"Server Crash" During Launches... Why?

by SeanyG
35 replies
Hey guys,

I'm sure you're all familiar with the classic server crash during a launch.

On the initial launch day the server crashes causing a delay.

A lot of internet marketers use this fake technique but I have no idea why...

Why do these guys use the server crash during launches?

Thanks!

~Sean
#launches #server crash
  • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
    Sean, why do you assume that this is always a fake technique?

    Unless a given marketer is experienced with high volume launches, and has multiple servers set up in advance, it's quite possible to overwhelm the available connections to a server.

    To spend time and effort setting up a launch, cultivating partners who will be sending traffic, etc., only to turn away people with money in their hands makes no sense.

    As a marketer, if such a thing does happen (and I'll grant that it seems to happen a lot), I'd want to spin it in as positive a light as possible.

    Instead of saying:

    "Jeez, I didn't really think anyone would actually buy this thing, so I put it on a Baby account at HostGator and swamped the shared server I was on. I really screwed the pooch on this one..."

    They say things like:

    "Wow! So many people were fighting to get this package when it went live, my server melted down from the volume. Don't worry, we've added capacity and you might still have a chance to get this wildly popular whatchamajiggy before it sells out..."

    Another thing, as I alluded to in another thread, just because some marketer sends an email that claims the volume melted the server down doesn't mean it did. If sales are slow, and you want to manufacture some social proof, you can send out a "too hot to handle" email to try to jump start things.

    I'm guessing that most of the "server crashes" are more bandwidth/pipeline problems than actual server crashes, and that most of them are real...

    Think about it - if you have a hot seller with people lined up to give me money, would you rather move as many people as possible through the line as quickly and smoothly as possible, or play games with fake server crashes? I know which one I'd pick...
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    • Profile picture of the author jimmytron
      Banned
      [DELETED]
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      • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
        Originally Posted by jimmytron View Post

        They should try being prepared and having a few dedicated servers.. After all most of these launches bring in bookies of cash... I notice most of them end up crashing.. Strange if you ask me.. Maybe their trying to skip out of paying some affiliate commissions.. :confused:
        Scroll up and read Jeff Walker's post:

        http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post1517921

        Then see if you want to stand by this guess...
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      • Profile picture of the author Midas3 Consulting
        Originally Posted by jimmytron View Post

        Maybe their trying to skip out of paying some affiliate commissions.. :confused:
        You are confused yes, think about your statement above for a moment, if the servers down, yes they get to not pay the affiliates but who else doesn't get any revenue .. Drum roll.......
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        • Profile picture of the author jasondinner
          Originally Posted by SimonHarrison View Post

          You are confused yes, think about your statement above for a moment, if the servers down, yes they get to not pay the affiliates but who else doesn't get any revenue .. Drum roll.......
          LOL - this thread has some funny posts.
          Signature

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        • Profile picture of the author WD Mino
          Originally Posted by SimonHarrison View Post

          You are confused yes, think about your statement above for a moment, if the servers down, yes they get to not pay the affiliates but who else doesn't get any revenue .. Drum roll.......
          HAHAHAHAAHa
          crack me up
          -WD
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          "As a man thinks in his heart so is he-Proverbs 23:7"

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  • Profile picture of the author Zach Booker
    Builds hype.

    Adds a sense of urgency.

    Builds anticipation.

    Gives the owner, and JV's, an excuse to mail you again.

    Most people who have done a launch before know the requirements needed. I'd bet the fair share of server crashes are planned.

    Zach
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    • Profile picture of the author Black Hat Cat
      Banned
      Originally Posted by Zach Booker View Post

      Builds hype.

      Adds a sense of urgency.

      Builds anticipation.

      Gives the owner, and JV's, an excuse to mail you again.

      Most people who have done a launch before know the requirements needed. I'd bet the fair share of server crashes are planned.

      Zach
      Sure, because it makes perfect sense to waste an email sending folks to a dead site just so you can email them a second time sending them to a live site when you could have simply sent them to a live site to begin with.

      By the way...as a list owner, I don't need an excuse to send someone a second email, I can just do it....no excuse necessary.
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      • Profile picture of the author WD Mino
        I think it is rather silly to suggest they are fake. now i know the marketing strategy of " our link was not working there was a server issue" in regards to products up for sale but on a huge launch???

        No way! launches are the bank they want as many people at the site as possible. not reverse i have learned that if doing a product launch that could potentially have a lot of traffic or sales -hopefully both notify payment processor and webhost immediately.

