Cloud Sites – Powered by Liquid Web

Welcome Cloud Sites customers. The following is to help answer questions you may have as you prepare to utilize your Cloud Sites account with Liquid Web. For more information beyond the questions below, feel free to reference this note from Jim Geiger, CEO of Liquid Web.

General Questions

• • Who does this impact?

    Rackspace Cloud Sites customers will have only the Cloud Sites product transitioned to Liquid Web. All other Rackspace services will continue to be managed, operated and invoiced via Rackspace. Only the Cloud Sites product is transitioning.

  • What happened?

    Rackspace has shifted focus away from Platform as a Service (PaaS) Web Hosting and has sold the Cloud Sites product, customer base, support team and all infrastructure to Liquid Web, who is a leader in this market space.

• When did this happen?

  Rackspace sold the Cloud Sites product in Aug. 2016. During the months since the sale, Rackspace and Liquid Web have been working to smoothly extricate the Cloud Sites product and customer base from Rackspace. As Cloud Sites was a foundation product in Rackspace, the interdependencies in the management/billing/support infrastructures were extensive. Ensuring a smooth transition for our customers is the goal of both Rackspace and Liquid Web.

• Why did this happen?

  Rackspace has refocused its strategy on large, complex infrastructure deployments and consultative services. As Rackspace’s strategy shifted, Liquid Web stepped in as an ideal choice to acquire Cloud Sites. Why? Because we are dedicated to partnering with professional website designers, developers and digital agencies and the businesses they serve.

• Will my price increase?

  No, your pricing will not change. In fact, we intend to enhance and bolster your services at your current pricing level.

• Will my websites stop working?

  Absolutely not. We are dedicated to making this transition smooth and are committed to ensuring uninterrupted service for your websites and customers. The activation of new Liquid Web accounts only impacts the management of your account and websites. It does not impact the operations of the websites.

• What will be changing?

  As you join our Liquid Web family, three important steps will take place:

  1. In the near future, you will receive an account activation ticket. This account is your front door to Liquid Web and is used to manage your products and account information in your new home.
  2. Next month we will be introducing the New Cloud Sites Control Panel and adding your Cloud Sites product to the Liquid Web account for you.
  3. Finally, after your account has been transferred, you will start receiving your Cloud Sites invoices from Liquid Web.

Your Liquid Web Account(s)

• What changes will I need to make to manage my account?

  Once you receive your new Liquid Web account and activation instructions, you will need to log into your new account, update your password and establish a new secret question/passphrase. You will want to make sure your contact information and credit card information is up to date to ensure a smooth transition and no interruption in your website operations.

• How do I pay my bill?

  Your credit card will continue to be invoiced for the Cloud Sites product. Your statement will reflect Liquid Web as the source for your Cloud Sites charges. The Help Center article “Understanding the Billing Tab in Your Account” explains the billing options and tab in the control panel. Cloud Sites will be one of the services on your new account.

• Can I use a different payment method?

  Liquid Web allows for a number of different payment methods, including credit card and PayPal.

• Do I have to keep the same username?

  No. Once you have responded to the activation ticket and are logged into your Liquid Web account, you can change your username. The Help Center article “Editing User Authorizations” provides a quick walk through. Or you can go directly to Account > Users > Edit in your new control panel. A best practice would be to make this username and password unique from your old Rackspace account.

• Do I have to keep the same Account Name?

  No. You can change all of your profile information via the new control panel, including the Points of Contact and the Organization Name. The Help Center article “Updating Your Profile” provides an overview of this easy process.

Support

• Is my support team changing?

  No, Liquid Web has retained 100% of the Cloud Sites team including all the support team.

• Whom do I contact for support?

  Your Cloud Sites support team and contact information remains the same. You can call 1-855-348-9060, or reach out via ticket or chat.

• Does Liquid Web have a Status Page?

  Yes. You can see the latest information on maintenance schedules and any service issues at our dedicated Cloud Sites Status Page.

New Cloud Sites Control Panel

• Will there be a new Cloud Sites Control Panel?

  Yes. We are excited to announce the launch of the new Cloud Sites Control Panel. After account activation and close to your next Cloud Sites invoice, your Cloud Sites service will be transitioned into your Liquid Web account. At that time, you will gain access to and see numerous user-friendly enhancements in the new Cloud Sites Control Panel. We look forward to bringing you future enhancements as we invest in the Cloud Sites product.

• Will the Cloud Sites Control Panel look the same?

  No. We have worked hard to integrate the Cloud Sites product with the many services offered by Liquid Web, however, the processes for some services will be handled differently. We are excited that the new features and streamlined Cloud Sites interface will improve workflow and make managing your sites more intuitive.

• Will I still have access to the old Cloud Sites Control Panel?

