the managed application runs.

A WCF Service hosted in a managed application can be exposed over TCP, HTTP, HTTPS, Named Pipe and MSMQ protocols.

The following code sample is an example of WCF Service being hosted in a managed application and the service host is initialized declaratively via App.Config file:

Using(ServiceHost serviceHost = new ServiceHost(typeof(CalculatorService)))

{

//Open the Service Host to start receiving messages

serviceHost.Open();

// The service is now ready to accept requests

…..

…..

// Close the ServiceHost to shutdown the service.

serviceHost.Close();

}

Code Sample 1: Creating a Service Host in a Managed Application

The base address and the endpoints for the service host have to be configured in the sub section of the section of the App.Config as shown below:

name="SecureHosting.Samples.CalculatorService"

behaviorConfiguration="CalculatorServiceBehavior">

binding="wsHttpBinding"

contract="SecureHosting.Samples.ICalculator" />

binding="mexHttpBinding"

contract="IMetadataExchange" />

Code Sample 2: App.Config for Declaratively Configuring a Service Host in a Managed Application

Alternatively, the base address and the service endpoints can be configured programmatically instead of App.Config file as shown in the code sample below:

// Create a ServiceHost for the CalculatorService type.

using (ServiceHost serviceHost =

new ServiceHost(typeof(CalculatorService),new

Uri("http://localhost:9000/SecureHostingSamples/service")))

{

//Configure the service with an end point

serviceHost.AddServiceEndpoint(typeof(ICalculator),

new WSHttpBinding(), "");

// Open the ServiceHost to start receiving messages

serviceHost.Open();

….

….

….

//Close the service host to shutdown the service

serviceHost.Close ();

}

Code Sample 3: Configuring a Service Host Programmatically in a Managed Application

Managed Windows Service

A managed windows service can host a WCF service. In this mode of hosting, one of the ways to create the Service Host programmatically is to leverage the the OnStart event of the Windows Service. The Service Host can be closed during the OnStop event. The Windows Service that acts as a Service Host for a WCF Service inherits from the ServiceBase as well the WCF Service Contract interface. Unlike the self hosted applications, Windows Service provides the facility to manage the lifecycle of the service via the Service Control Manager (SCM) console but Windows Service Host does not provide a message based activation. The Windows Service also implements an installer class that inherits from the System.Configuration.Install.Installer class. This allows the Windows Service to be installed via the Installutil tool. The security context (service account for the Windows Service) for the WCF Service hosted in a Windows Service is configured via the installer class with the help of ServiceProcessInstaller class. SCM tool can be used later to maintain this service account for the Windows Service.

The Windows Service as a Service Host is a good option for WCF Services that implement long running processes. The WCF Service in this case can be managed via the SCM tool and is restarted automatically in case of a failure. A WCF Service hosted in a Managed Windows Service can be exposed over TCP, HTTP, HTTPS, Named Pipe and MSMQ protocols.

The following code sample is an example of WCF Service being hosted in a Managed Windows Service and the Service Host is initialized declaratively via App.Config file.

public class CalculatorService : ServiceBase, ICalculator

{

public ServiceHost serviceHost = null;

public static void Main()

{

ServiceBase.Run(new CalculatorService());

}

public CalculatorService()

{

ServiceName = "WCFWindowsCalculatorService";

}

//Start the Windows service.

protected override void OnStart(string[] args)

{

if (serviceHost != null)

{

serviceHost.Close();

}

// Create a ServiceHost for the Service

serviceHost = new ServiceHost(typeof(CalculatorService));

// Start Listening for the Messages

serviceHost.Open();

}

//Stop the Windows Service

protected override void OnStop()

{

if (serviceHost != null)

{

serviceHost.Close();

serviceHost = null;

}

}

}

Code Sample 4: Creating a Service Host in a Managed Application

Similar to a self hosted application, the Service Host in a managed service can be configured either via the App.Config file or programmatically in the OnStart method of the Windows Service.