        I have unlimited bandwidth and disk space etc but if your on a shared server it is allocated a certain way so it is required for them to be able to increase your bandwidth so the server does not crash. I think posting something like this saying it is fake is just ludicrous.
        -WD
        Signature

        "As a man thinks in his heart so is he-Proverbs 23:7"

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    • Profile picture of the author SeanyG
      I think this sums it up well!!!

      Originally Posted by Zach Booker View Post

      Builds hype.

      Adds a sense of urgency.

      Builds anticipation.

      Gives the owner, and JV's, an excuse to mail you again.

      Most people who have done a launch before know the requirements needed. I'd bet the fair share of server crashes are planned.

      Zach
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  • Profile picture of the author Imran Naseem
    Banned
    Sometimes the server might crash. I remember John Reese once mentioned it. He had a power cut when he did his million dollar launch..

    It depends...we cannot judge whether some "fake it".
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  • Profile picture of the author jasondinner
    They definitely do crash for several reasons.

    While I won't speak for people that purposely crash their servers, ( if anyone would be
    that dumb to lose money they could have otherwise made had they left the site up)
    I will say that having been involved in many server crashing launches, it's the last thing any of us ever want to happen.

    - Jason
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    Super Affiliates Hang Out Here

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  • Profile picture of the author kevinfar
    One can't really be sure about whether it's done on purpose or not. In most of cases, I believe that it's not, however I'm sure there are times where it is actually done on purpose.

    It adds a lot to the mystery and scarcity that might happen during a launch. Also, it creates a sense of not knowing what's going to happen next.

    In my opinion, it's not really necessary to do a server crash. There are a ton of other stories that one can come up with and which will not interfere with people who actually want to buy the product involved.

    Kevin
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    • Profile picture of the author Sean A McAlister
      I love when someone claims that a server crash on launch day is faked!

      .... There is a boat load that goes into a monumental launch and anyone in their right mind knows that the "Sever Issue" is big. Why on earth would someone spend thousands of dollars on preparation, affiliate recruitment, marketing assets etc ...just to have the Sales Process closed when people go to buy.

      That's like building a Million Dollar offline company then closing the doors the day of the Grand opening. No One does it.

      Don't get me wrong...some may claim a "Server Crash" because of some other technical issue that was over looked but to simple to admit it was overlooked...but no one "Fakes" a server crash. Unless of course they like throwing money in the trash and pissing off a lot of affiliates who will be harder to get to promote the second time around.
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      • Profile picture of the author Trader54
        Originally Posted by Sean A McAlister View Post


        Don't get me wrong...some may claim a "Server Crash" because of some other technical issue that was over looked but to simple to admit it was overlooked...but no one "Fakes" a server crash. Unless of course they like throwing money in the trash and pissing off a lot of affiliates who will be harder to get to promote the second time around.
        Yes. This is what I think happens at times. I know I have received emails saying that the servers were down or crashed when I know I tried the link and had no problem. I'm sure many fall for it thinking everyone must want this product so I better grab it.
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      • Profile picture of the author Jeff Walker
        Originally Posted by Sean A McAlister View Post

        I love when someone claims that a server crash on launch day is faked!

        .... There is a boat load that goes into a monumental launch and anyone in their right mind knows that the "Sever Issue" is big. Why on earth would someone spend thousands of dollars on preparation, affiliate recruitment, marketing assets etc ...just to have the Sales Process closed when people go to buy.

        That's like building a Million Dollar offline company then closing the doors the day of the Grand opening. No One does it.

        Don't get me wrong...some may claim a "Server Crash" because of some other technical issue that was over looked but to simple to admit it was overlooked...but no one "Fakes" a server crash. Unless of course they like throwing money in the trash and pissing off a lot of affiliates who will be harder to get to promote the second time around.

        Sean pretty much got it right...

        I think it's pretty safe to say that I've been
        around more major launches in the IM niche than
        anyone, so let me make this simple...

        In the DOZENS of million-dollar launches that I've
        been personally involved in (or had access to the
        behind-the-scenes story), I do not know a SINGLE
        instance where a server crash was faked.

        That isn't to say that there isn't someone
        somewhere who was really misguided and "faked" a
        server launch. But if there are people out there
        doing this, then they aren't very smart... and
        they aren't operating at the higher levels of the
        IM world.

