BUGS + BUGS + BUGS - I am going away

[luciano]

Well...

I choosed Plesk because i was think it would decide my problems with Windows Control panels as Plesk is a consecrated control panel software. But i think the bugs we found in Windows version of Plesk will not be decided in so easy way. Maybe they did not do the correct architeture planning before implements it. My customers are complaning ,with reason, about its software problems, and i can just say they are right. I see it is more user friendly tham another Windows CPs but if it does not work it does not decide problems.

New bugs are discovered everyday. There are another architeture problems....

Some bugs:
Server.Mappath("/") does not point to website root folder
Because the error above some customers experienced Response.Cookies problems, they need change applications and set cookies.path
Password Protected directories login works just after 2 times login access.
Access ODBC creation does not work, and Test Feature also does not work.
Plesk Websites don't send debug messages to customer (If an ASP script has an error IIS just send INTERNAL SERVER ERROR message. Note ebug for client site is enabled and it works for websites not created with Plesk
As websites are virtual directories everybody got a mapping problem. Our customer.com website is shown as customer.com/non_ssl.../document
My DNS zones are created with just one DNS Server called ns.domain.com, so i for each account i create i need change zone file to include ns.mycompany.com and ns2.mycompany.com
FTP users cannot write to its ftp root folders, so they must send their access databases to public folder.

SEND YOUR KNOWN BUGS


Architeture Problems and Software Falts:
SQL Server is equal MySQL, you cannot offer customer packages with SQL Server because our customers who have access just to create MySQL databases could setup SQL Server databases instead mysql. We know how SQL Server is expensive.

We can create MySQL databases, but we cannot create MySQL ODBC sources as its driver is not available.
We can create sub-domains, but we cannot create password protected directories inside them.

Well... it follows... You people can report your known faults and bugs here... maybe we can send this listing to support staff. As they nor see this forum.

 

[Gremlin]

so i for each account i create i need change zone file to include ns.mycompany.com and ns2.mycompany.com

Just change your admin DNS template to fix that one by adding the second nameserver in to it.

The biggest issue for me is the mapping and this _non_ssl oddness, I've just got into plesk for windows and do already have some reservations about whether we should have gone with this becuase of this problem .. this needs to be given the highest priority possible for resolution imho.

 

[ICTTrend]

we have the same problems !

I hope there will be soon a new release ... for free....

 

[siren@]

You know 80% plus of these sound like user error.

There are bugs, and they are trying to fix them, but we don't have near that many problems.

 

[Gremlin]

I'd disagree with that statement, half of what he's got listed there all comes back to the way sites are created and the mapping ISAPI. There is nothing the administrator can to do get around this short of not using plesk to manage the sites.

FTP Users can't create folders above root by default you need to change permissions as stated outside of the plesk control panel. Without doing this it leaves clients having to have access databases in the root of their website leaving them vulnerable to abuse, certainly not a feature in the best interests of your customers.

Single nameservers .. yes changeable by the user to add additional .. not something I'd call user error though, just one of education.

Cookies problems goes back to the mapping ISAPI again

I'd have to agree that architectually there are some fundamental design issues imo. Clearly the *nix version has been made to "run on windows" rather than redesigned/redeveloped to utilise windows specific features.

 

[siren@]

Some bugs:
Server.Mappath("/") does not point to website root folder

I agree, it is a bug.

Because the error above some customers experienced Response.Cookies problems, they need change applications and set cookies.path

Bug or no, if you aren't setting a path for cookies you are asking for trouble and it is five seconds to do it right.

Password Protected directories login works just after 2 times login access.

Not having this bug

Access ODBC creation does not work, and Test Feature also does not work.

Works fine on our servers.

Plesk Websites don't send debug messages to customer (If an ASP script has an error IIS just send INTERNAL SERVER ERROR message. Note ebug for client site is enabled and it works for websites not created with Plesk

By design for custom error messages. Simply rename the custom error message pages.

As websites are virtual directories everybody got a mapping problem. Our customer.com website is shown as customer.com/non_ssl.../document

1. If you are ending directories with a / in calling them this doesn't happen and we have done multiple testing to prove it to ourselves.

2. How does this conform as a bug? Over 300 sites on Plesk 6.5.2 and only a few complaints about this resolved by stating it is by design and does not affect the viewing of the site.

My DNS zones are created with just one DNS Server called ns.domain.com, so i for each account i create i need change zone file to include ns.mycompany.com and ns2.mycompany.com

By design. You simply edit it to your settings on the server side. DNS Basics 101 in the Plesk 6.5.2 administration info on Sw-Softs Site

FTP users cannot write to its ftp root folders, so they must send their access databases to public folder.

By design for security reasons. I agree they need to create the ability for end users to create folders here, but this is by design and if you understand MS Windows on an admin side creating folders here they can upload to is pretty simple.

SQL Server is equal MySQL, you cannot offer customer packages with SQL Server because our customers who have access just to create MySQL databases could setup SQL Server databases instead mysql. We know how SQL Server is expensive.