IIS

The IIS hosting option (IIS 5.1, IIS 6.0 and IIS 7.0) allows the WCF Services to be hosted in the App Domains inside the ASP.NET worker process. IIS forwards the requests received for a WCF Service to the ASP.NET worker process. IIS supports message based activation. The Service instance is created only after receiving the first message. Hosting a WCF Service in IIS allows us to leverage features such as service configuration, service management, process health monitoring, idle time shutdown and worker process recycling. However when hosted in IIS (IIS 5.1 and IIS 6.0), only HTTP or HTTPS transport can be supported for the WCF Service. On Windows Server 2003, IIS hosting should be considered as the preferred option for deploying WCF services in production when the service has to be exposed over the HTTP or HTTPs protocols.

The security context for the WCF Service hosted inside the ASP.NET worker process is provided by the service account under which the worker process runs.

Hosting a WCF Service in IIS requires creation of a .SVC file besides a WCF Service implementation. No specific Service Hosting code is required to be written unless a custom service host needs to be created via System.ServiceModel.Activation.ServiceHostFactory class. Virtual Applications are created and dlls and sources are deployed to the physical path associated with the virtual application. Virtual Directory are the default container whose physical path contain the resources. The configuration for the service endpoints has to be defined in the Web.Config.

The following code sample depicts a .SVC file that allows the WCF Calculator Service to be hosted in IIS.

<%@ServiceHost language=c# Debug="true" Service="SecureHosting.Samples.CalculatorService" %>

Code Sample 5: SVC File for Hosting WCF Service in IIS

The following code sample depicts the section of the Web.Config file that is used to configure the WCF Calculator Service end points:

behaviorConfiguration="CalculatorServiceBehavior">

binding="wsHttpBinding"

contract="SecureHosting.Samples.ICalculator" />

binding="mexHttpBinding"

contract="IMetadataExchange" />

Code Sample 6: Web.Config File for Hosting WCF Service in IIS

WAS

Windows Process Activation Service (WAS) is a new process activation feature available on Windows Longhorn Server and Windows Vista. WAS enables IIS 7.0 to leverage message based activation for protocols such as TCP, MSMQ and Named Pipes in addition to the HTTP protocol. This provides all the benefits of IIS hosting such as message based activation, service configuration, service management, process health monitoring, idle time shutdown and worker process recycling. Additionally WAS removes the limitation associated IIS (IIS 5.1 and IIS 6.0) service hosting that only HTTP transport can be supported. WAS along with IIS 7.0 allows applications that need to use the TCP, MSMQ and Named Pipe protocols to take advantage of the IIS hosting features.

Service deployment process for IIS 7.0/WAS is same as discussed earlier for IIS host. However, the web sites need to be configured via the APPCMD utility to support non HTTP protocols. The following code sample illustrates the configuration of the default site for TCP, MSMQ and Named Pipe protocols: (You must start the command shell in “Run as Administrator” mode.)

%windir%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd.exe set site "Default Web Site" -+bindings.[protocol='net.tcp',bindingInformation='808:*']

%windir%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd.exe set site "Default Web Site" -+bindings.[protocol='net.msmq',bindingInformation='*']

%windir%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd.exe set site "Default Web Site" -+bindings.[protocol='net.pipe',bindingInformation='*']

Code Sample 7: Configuring Web Sites for enabling WAS for non HTTP Protocols

After running the above command, APPCMD tool updates the configuration file for WAS ApplicationHost.Config:

system.applicationHost>

bindingInformation="*:80:" />

bindingInformation="*" />

bindingInformation="808:*" />

bindingInformation="*" />

Code Sample 8: ApplicationHost.Config file for WAS

In order to enable the TCP protocol (in addition to the HTTP protocol) for the “SecureHostingSamples” application, the following command should be run from an administrator shell:

%windir%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd.exe set app "Default Web Site/securehostingsamples" /enabledProtocols:http,net.tcp

Code Sample 9: Configuring Applications for enabling WAS for TCP and HTTP Protocols

Criteria for Choosing a WCF Service Host

Depending upon the target deployment platform and the protocols to be support by the WCF Service, the following criteria can be used for choosing a Service Host:

· On Windows Longhorn Server, IIS 7.0 along with WAS should be used to host the WCF services that need to support the HTTP, TCP, MSMQ and Named Pipe protocols.

