Adding a second server - brief upcoming AP downtime

sothis

sothis

Forum Moderator
Anime-Planet Founder
Developer
We've managed to stay on a single server for some time now while keeping lag to a minimum. With the upcoming launch of the newly recoded and far more robust site activity feed, we've made the decision to purchase a second dedicated server to handle the load of that feature.

The server is purchased (will be set up in the next few days), and both it and the existing server will be set up on the same rack for a few reasons. This means that for a brief period of time, the site will be down, and may take a few hours to be visible again as the IP of the site will be changing (depending on your DNS, going to the site's url may appear to be down as it may temporarily point to the same IP)

I'll have more specific info once I know the exact window of time the site will be down (within the next 24 hours I'll have that info). We are taking steps ahead of time to ensure that the downtime is minimal.

Thanks in advance for your patience - this new feature will be worth it, trust me! :) (launching soon)

If you <3 Anime-Planet and would like to help us continue to build awesome features by donating, here's the link to do so. Adding the second server will cost another $200ish a month, so anything you can donate at any time helps. All $ donated to Anime-Planet is used for server costs or development.
 
Hmm, reducing the DNS TTL in advance seems like a good way to prevent DNS caching that will cause downtime. After the change takes place it can be increased to normal again. Assuming you have control of master DNS record.
 
That's awesome Sothis.

I'll keep donating. Where ever I can help :)

I bet Kenaniah is happy as a pig in shit ;)
 
charlie2alpha said:
Hmm, reducing the DNS TTL in advance seems like a good way to prevent DNS caching that will cause downtime. After the change takes place it can be increased to normal again. Assuming you have control of master DNS record.
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exactly what we planned on doing ^_^
 
Still waiting on the exact window but it's now looking like this might happen TODAY - stay tuned
 
Wicked sweet!!

With the second server working on the site, it will solve a lot of problems, especially with logging into the site.
 
tonycassidy said:
Wicked sweet!!

With the second server working on the site, it will solve a lot of problems, especially with logging into the site.
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o_O huh?

the second server isn't solving anything happening now - we're relatively lag free and there isn't anything broken that i know of. the second server's role will be to support the new, much better site activity feed coming out.
 
Server will be going down any minute now - please let friends/others know about the downtime if they get concerned. Should take a few hours at most to actually move the server, and depending on how fast your DNS propagates, it may be a bit longer before you can see the site again.

thanks for your patience!
 
Seems the transition happened when I was asleep xD.

At first look, the news applet in the front page to lower right seems broken, didn't have the time to observe anything else yet.

EDIT: That one is fixed.
 
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I just fixed the news. The original AP server literally moved racks and changed IP addresses. For those not so technically oriented, we snuck up behind it with a rag filled with chloroform, put it to sleep, and moved it. Anime-Planet then woke up in an unknown location with a slight headache. Now fully accustomed to the surroundings, both servers are ready to rock.
 
Hey ken, do you have any idea why the front page redirects to a "default page" page, while everything else on the site works normally?

...Strangely, while https://www.anime-planet.com/ redirects to the default page thing, https://www.anime-planet.com/index.php works properly. I could see a DNS issue making the entire site redirect to weird pages, but a DNS issue shouldn't affect some pages differently than others, when all are on the same site.
 
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Drahken said:
Hey ken, do you have any idea why the front page redirects to a "default page" page, while everything else on the site works normally?

...Strangely, while Anime Recommendations, Reviews, Manga and More! | Anime-Planet redirects to the default page thing, Anime Recommendations, Reviews, Manga and More! | Anime-Planet works properly. I could see a DNS issue making the entire site redirect to weird pages, but a DNS issue shouldn't affect some pages differently than others, when all are on the same site.
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Works fine here.

LOL, I had to edit my hosts file in my netbook I keep in my workplace, ISP DNS not updated yet. Found the IP from my home linux server which uses it's own DNS server.
 
the server shouldnt be any different actually, we havent made any modifications, it was just physically moved. now the second server is set up next to it so we can get user activity out the door soon ^^
 
I'm curious to see what was implemented and how, I remember an MSN conference once, we were discussing the various options.
 
nothing was implemented yet, literally all we did was move the first server into a different rack with a new second server, and set up a private net. user activity isnt up yet.
 
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