        The amount of planning and effort that goes into a
        launch is significant. It's all about focusing the
        energy and emotion of your prospects so that it's
        absolutely peaked on launch day. You spend days,
        or weeks, or even months getting them ready to buy
        on that day...

        That is definitely NOT the day you want to have
        them show up with cash in hand and say "sorry
        folks, we can't take your money"... that would be
        simply STUPID.

        In addition, the stress that a server crash can
        put on your other business systems (such as
        customer service and tech support) can be HUGE.

        I had a pretty catastrophic server crash when I
        opened Product Launch Formula 2.0... the server
        crashed within about 2 minutes of going live, and
        it was down for about 35 minutes.

        The big problem is that a ton of people actually
        got the order page to load before the server
        crashed. Then they filled out their credit card
        details while the server was down, hit the "order"
        button... and got a "server not found" or similar
        error.

        So what happens next? As soon as the server comes
        up, half of them immediately put in a support
        request, and the other half put in another order
        (some of which end up being duplicate orders.)

        So the server comes up, and my support staff has
        HUNDREDS of tickets in the first hour... and these
        aren't easy tickets to resolve. Each one takes
        research to see if the order went through or not,
        or if there was a dup order.

        My guess is that server crash cost us literally
        hundreds of hours of customer service and tech
        support. And it stressed the hell out of my team.

        (And that's a VERY BAD THING in my world - I like
        to think I have THE BEST customer support in the
        biz. My support people are STARS in my business...
        and I take the care and feeding of them very
        seriously, so stressing them out is not something
        I want to do.)

        Not to mention the server crash made us look like
        idiots to lots of prospects and clients.

        EVEN WORSE: a fake server crash would SERIOUSLY
        torque off your affiliates. Here's a secret that
        my PLF Owners know... your first and most
        important launch is to your affiliates. You need
        to put together an entire launch sequence to get
        them amped up to promote for your launch.

        So what would happen if they're all keyed up and
        mail hard for you during your prelaunch, then come
        out strong for you on launch day... and you pull
        the plug with a fake server crash?

        This is what would happen: they would never
        promote for you again. You just cut your throat.

        Believe me, when a server goes down, the REAL
        damage control is going on behind the scenes...
        with the product owner falling on their sword and
        pleading with the affiliates not to abandon the
        launch. Not a pleasant situation to be in.

        OK, I'm gonna cut this short before it gets to be
        a 200 page novel... I could write about this topic
        forever. Bottom line, no one that knows what
        they're doing would ever have a "fake" server
        crash.


        - Jeff
        Signature
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        • Profile picture of the author Brian Alaway
          Hey Jeff, about that 200 page novel, how about "How to Avoid Product Launch Disasters: A Behind the Scenes Real life Account"?

          Brian
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        • Profile picture of the author Joseph Ratliff
          Originally Posted by Jeff Walker View Post

          Sean pretty much got it right...

          I think it's pretty safe to say that I've been
          around more major launches in the IM niche than
          anyone, so let me make this simple...

          In the DOZENS of million-dollar launches that I've
          been personally involved in (or had access to the
          behind-the-scenes story), I do not know a SINGLE
          instance where a server crash was faked.

          That isn't to say that there isn't someone
          somewhere who was really misguided and "faked" a
          server launch. But if there are people out there
          doing this, then they aren't very smart... and
          they aren't operating at the higher levels of the
          IM world.

          The amount of planning and effort that goes into a
          launch is significant. It's all about focusing the
          energy and emotion of your prospects so that it's
          absolutely peaked on launch day. You spend days,
          or weeks, or even months getting them ready to buy
          on that day...

          That is definitely NOT the day you want to have
          them show up with cash in hand and say "sorry
          folks, we can't take your money"... that would be
          simply STUPID.

          In addition, the stress that a server crash can
          put on your other business systems (such as
          customer service and tech support) can be HUGE.

          I had a pretty catastrophic server crash when I
          opened Product Launch Formula 2.0... the server
          crashed within about 2 minutes of going live, and
          it was down for about 35 minutes.

          The big problem is that a ton of people actually
          got the order page to load before the server
          crashed. Then they filled out their credit card
          details while the server was down, hit the "order"
          button... and got a "server not found" or similar
          error.

          So what happens next? As soon as the server comes
          up, half of them immediately put in a support
          request, and the other half put in another order
          (some of which end up being duplicate orders.)