· On Windows Server 2003, IIS 6.0 should be used to host WCF services that need to be exposed over HTTP protocol. Managed Windows Service can be used in the production environment as a Service Host when the WCF Service has to support protocols like TCP, MSMQ and Named Pipe.

· On Windows Vista, IIS 7.0 along with WAS should be used to host the WCF Services that need to support HTTP, TCP, MSMQ and Named Pipe protocols. Self hosting can be used for development environment or to support disconnected mode.

· On Windows XP, IIS 5.1 should be used to host the WCF services that need to be exposed over HTTP protocol. Windows Service can be used as a Service Host when the WCF Service has to support protocols like TCP, MSMQ and Named Pipe. Self hosting can be used for development environment or to support disconnected mode.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb875951%28BTS.10%29.aspx

Generally suited to smaller requirements The Bunker has created a series of packaged solutions available to be delivered in very short timeframes. The more standard nature of these packages is reflected in the pricing. These packages are built for specific business uses and are available in Microsoft, Open Source and Oracle technologies.

Microsoft

Online Business Platform

High Performance Business Platform

Open source

Quick Start Secure Web Platform

Open Source Single Server Platform

Online Business Platform

High Performance Business Platform

Oracle

Hosted Oracle Business Platform http://www.thebunker.net/managed-services/packaged-solutions/

Security and High Availability are the major drivers for almost all critical IT Application Hosting Services; The Bunker is in an unrivalled position to support your business in delivering both, whilst helping deliver on time and on budget.

Clients may chose from either packaged or bespoke solutions.

Our packages, all dedicated servers, are designed for a range of business uses from e-commerce to mail applications with a number of power and speed variations to match.

Our bespoke service caters for a more tailored requirement where we design, procure and build an infrastructure up to application layer including the provision of managed networks and security.

All our solutions use best of breed technologies including Open Source, Microsoft and Oracle. Our Managed Services team build upon the secure foundation of our data centre services to deliver the highest quality, around the clock support. We do this using The Bunker Protocol, our proprietary, Ultra* Secure process framework, which has been developed as a result of our deep experience in delivering secure application environments, our contributions to the internet security industry, and our military heritage.

Bunker Fully Managed Services:

• Why managed services?
• Bespoke Solutions
• Packaged Solutions
• Infrastructure Outsourcing
• Server Infrastructure Services
• Network & Security Services
• Professional Services
• Data Protection Services

Key benefits of The Bunker’s Fully Managed Hosted service include:

• N+1 Data Centre facilities located outside of the M25
• Protected by The Bunker Protocol, ISO27001 and security experts
• 24×7 Support desk, incident response and threat monitoring
• System design and migration planning
• Hardware supply, build and spares set
• Root shell access
• Change management procedures

The Bunker deploys Ultra* Secure systems utilising a range of platforms, including FreeBSD, OpenBSD, Microsoft, VMware, Sun Solaris, HP UX, IBM AIX, VMS and Oracle.

http://www.thebunker.net/managed-services/

Easy-to-use design tools

• A checklist that walks you through creating a site
• Simple ways to enter and format text and photos
• Online site building — no downloads or special software needed

Key Features

• Easy-to-use design tools
• Free domain name (like widgetdesigns.com)
• Unlimited disk space
• Unlimited data transfer
• Unlimited email storage (Details)
• 24-hour customer service
• Reliable and secure hosting

http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/webhosting/hostingfeatures.php

SuperCertHosting.com offers low cost access to our super-reliable secure hosting with the strongest possible security certificate (128-bit encryption SSL). Super Cert Hosting does not host domains, Instead, we host secure storage space on Linux servers. Your secure webpage (such as a shopping cart or order form page) exists on our server, simply link to it from your webpage. With our service, you will save hundreds of dollars by not having to go through the trouble of buying, installing, and renewing your own certificate. Increase your web traffic, sales, and customer confidence by reassuring people that your web site is secured with the highest encryption possible.