Since when is MSSQL licensed per database?

Well that's enough of them for me to answer.

 

[Gremlin]

Bug or no, if you aren't setting a path for cookies you are asking for trouble and it is five seconds to do it right.

Sorry but even setting a path doesn't guarantee the cookies will work becuase of the mapping issues there are two paths the browser may see so you have to cater for domain/folder and domain_non_ssl/folder in your code. There are many instances where you simply do not want to set the cookie path to just "/" either and not to mention I fail to see why people should adjust their code to cater for two potential paths becuase of "bugs" in Plesk.

If you are ending directories with a / in calling them this doesn't happen and we have done multiple testing to prove it to ourselves. How does this conform as a bug?

Whats the saying, it's not a bug, its an undocumented feature? Surely a customer should be able to pickup any piece of code and migrate it from one server to another irrespective of the contorl panel and have it work without modification .. yet it doesn't work 100% on a Plesk enabled webserver, then I'd be extremely inclined to place this closer to the bug side of things than feature. Customers don't want to have to recode their site when shifting to our servers, they want a nice seemless transfer .. something they're not going to get going to our plesk boxes right now.

By design for security reasons. I agree they need to create the ability for end users to create folders here, but this is by design and if you understand MS Windows on an admin side creating folders here they can upload to is pretty simple.

Again whats the point in having a control panel if you have to manually go and change things outside of it?

I'm not saying Plesk is absolute doodoo, but there are some serious flaws, you've obviously been using it a while and have come to accept it's limitations, I'm simply saying why are the limitation theres to begin with .. I've used many other control panels, and I've managed windows servers for longer than I care to remember and never have I encoutered so many "design" features that require customers to recode their sites, or me to bypass the control panel.

 

[siren@]

Sorry but even setting a path doesn't guarantee the cookies will work becuase of the mapping issues there are two paths the browser may see so you have to cater for domain/folder and domain_non_ssl/folder in your code. There are many instances where you simply do not want to set the cookie path to just "/" either and not to mention I fail to see why people should adjust their code to cater for two potential paths becuase of "bugs" in Plesk.

Show me where this doesn't work. We tested over and over before telling our customers to use it and have no problems with it and this is our standard coding and has been for years even before plesk and we have no problems with it.

Whats the saying, it's not a bug, its an undocumented feature? Surely a customer should be able to pickup any piece of code and migrate it from one server to another irrespective of the contorl panel and have it work without modification .. yet it doesn't work 100% on a Plesk enabled webserver, then I'd be extremely inclined to place this closer to the bug side of things than feature. Customers don't want to have to recode their site when shifting to our servers, they want a nice seemless transfer .. something they're not going to get going to our plesk boxes right now.

What I said is what we respond to our clients with. I don't consider anything displaying in the address bar itself to be a bug. The underlying coding that causes it may be considered a bug, but the address bar portion itself that he was refering to is not.

Again whats the point in having a control panel if you have to manually go and change things outside of it?

I'm not saying Plesk is absolute doodoo, but there are some serious flaws, you've obviously been using it a while and have come to accept it's limitations, I'm simply saying why are the limitation theres to begin with .. I've used many other control panels, and I've managed windows servers for longer than I care to remember and never have I encoutered so many "design" features that require customers to recode their sites, or me to bypass the control panel.

Because many users of control panels, as are many of our dedicated server customers, don't know administration and have no clue regarding security. This protects them and there customers.

As for limitations I have only found one that bothers me, include virtual.

I haven't found any other real limitations and to be honest we have a few other boxes that we admin for other clients. I spend more time admining there non-plesk boxes then I do our Primary windows box with over 367 domains at the moment.

 

[Gremlin]

Show me where this doesn't work. We tested over and over before telling our customers to use it and have no problems with it and this is our standard coding and has been for years even before plesk and we have no problems with it.

But if your requiring customers to recode things to circumvent _non_ssl ever appearing in the address bar or links on their site then of course your not going to have a problem .. again just because you require you ask your customers to change their code, doesn't mean everyone else is willing too .. I was going to transfer 400-500 domains just to start off with as a trial but I'm certainly not prepared to spend the next 6 months telling people to change their code because of Plesks idiosyncrasies.

Simple fact is, if I set a cookie with a .Path of "domain/folder" and the requested page ends up being "domain/domain_non_ssl/folder" then the cookie will not be sent with the request by the browser becuase the paths don't match.

What I said is what we respond to our clients with. I don't consider anything displaying in the address bar itself to be a bug. The underlying coding that causes it may be considered a bug, but the address bar portion itself that he was refering to is not.

Yes I agree, non_ssl appearing isn't a neccessarilly bug per-se becuase technically it is the correct path as far as the servers concerned. You've stated that coding "/" after URL's will negate this behaviour (I've yet to test this but will later today) .. but does any RFC state that URL's MUST actually end with a "/" ? Sure as a coder it's good practice to do it becuase it saves one round trip to the server, but very very few applications or coders I know ever take this into consideration simply becuase they they don't normally have too.