          So the server comes up, and my support staff has
          HUNDREDS of tickets in the first hour... and these
          aren't easy tickets to resolve. Each one takes
          research to see if the order went through or not,
          or if there was a dup order.

          My guess is that server crash cost us literally
          hundreds of hours of customer service and tech
          support. And it stressed the hell out of my team.

          (And that's a VERY BAD THING in my world - I like
          to think I have THE BEST customer support in the
          biz. My support people are STARS in my business...
          and I take the care and feeding of them very
          seriously, so stressing them out is not something
          I want to do.)

          Not to mention the server crash made us look like
          idiots to lots of prospects and clients.

          EVEN WORSE: a fake server crash would SERIOUSLY
          torque off your affiliates. Here's a secret that
          my PLF Owners know... your first and most
          important launch is to your affiliates. You need
          to put together an entire launch sequence to get
          them amped up to promote for your launch.

          So what would happen if they're all keyed up and
          mail hard for you during your prelaunch, then come
          out strong for you on launch day... and you pull
          the plug with a fake server crash?

          This is what would happen: they would never
          promote for you again. You just cut your throat.

          Believe me, when a server goes down, the REAL
          damage control is going on behind the scenes...
          with the product owner falling on their sword and
          pleading with the affiliates not to abandon the
          launch. Not a pleasant situation to be in.

          OK, I'm gonna cut this short before it gets to be
          a 200 page novel... I could write about this topic
          forever. Bottom line, no one that knows what
          they're doing would ever have a "fake" server
          crash.


          - Jeff
          And the man behind many multi-million dollar product launches pretty much sums it all up.
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        • Profile picture of the author SeanyG
          Awesome reply Jeff. Thanks!

          Originally Posted by Jeff Walker View Post

          Sean pretty much got it right...

          I think it's pretty safe to say that I've been
          around more major launches in the IM niche than
          anyone, so let me make this simple...

          In the DOZENS of million-dollar launches that I've
          been personally involved in (or had access to the
          behind-the-scenes story), I do not know a SINGLE
          instance where a server crash was faked.

          That isn't to say that there isn't someone
          somewhere who was really misguided and "faked" a
          server launch. But if there are people out there
          doing this, then they aren't very smart... and
          they aren't operating at the higher levels of the
          IM world.

          The amount of planning and effort that goes into a
          launch is significant. It's all about focusing the
          energy and emotion of your prospects so that it's
          absolutely peaked on launch day. You spend days,
          or weeks, or even months getting them ready to buy
          on that day...

          That is definitely NOT the day you want to have
          them show up with cash in hand and say "sorry
          folks, we can't take your money"... that would be
          simply STUPID.

          In addition, the stress that a server crash can
          put on your other business systems (such as
          customer service and tech support) can be HUGE.

          I had a pretty catastrophic server crash when I
          opened Product Launch Formula 2.0... the server
          crashed within about 2 minutes of going live, and
          it was down for about 35 minutes.

          The big problem is that a ton of people actually
          got the order page to load before the server
          crashed. Then they filled out their credit card
          details while the server was down, hit the "order"
          button... and got a "server not found" or similar
          error.

          So what happens next? As soon as the server comes
          up, half of them immediately put in a support
          request, and the other half put in another order
          (some of which end up being duplicate orders.)

          So the server comes up, and my support staff has
          HUNDREDS of tickets in the first hour... and these
          aren't easy tickets to resolve. Each one takes
          research to see if the order went through or not,
          or if there was a dup order.

          My guess is that server crash cost us literally
          hundreds of hours of customer service and tech
          support. And it stressed the hell out of my team.

          (And that's a VERY BAD THING in my world - I like
          to think I have THE BEST customer support in the
          biz. My support people are STARS in my business...
          and I take the care and feeding of them very
          seriously, so stressing them out is not something
          I want to do.)

          Not to mention the server crash made us look like
          idiots to lots of prospects and clients.

          EVEN WORSE: a fake server crash would SERIOUSLY
          torque off your affiliates. Here's a secret that
          my PLF Owners know... your first and most
          important launch is to your affiliates. You need
          to put together an entire launch sequence to get
          them amped up to promote for your launch.

          So what would happen if they're all keyed up and
          mail hard for you during your prelaunch, then come
          out strong for you on launch day... and you pull
          the plug with a fake server crash?

          This is what would happen: they would never
          promote for you again. You just cut your throat.