Cost

We currently have a free 30-day money back guarantee just to show you how great and reliable our service is. If you wish to continue using our service, it only costs $6.95/month paid yearly or $7.95/month paid quarterly. You get full access to our super-reliable and secure hosting plan which includes features such as FTP, Telnet, SSH, CGI, PHP, log files, FrontPage, ODBC/DSN, SQL, and much more....

Savings

Our hosting plans are extremely affordable, take a look at how much money you will save yearly by using Super Cert Hosting instead of the other companies.

Company/Certificate

Your savings on first payment

Your savings on renewals

COMODO Certificate	$115.60	$75.60
COMODO Certificate	$365.60	$315.60
VeriSign Secure Site	$265.60	$141.60
VeriSign Secure Site Pro	$811.60	$811.60
VeriSign Commerce Site	$811.60	$811.60
VeriSign Commerce Site Pro	$1311.60	$1411.60
Equifax QuickSSL	$141.60	$141.60
Equifax True Site	$15.60	$15.60
Equifax True BusinessID	$115.60	$115.60
Entrust Web Server Certificate	$65.60	$65.60
Entrust WAP Server Certificate	$611.60	$611.60

Referral System & Free Service

We currently have one of the most aggressive referral systems on the internet. For every person that you refer to us, we will give you 10% off your monthly bill permanently. For example if you refer two customers you will get 20% off your monthly bill of 7.95/month which means you will save $1.59 per month or $19.08 per year. If you refer just 10 customers to our service, you will get free service for life as long as those customers use our service. We will even make it easier to refer customers to our service by giving them $5 off their first month!

The difference between secure and non-secure

Some time ago, we did a test here at Super Cert Hosting to see what information is actually sent across the secure and non-secure servers. Our results were somewhat surprising. We were able to see plaintext passwords, credit card numbers, and other information being send from the test computer to the non-secure server using a special program we got from the Internet. Click here for details.

Reliability

Our reliability will exceed and surpass your expectations. We guarantee our uptime to be at least 99.999% reliable, in fact if you find a more reliable and cost-effective secure hosting service, we will give you the first 6 months free.

Benefits

Click the for a brief explanation.

• No setup fee.
• 30-day money-back guarantee.
• Less than half the cost of a certificate bought from VeriSign or COMODO.
• Freedom to use your own ordering pages to accept credit cards.
• Free tech support and assistance setting up your site.
• No need to have your own domain to use our service.
• Instant and automatic access upon signup.
• Increase your web traffic, sales, and customer confidence.
• No hassle with buying, renewing, installing, or waiting for your certificate.
• Merchant account compatible.
• Free shopping cart software.
• Order form compatible.

We have all the latest versions of the most commonly used server side software including Telnet for installing and debugging your software, SSI for running .shtml pages, PERL support for running .cgi pages, etc. If we don't have a particular program that you need or want, we will install it on our servers if you are willing to pay for it. Click here for details about pricing plans, account information, and features.

There are many uses to Super Cert secure hosting, for example, if you already have a merchant account and are looking for a secure server to host it on, Super Cert hosting can do that for you. With Super Cert hosting you can process credit card numbers, addresses, personal information, forms, or any other data securely.

Free Shopping Cart Software

We currently have three different styles of shopping cart software already installed on our servers. They are all very simple and customizable. You are free to modify them however you like. You can use this software with your current merchant account, or you can use it to send the data directly to your e-mail.
Click here for more information and demos of each style of our customizable shopping carts.