  Once you are transitioned to the new Cloud Sites Control Panel, your access to the Rackspace Cloud Sites Control Panel will terminate. It is not possible to have multiple control panels managing your Cloud Sites resources.
  If you need to access other Rackspace services, your Rackspace username and password will continue to work at Rackspace’s mycloud – http://mycloud.rackspace.com.

• How do I access the new control panel?

  We need to polish a few of the features, so the new control panel is not ready for your use at this time. But, don’t worry we will be adding that soon. Once the Cloud Sites Service has been added to your Liquid Web account, you can access the new control panel via a direct link on the Liquid Web control panel. Or you can use your Liquid Web primary account to access the new cloudsites control panel directly at https://cloudsites.liquidweb.com. Currently, only the account owner will have direct access via the URL. Adding more users and roles is one of the many features we are working to add for you.

• Will the new control panel have a new URL?

  Yes. Once your Cloud Sites service is added to your Liquid Web account, the account owner will be able to log directly into the new cloudsites control panel at https://cloudsites.liquidweb.com. Please remember that only the account owner will be able to log in directly, at this time.

• Will this impact my existing FTP accounts?

  No, all of your present FTP accounts will function as before and will not require any changes. You and your users will be able to access your website resources.

• Will there be a White-Label user interface?

  Yes, your customers will use their existing username and password after the control panel transition to reach a new white-label interface called manage website settings at https://manage.websitesettings.com.

• How can I learn about the new Control Panel?

  The Help Center has a number of articles for Cloud Sites. Presently, those articles focus on the primary account features and give you a head start on how the control panel will function, but we are still polishing some features for your customers (Rackspace sub-accounts). In mid-February, we will be launching the new control panel with these additional features for you.

Domain Management

• Will I still be able to use Click & Name as my Domain Registrar?

  The Click & Name domain registrar will maintain your already registered domains. However, Click & Name will be phased out over time and renewals will not be available after the Cloud Sites Control Panel transition. The new Cloud Sites Control Panel will allow you to manage your domain point of contact information and generate transfer documentation. If you need assistance with these actions our support team will be glad to assist.

• Who can I use to register my domain?

  Liquid Web is partnered with Enom and has an integrated Domain Registration Service in your new Liquid Web account. When you are ready to register your domain, the control panel allows for quick and easy setup. In addition, the much-requested ability to automatically renew your domain is a simple one click addition to your registration.

• Can I transfer my domain out of Click & Name to Enom?

  Absolutely. We have simplified the process so that it only takes a few steps, starting with a ticket request. Because the process is regulated by international standards (ICANN), this process can take a few days and does require your validation of the request. Our support team will guide you through the process and answer any questions you may have.

• Do I have to change my websites’ DNS servers?

  To ensure uninterrupted website service your DNS records will continue to exist in the Rackspace DNS servers. You can view those DNS records via http://mycloud.rackspace.com. For your convenience we have copied those DNS zones into the Liquid Web DNS servers as well. Once you update your domain registrar with the Liquid Web DNS servers, you can consolidate your DNS management within the Liquid Web control panel. If you need assistance with changes with domains registered through “Click & Name” our support team will be glad to assist.

• Can I use Liquid Web to manage my DNS servers?

  Yes, we have copied your DNS zones into the Liquid Web DNS servers. You can view those DNS zone records in the Liquid Web control panel under Domains > DNS. The Help Center article “Where Is My DNS Hosted?” provides information on how to determine who your domain registrar is using for your DNS service. Best practice is to ensure those DNS zone records in your Liquid Web account are accurate before you update your domain registrar.

Datacenters

• Will my sites be migrated to a new location? If so, what are you doing to ensure a smooth transition?

  Eventually your data will be migrated to a Liquid Web data center, featuring industry-leading hardware and premium security. At the appropriate time, you will receive advanced notification for the schedule of this transition as well as any role we may need you to play.
  We have assigned a dedicated team to work on your upgrade.

• Will my IP addresses change?

  There are no initial IP address changes, at this time. In the future, as we integrate more of the Cloud Sites Infrastructure into Liquid Web Data Centers, this may change. For the majority of customers, there will be no IP Address change. If you are one of the few customers whose IP Address will require a change, we will notify you and guide you through the process.

Services

• Will my existing Cloud Sites services change?

  No. You will continue to enjoy the same Cloud Sites services, and they will be integrated with present Liquid Web services, as well.

• How do I order new or additional services?

  Once you receive your new account, your Cloud Sites subscription will automatically transfer to Liquid Web for billing. If you have other Rackspace services, those will remain with Rackspace and will continue to be invoiced by Rackspace. You will be able to add additional Liquid Web services after your account has been activated within our Liquid Web systems.

• Who do I contact if I want to discuss Liquid Web Services?

  We have a solutions team eager to assist you. They can be reached at 800.580.4985 (1-517-322-0434). Asking for a Hosting Advisor will get you directly to an engineer who will use their extensive hosting expertise to design and deploy a custom solution for your specific objectives.