          Believe me, when a server goes down, the REAL
          damage control is going on behind the scenes...
          with the product owner falling on their sword and
          pleading with the affiliates not to abandon the
          launch. Not a pleasant situation to be in.

          OK, I'm gonna cut this short before it gets to be
          a 200 page novel... I could write about this topic
          forever. Bottom line, no one that knows what
          they're doing would ever have a "fake" server
          crash.


          - Jeff
          Signature
          FREE Video DJ Lessons to help you learn
          >>>How To DJ
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  • Profile picture of the author seasoned
    News for you guys! Crashing a server LOSES business and looks unprofessional! It happens to EVERYONE! I don't know all the details but the way in which such things work is just not the greatest. In fact, to lessen the impact, they start SEVERAL instantiations of the server up and, eventually, they get paired down. MORE instantiations means you need MORE memory, faster CPUs, etc... And HECK, even TCP/IP is far from perfect. In fact, collisions are built into the spec. They aren't only not unusual, they are EXPECTED! And more connections means they become more likely.

    SO, WHY do they do it? Why do computers run out of memory? THEY JUST DO!!!! EVEN Amazon has had this problem. If the company doesn't have a monopoly, that crash may get me to buy ELSEWHERE! If they DO have a monopoly, I may talk myself out of the purchase.

    Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author CDarklock
    Originally Posted by SeanyG View Post

    I'm sure you're all familiar with the classic server crash during a launch.
    These really happen. Here's what goes on.

    You're building your launch platform. You put up all your teasery stuff. You say "product is live on X date at X time." Everyone sets bookmarks. For about a month and a half, you get a certain amount of traffic.

    The datacenter optimises your server for about that amount of traffic. They hook you up to all the right switches and routers to get that much traffic.

    Launch day hits. And on the zero-hour, your site gets hammered with roughly 2,000 times that traffic all at once.

    The datacenter isn't ready. The equipment is overloaded. A router in the building craps little green apples, takes a dump on a mass storage peripheral, and half the place goes tits up.

    (It's truly amazing to hear all those alarms go off... one by one, at just under the speed of light, thousands of machines start beeping in a neat little expanding ripple from the problem component. The better operators can pinpoint the problem component by sound faster than you can find it in a network trace.)

    Now the hosting company is running around like headless chickens trying to get servers back up for a couple hundred customers. Once they figure out which server had the "problem," THEY SHUT IT DOWN until they can figure out what to do.

    Because while we always say "call PayPal and let them know your launch day so they don't shut off your account," nobody ever bothers to say "call your web host and let them know your launch day so you don't crash your server."
    Signature
    "The Golden Town is the Golden Town no longer. They have sold their pillars for brass and their temples for money, they have made coins out of their golden doors. It is become a dark town full of trouble, there is no ease in its streets, beauty has left it and the old songs are gone." - Lord Dunsany, The Messengers
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    • Profile picture of the author Preneuraholic
      Originally Posted by CDarklock View Post

      Because while we always say "call PayPal and let them know your launch day so they don't shut off your account," nobody ever bothers to say "call your web host and let them know your launch day so you don't crash your server."
      I'm getting ready to launch a new website within days (see signature) and this thread is freaking me out. It's a professionally created site with the same company hosting so they better be ready technically for the launch...

      But I got hung up on the PayPal reference here. I've never used PayPal as the primary pay option (always used merchant account co's), but have set this site up with PayPal. I know PayPal is notorious for shutting down accounts almost indiscriminately so I'm nervous to begin with. But you're saying they might shut me down due to too much activity??
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  • Profile picture of the author Johnathan
    Sometimes it is legit. If the hype built around a product launch is good enough. However, nowadays I think the markerters that do that should take the time to make sure they have backup plans in case of an overload/traffic overload.
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  • Profile picture of the author StaffPartyTrivia
    Most hosts will disable your site when you are using 25% of available resources
    because you will be slowing all other customers.

    However, the big marketers likely use dedicated or even colo or own-hosted servers
    and grossly underestimate the traffic and even the size of their images matters at
    that point. ( You'll want a text-based site - lean in images )

    It is also a great excuse to email everyone a few more times

    Sorry server crashed - we're offline for a while ( people will check it anyway )
    Server is back up YAY!
    Sorry again about the server crash ( here's bonuses )
    Wow we got so much angry email about our server crashing
    - we're giving away 10 more great bonuses
    5 days later

    We're so sorry about our server crash that we are relaunching
    our product again on a bigger server so you can all buy it without problems
    Remember - "how to build a crappy website on which to post photos of your pets"
    goes live tomorrow!
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  • Profile picture of the author Rod Cortez
    Some people fake it, some people don't......really, who gives a crap? I have no way of actually knowing either way.