30-Day Money-Back Guarantee

Within the first 30 days as a Super Cert Hosting customer, if for any reason you are not completely satisfied with any of our services, we will cancel your account and refund your money for that billing period. Click here for details.

Red Hat Linux Servers

We have chosen the Red Hat Linux as our platform due to the robust, scalable environment that this server provides to our customers. Linux enjoys a widespread popularity among those seeking a Unix based solution. Linux, a Unix-like operating system, works on almost every kind of computer, providing a robust platform for a wide variety of applications, including SSL.

http://www.supercerthosting.com/

This basically breaks down into 3 different categories as follows :-

1) Merchant account
This is a financial contract that you will need with a merchant acquiring bank and which provides you with the facility to accept credit and debit card payments. Don’t worry if you have never accepted cards before or if you only have a merchant number for telephone payments and use a manual terminal, as we can liaise with your bank to organise the necessary merchant number required for Internet payments. We do all this for no extra charge.

For a new merchant account you would expect to pay setup fees anywhere between £75 - £250 + VAT depending on the bank. Then there would be a merchant service charge between 1.6% - 2.8% levied on any credit card transactions depending on many factors such as the anticipated volumes, the number of years you have been trading, average transaction amount etc. On debit cards the bank would normally charge a fixed price per transaction ranging from 20p – 50p on average.

Preferential rates for SecureHosting customers

We have arranged preferential merchant account terms for SecureHosting customers through one of the UK's top acquiring banks. Our rates beat most merchant account fees, whether you are a startup or a well-established business. Please see table of rates below :-

i. for a business that is a startup, or has never accepted cards before :-

	Visa/MCard	Maestro	Commercial	Electron	Visa Debit
Bank fee	1.9%	24p	2.5%	25.5p	25.5p
Bank setup fee	£75

ii. for an established business already accepting cards and looking to switch from their existing merchant account provider :-

	Visa/MCard	Maestro	Commercial	Electron	Visa Debit
Annual card t/o
£75,001-£150,000	1.695%	22.8p	2.295%	24.3p	24.3p
£150,001 -£225,000	1.625%	21.5p	2.225%	23p	23p
£225,000-£350,000	1.58%	19.9p	2.18%	21.4p	21.4p
Bank setup fee	£35

Please contact us on 0845 474 9035 option 1 to discuss our preferential merchant account rates, or simply apply now!

We can help most businesses to obtain a merchant account, including startups. The only categories of business that we cannot usually help are listed at the foot of this page.

2) Payment gateway (otherwise known as payment service provider - PSP)
This is the part that we offer. A payment gateway connects your main web site to your merchant acquiring bank over the Internet. Normally a payment gateway will provide an area on a secure server to host your payment forms, and will forward the transaction payment data in real-time to your merchant acquiring bank for authorisation. If your bank authorises the transaction the payment gateway will return a confirmation page back to your customer and send you notification of the successful order.

You need a payment gateway in addition to your merchant account, as the merchant account itself is useless without one! Some banks confuse the issue by offering their own payment gateways as an optional extra with their merchant accounts - beware however as the banks will charge you a hefty premium for this, typically an extra 2% on each card transaction! You are under no obligation to use the bank's payment gateway, and you will save a great deal of money by using an independent one such as our UPG payment gateway service.

The costs for our service can be found below.

Our charging structure is unique within our industry, as our transaction fees are based on a pre-pay credits system. The advantage of this is that you only pay for what you need, so you can start small and buy progressively larger blocks of credits as your transaction numbers increase. The larger the block, the cheaper the cost per transaction. High volume merchants benefit from a cost per transaction lower than any other payment service provider.

There are 3 elements to our pricing – setup fees, an annual fee and a per transaction fee. The setup fee of £60 shown below is payable in two instalments; the first £25 payable with your initial UPG application, and then the remaining £35 payable once you convert your free trial eCOM account into a live account.

Please note that you will have to pay your merchant acquiring bank for the actual merchant account. The merchant account rates will be quoted by your bank.