    <Gets back to building own business>..............

    RoD
    Signature
    "Your personal philosophy is the greatest determining factor in how your life works out."
    - Jim Rohn
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  • Profile picture of the author Gail Sober
    I would put my money on capped bandwidth. Just because your host says you have hundreds of gigs or even unlimited bandwith doesn't mean you can use it all at once.
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  • Profile picture of the author Josh Anderson
    Here are a few potential issues:

    1. They have cheap servers with limited bandwidth available for incoming traffic and small uplinks like 10mb or 100mb that cannot handle the traffic.

    2. They pile a bunch of scripts or multiple auto loading videos on the page that all load at once. Ie. Failure to optimize a site.

    3. They are using economy hosting and their host limits concurrent connections and mysql queries.

    4. They have limited and non burstable bandwidth available to them.

    5. They have bottlenecks in their scripts/software that they were not expecting and do not have the experience or programming staff or ability to fix the issue.

    6. Or it was just plain bad luck and a hardware failure... ie. when it rains it pours.

    In IM most server crashes are due to inexperience, poor planning, lack of technical knowledge and just being plain cheap when it comes to investing in the proper resources.

    However, even google had problems keeping up with the traffic when Michael Jackson died.

    They thought it was a ddos attack at first.
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    • Profile picture of the author seasoned
      Originally Posted by Josh Anderson View Post

      Here are a few potential issues:

      1. They have cheap servers with limited bandwidth available for incoming traffic and small uplinks like 10mb or 100mb that cannot handle the traffic.

      2. They pile a bunch of scripts or multiple auto loading videos on the page that all load at once. Ie. Failure to optimize a site.

      3. They are using economy hosting and their host limits concurrent connections and mysql queries.

      4. They have limited and non burstable bandwidth available to them.

      5. They have bottlenecks in their scripts/software that they were not expecting and do not have the experience or programming staff or ability to fix the issue.

      6. Or it was just plain bad luck and a hardware failure... ie. when it rains it pours.

      In IM most server crashes are due to inexperience, poor planning, lack of technical knowledge and just being plain cheap when it comes to investing in the proper resources.

      However, even google had problems keeping up with the traffic when Michael Jackson died.

      They thought it was a ddos attack at first.
      #1 SHOULD make things simply SLOWER, though that CAN cause timing issues which can crash some things.

      #2 is a pet peave of mine. YEP, that can cause problems.

      #3 That bit about host limits is a good point. AND, sad to say it, mysql has some problems with a LOT of connections, and opening connections and failing to close them can cause some REAL problems.

      #4 is really just another flavor of #1.

      #5 opens up a whole new source of bugs. Even some LARGE companies have tried to use single user software in a multiuser environment. It may SEEM to work for quite a while, and one day just FAIL. They more users you have at once, the more likely it is to show up.

      #6 YEP! And a successful launch is a likely time for such a failure.

      Still, the IDEA that anyone would think they FAKE server crashes shows how cynical some get. The server crash is to IM launches what weather is to the airlines. Other problems may be blamed on it, but NOBODY wants to cause the problem.

      Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author Brad Lindsay
    Even a dedicated server can buckle under extreme load, especially if there are a lot of videos on the site and/or the site is database driven (as in the case of membership based sites).

    A popular technique being used to reduce the likelihood of a crash during a big launch, is in addition to hosting on a beefy and optimized dedicated server (with a large allocation of bandwidth memory and a large data pipe), host the site graphics and videos on another service designed to handle heavy loads such as Amazon S3.

    And of course as has already been mentioned is to make sure the ISP hosting your server is aware of your upcoming launch with an idea (if possible of the expected level of traffic).
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  • Profile picture of the author Josh Anderson
    With the recent announcement of mysql on EC2 available at Amazon Web Services companies now have more options than ever for development and scalability:

    Amazon Launches Hosted MySQL Database Cloud Service
    Signature
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  • Profile picture of the author Black Hat Cat
    Banned
    Originally Posted by SeanyG View Post

    Hey guys,

    I'm sure you're all familiar with the classic server crash during a launch.

    On the initial launch day the server crashes causing a delay.