The purchased transaction credits can be used at any time - there is no time limit in which they have to be used, however please note that if you cancel your SecureHosting account that we cannot refund any unused transactions.

3) Shopping cart / order forms
Your web site will need to have a system to allow your customers to select items from your web site and proceed to the secure payment gateway to "check out". If you have a large number of items for sale you will probably need a shopping cart system to allow your customers to browse your items and add to a basket as they navigate around your online catalogue. Our service integrates seamlessly with all popular third party shopping carts, however if your requirements are very bespoke you can employ the services a web developer to build a custom cart system for you.

If you only have a small number of items for sale you can create a simple order form, or use the "Buy Buttons" feature included in our eCOM Standard service to quickly add shopping functionality to your site.

We hope the above helps to clarify the situation a little more. We speak to confused merchants every day and are only too pleased to speak to you if you have any questions regarding the whole process. Please call us on 0845 474 9035, or place a question through our contact page.

https://www.secure-server-hosting.com/merchant_accounts.html

If you have never accepted credit or debit cards before, we can help you to get started.

The first thing you will need is a merchant account, this is a financial contract that you will need with a merchant acquiring institution, ie. a bank. This provides your business with the facility to accept credit/debit card payments. The vast majority of merchant accounts in the UK are provided by the major UK high street banks, and we work with all the major ones.

We have much experience in assisting businesses in obtaining merchant accounts, and can often advise you of the best deal for your business. You do NOT have to obtain a merchant account from your usual bank, which makes it possible to shop around.

We also have preferential rates agreed with a UK acquiring bank - please read below for details.

Once you apply for our UPG online card processing service, we will contact at least one UK bank and obtain a quote for a merchant account. We will help guide you through the entire process, helping the application to move along as smoothly as possible and helping you avoid some of the usual pitfalls!

From 1st November 2009 Secure Hosting Limited (SHL) has become a wholly owned subsidiary of Universal Payment Gateway plc (UPG).

Secure Hosting is one of the UK’s most popular internet payment service providers, servicing thousands of merchants and reseller partners. For several years SHL has been utilising the UPG network to connect to the UK acquiring bank system. Although until now UPG and SHL have traded as separate entities, the Directors of each company share the same vision and agreed that a vertical integration of the two operations was strategically the right move for both businesses.

UPG has been processing credit card payments in the UK for the last decade and has an enviable history of growth and innovation. The company has grown primarily through organic customer growth and has recently acquired businesses from cash reserves and share transactions, without the need for borrowings.

The acquisition of SHL comes 8 weeks after the acquisition of the card processing business of Payments Services Limited by UPG.

“When technology combines, we can take advantage of tighter integrated systems, realising new functionality and delivering innovative payment platforms. These are very exciting times, and there are no longer barriers to what we can deliver and where we can take our portfolio,” commented Directors, Steven Drewett and Jonathan Rodger. “The acquisition of Secure Hosting by UPG strengthens our position in the card payments market. This will allow us to take our well established payment services to a wider audience, capitalising on richer functionality and enhanced bank integrations. With this move we all look forward to raising the stakes in the card payments industry.”

After this acquisition, UPG is now regarded as the UK’s largest independently owned credit card processing business. The company works from Tamworth in Staffordshire and employs its own technical development operations and support functions from Staffordshire, with an additional sales office in London. The business offers a full range of payment services to customers of all sizes, from some of Europe’s most exciting internet entrepreneurs creating great businesses from their bedrooms, right up to some of the UK’s best know brands which serve on the High Street across the country.

Miles Carroll, Managing Director of UPG stated “Secure Hosting has successfully established a leading platform for the placement and management of internet payments. We are therefore very excited about the potential realised by merging our technologies to deliver greater benefits through our payment platforms.”

As a result of the acquisitions, the trading activities of the companies are being moved up into UPG, with immediate effect. The go to market brands will continue to be visible to the world, but the previously traded businesses will become dormant subsidiaries of UPG.

https://www.secure-server-hosting.com/pr_release.html

For businesses that already have a merchant account

Looking for a payment service provider for your web site?

The SecureHosting UPG service offers an extremely versatile and customisable real-time online card processing payment gateway that integrates seamlessly with your web site.

Payments can be taken immediately or delayed for manual checking. Telephone orders can be processed via the “Virtual Terminal” included in the service.

Fees

Our charging structure is unique within our industry, as our transaction fees are based on a pre-pay credits system. The advantage of this is that you only pay for what you need, so you can start small and buy progressively larger blocks of credits as your transaction numbers increase. The larger the block, the cheaper the cost per transaction. High volume merchants benefit from a cost per transaction lower than any other payment service provider.

Pricing schedule

There are 3 elements to our pricing – setup fees, an annual fee and a per transaction fee. The setup fee of £60 shown below is payable in two instalments; the first £25 payable with your initial UPG application, and then the remaining £35 payable once you convert your free trial eCOM account into a live account.

Please note that you will have to pay your merchant acquiring bank for the actual merchant account. The merchant account rates will be quoted by your bank.

If you do not have a merchant account, or do not know what is meant by merchant account, please click here.

The purchased transaction credits can be used at any time - there is no time limit in which they have to be used, however please note that if you do not renew your SecureHosting account we cannot refund any unused transaction credits.

What is a transaction credit?

In simple terms, a credit represents a single, successful transaction, or a refund. Failed transactions do not incur a credit, except in a specific scenario where 3D Secure is used. Please see a more detailed explanation of credit usage on our FAQ page.

What do I need to trade online?

To start accepting card payments online through your web site, you will need the following :-

1) A merchant account with one of the banks listed below.

2) An online payment gateway (that's the part we supply).

3) A web site, with a shopping cart system or a simple payment form.

If you are confused already at this stage, please read our guide to the basics of online trading!

Which banks can you work with?

We can work with any business that has a merchant account with any one of the following UK banks :-

- Natwest Streamline (Royal Bank of Scotland Group)
- Barclaycard
- HSBC
- Lloyds TSB
- Bank of Scotland (HBoS)

Do you provide merchant accounts?

We don’t provide merchant accounts directly, however we can assist you in obtaining a merchant account from any of the banks listed above, and even have preferential rates available. Please click here for general information and pricing for merchant accounts.

Do you have an API allowing direct integration?

Yes. We have two versions of the API to allow you to create a more advanced integration with the SecureHosting system. Our API allows you to integrate your own shopping cart system, and the XML version of our API allows you to keep the cardholder within your own web site, so they would never need to be transferred to our server to complete the payment. With the XML API you can also specify whether a payment should be flagged as Internet or Mail Order Telephone Order (useful for call centres), and perform refunds and other tasks without having to log in to your SecureHosting account. Please contact us for details of the API.

Do you have 3D Secure (VbV and MasterCard SecureCode)?

Yes. 3D Secure is available as an option, at no extra charge. The setup process and associated timescales for 3D Secure vary from bank to bank. If you require 3D Secure then please contact sales to be sent the relevant instructions. You can only start the process of registering for 3D Secure if you have a live merchant number for internet transactions.

Are your systems PCI accredited?

Yes, all systems used by SecureHosting and its payment gateway UPG for the processing & storage of card information are audited and validated by Qualified Security Assessors to the highest possible standard available under the PCI DSS scheme. Click here to view the PCI certificate validating compliance.

How long does it take to set up?

Once we have received your completed application and assuming that your merchant number has been set up correctly by your bank to work with our UPG payment gateway, then the setup process takes approximately 3 working days to go live. If we need to request a new Internet merchant number from your bank then please allow approximately 2 - 3 weeks, though the exact timescales are largely determined by your bank.

Can I process manual payments?

Yes you can process manual payments through the “Virtual Terminal” feature located within your SecureHosting UPG account admin area.