    A lot of internet marketers use this fake technique but I have no idea why...

    Why do these guys use the server crash during launches?

    Thanks!

    ~Sean
    If you don't know why they're doing it, how is it you know they are faking it?
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  • Profile picture of the author Scott Ames
    Server load. No one did load testing.

    Originally Posted by SeanyG View Post

    Hey guys,

    I'm sure you're all familiar with the classic server crash during a launch.

    On the initial launch day the server crashes causing a delay.

    A lot of internet marketers use this fake technique but I have no idea why...

    Why do these guys use the server crash during launches?

    Thanks!

    ~Sean
    Signature

    Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm. -Winston Churchill

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  • Profile picture of the author Lance K
    Originally Posted by SeanyG View Post

    I'm sure you're all familiar with the classic server crash during a launch.

    On the initial launch day the server crashes causing a delay.

    A lot of internet marketers use this fake technique but I have no idea why...

    Why do these guys use the server crash during launches?
    Here we go again...

    [sarcasm]

    Yes, these people fake server crashes because they love to miss out on potential sales. It makes perfect business sense.

    [/sarcasm]

    :rolleyes:
    Signature
    "You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want."
    ~ Zig Ziglar
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    • Profile picture of the author R Hagel
      Crashing a server during a launch -- brilliant tactic! Planned for sure.

      In fact, I'm sure this crosses over well to brick and mortar marketing. So here's what I'm going to do...

      Set up a brick and mortar store.

      Spend weeks building hype about the store. I'm talking contests, press releases, full page (expensive) ads in my local newspaper, JVs with other businesses in the same niche. You name it, I'll do it. This is gonna be HUGE.

      Finally, the icing on the cake is that I'll have a limited offer "door buster" deals. First come, first served. Some kind of "fast action" bonus for being the first to visit the store.

      Now, mind you I live in MN. It's cold. So only my most rabid customers are going to line up for a door buster deal at this time of the year.

      OK...

      Get this now...

      *giggles with anticipation*

      Here's my idea -- ready?

      When I get that inevitable flood of foot traffic, I'm not going to let them in the store!

      Yes! Yes! I'll lock the door and keep them out in the cold for at least an hour or two.

      OMG, this is brilliant. Brilliant I say!

      I'll tell them I couldn't get to the store to unlock the door because there were just so many people lined up outside -- too big of a crowd! People, this kind of social proof is going to fill my pockets with cash!

      I'm shaking with excitement. I can almost see the money piling up in my bank account!

      OK, gotta dash and go plan my "Lock-The-Door-During-The-Grand-Opening" strategy...

      Becky
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      • Profile picture of the author Joseph Ratliff
        Originally Posted by R Hagel View Post

        Crashing a server during a launch -- brilliant tactic! Planned for sure.

        In fact, I'm sure this crosses over well to brick and mortar marketing. So here's what I'm going to do...

        Set up a brick and mortar store.

        Spend weeks building hype about the store. I'm talking contests, press releases, full page (expensive) ads in my local newspaper, JVs with other businesses in the same niche. You name it, I'll do it. This is gonna be HUGE.

        Finally, the icing on the cake is that I'll have a limited offer "door buster" deals. First come, first served. Some kind of "fast action" bonus for being the first to visit the store.

        Now, mind you I live in MN. It's cold. So only my most rabid customers are going to line up for a door buster deal at this time of the year.

        OK...

        Get this now...

        *giggles with anticipation*

        Here's my idea -- ready?

        When I get that inevitable flood of foot traffic, I'm not going to let them in the store!

        Yes! Yes! I'll lock the door and keep them out in the cold for at least an hour or two.

        OMG, this is brilliant. Brilliant I say!

        I'll tell them I couldn't get to the store to unlock the door because there were just so many people lined up outside -- too big of a crowd! People, this kind of social proof is going to fill my pockets with cash!

        I'm shaking with excitement. I can almost see the money piling up in my bank account!

        OK, gotta dash and go plan my "Lock-The-Door-During-The-Grand-Opening" strategy...

        Becky
        Oh Becky, I've gotta get another box of cleaning wipes for my monitor, I spit out coffee on mine thanks to you, LOL
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  • Profile picture of the author David Brown
    Just ask yourself a simple question.
    Would YOU fake a server crash or would you satisfy the hot demand for your product?
    Hmmmmm......one of the easiest questions I have ever had to answer. LOL

    Dave
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