If you don't have a web site and only process manual payments, then you would just need our Virtual Terminal only account.

Can I review transactions before processing them for payment?

Yes – you don’t have to debit the customer’s card immediately. You can perform a “pre-auth” at the point of the transaction, which merely does an initial authorisation on the card including checks on the CV2 number (3 digit security number) and cardholder address. You then have up to 28 days in which to complete the transaction. To do this, simply log in to your SecureHosting admin area, select the transaction from a list, and click a button to pass the transaction for settlement. You can modify the original transaction amount, up or down. You can also part settle the payment multiple times. The pre-auth feature is particularly useful for merchants who like to review orders for fraud reasons, or where an item may be out of stock.

Can I bill an extra amount to a card after the original transaction?

Yes. Even after a transaction has been settled for payment, you can go back to it and add a new amount, for example if the customer wants to add something to their order.

How do I process refunds?

Processing a refund is simple – just log in to your SecureHosting account admin area, select a payment to refund, select the amount and refund it!

Can I capture transactions for processing offline?

If you prefer, it is possible to simply capture transactions including card details, and process the payments offline using an alternative card processing facility, eg. a credit card terminal. However, you need to check with your bank that this is permitted for your merchant account. The costs for an offline processing account are the same as for an online processing one and you still need to pay the UPG transaction fees as listed above.

Do you have a reseller package?

Yes, we are very keen to work with resellers, whether you are a web design company, a software developer or any other business that can benefit from partnering with us. We are very focused on resellers and can provide a variety of partner solutions, including a unique revenue share scheme and for large scale partnerships can even provide you with your own white label own-brand payment gateway service. Please click here for details on benefits to resellers.

Why choose SecureHosting over other PSPs?

Designed for flexibility
The SecureHosting system is more “merchant friendly” than any other available. We allow you total freedom over the look and feel of all customer facing pages so that you can achieve a consistent look across your web site and checkout pages. We have readymade integration instructions with many popular shopping carts and for those merchants requiring a more sophisticated integration, we offer an XML API allowing integration with your own custom built storefront, at no extra charge.

Our online payment system offers you a level of flexibility that is unmatched by any other service. It has been designed foremost to address the often complex needs of the online retailer. Our pre-auth and additional billing features are the most comprehensive available, allowing you to handle virtually any kind of payment scenario.

Unique pricing model
Our transaction pricing allows a great deal of flexibility – you only pay for the amount of transactions that you need. As our transaction credits have no expiry date on them you can benefit from a low per transaction charge and use them up over a long period of time.

Preferential merchant account rates
We have pre-arranged rates with a major UK bank, allowing us to provide you with a complete package for your card processing requirements.

Solid, robust system
We have designed a highly performant system, operating from multiple data centres with multiple bandwidth providers. Our systems are rigorously assessed on a constant basis to ensure maximum security and performance.

Service, Service, Service!
Unlike some of our competitors, we go out of our way to make sure every aspect of your setup and ongoing experience is as smooth as possible. We are well aware that the whole area of banks, merchant accounts and e-commerce throws up many challenges and queries. We are very happy to offer as much advice and guidance as you need on all aspects of e-commerce, not just the parts that relate purely to our service. As an example of this, we will liaise with your bank to make sure you have the correct kind of merchant account for the type of payments you intend to take. If you have no merchant account at all we will contact a suitable selection of banks and request quotes for you. No other payment service provider offers this level of service!

If you have any questions, we offer responsive telephone and email support for all our customers, no matter what service level you are on.

SecureHosting offers a feature rich service that goes beyond just payments. We offer a range of added value services such as an email manager for broadcasting email newsletters to your customers, as well as affiliate tracking and order status tools.

https://www.secure-server-hosting.com/online_card_processing.html

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  Keep your address, phone number, hours of operation, and more up-to-date. Even create coupons and display photos and videos, all for free.
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  Use the power of Google's data to learn where your customers come from and what they search for to find you.

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