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Home > Cloud Hosting > Hosting Network/Hardware Requirements

Cloud Hosting - Network / Hardware Requirements


Cloud hosting will only be as reliable as your internet connection. If your internet connection is lost, you will also lose access to the hosted software.

You should consult your IT professional to determine if multiple internet providers should be used to provide redundancy.

 

  Due to malicious use, we've had to block access from the following sources. You will not be able to access our hosted servers from these sources:

 

Computers

  • You should have an antivirus application running on your computers. 

  • Only Windows 10 or newer is supported. 

  • Any computer purchased with Windows 10 or newer will be adequate to handle the requirements of our hosted application. 

  • Keep your computers up to date with the latest Windows updates.

Tablets

  • Windows based tablets are preferred because they work seamlessly with our Cloud Launcher and printers are just as easy to configure as with a PC. 
  • iPads and Android devices can work as long as the Remote Desktop app you're using supports Microsoft RemoteApp, also known as a Workspace.
    • For security reasons only RemoteApp and Workspace are supported.
    • We offer very limited support for non-Windows devices and most configuration is up to you. Printing may not be supported on these devices.

Printers

  • All receipt printers (Epson, Star, etc.) should use the Generic/Text Only driver when possible.
  1. Install the printers using the manufacturer's instructions.
  2. Once it can print a test page, change the driver and print another test page to be sure the Generic/Text Only driver works properly.
  3. After changing the driver to Generic/Text Only, be sure to log out of the Execu/Tech software and then log back in. This will cause the server to load the printer with the new driver.
  • We recommend Epson TM-T88 IV or newer printers, but any printer meeting these requirements will work:
  1. Preferred to work with the Generic/Text Only driver in a Remote Desktop Services environment.
  2. Must use Epson or Star compatible commands (this allows paper cuts, font changes, cash drawer opening, etc.)

  • Every printer that a computer needs to print to must be installed on that computer and tested with a Windows Test Page.

  • Laser and Ink Jet printers can't be used to print receipts from our Point of Sale application in a hosted environment, due to special codes sent to facilitate specialized printing.

Network / Internet

  • Firewall

    1. Please provide us with your PUBLIC IPv4 IP Address information.

      Contact your Internet Service Provider for each remote location that needs access, and ask for the p\Public IP address(es), IP address range, etc., that each remote location will use. We need to whitelist these addresses to provide better security for your data and ensure uninterrupted access to the hosted software.

      Click here to see your current public IP address

      Failure to provide this information to us may result in restricted access if a user attempts to log in with incorrect usernames or passwords. A single user repeatedly attempting to log in with incorrect credentials can restrict access to the entire property. The only way to prevent this is to provide your public IP address for whitelisting. Never attempt to use credentials that Execu/Tech didn't provide.

    2. Once the cloud server is created, we will provide you with the URL, IP ddress and Ports that should be opened on your own firewall. We don't know the URL or IP address until the server is created. We don't know all of the ports used until we know all interfaces needed. 

      • Shift4 EMV will require a static public IP address and a TCP/IP connection between the cloud server and the computers on your local network running Shift4's UTG. Depending on the configuration, multiple ports may be required to be open and forwarded to the PIN Pads. These ports can be modified to fit your needs.
        Shift4 EMV

      • Device interfaces (Phone, Key, etc.) will require a static public IP address and a TCP/IP connection from the cloud server to an application running on your local network.
        Comtrol® Network Requirements

  • Reliability and Consistency

    Fast internet can still be unreliable if it drops, even for a few seconds. While this won't usually be noticeable if you're watching videos or downloading, it will cause a problem for cloud hosting. If the connection is lost for 10 seconds, that's 10 seconds that the application will freeze. Your mouse clicks and keyboard input will freeze, and this can cause frustration. You should consult your IT professional to determine if multiple internet providers should be used to provide redundancy.

  • Bandwidth Requirements

    To ensure optimum performance for all users, we recommend 128 kb per second download and 56 kb per second upload for each user. This means that if you have 10 users logged in at the same time, you should have at least 1.28 Mb per second download and 560 kb per second upload. This example represents a small fraction of the bandwidth provided with high speed internet services but you should still verify with your internet service provider to be sure your internet service plan is adequate.

    Latency (ping) is also a factor to be considered. Latency is the length of time it takes for data to travel to the hosted server and return to you. If your latency is 100ms, that means it takes a minimum of 1/10th of a second for you to see the results of your mouse click on a button. 

    Test your Bandwidth by using this link. You should perform this test on all computers that will run the Cloud Hosted Software.

    Cloud Hosting Bandwidth Test

    This Bandwidth test is hosted on one of our cloud servers and will show you the speed between your computers and our cloud servers. 
  • Interfaces

    You will need a static IP address at your property if you want to interface with things like a phone system, movie and entertainment system, POS system, etc.

    This is necessary because we use Comtrol's LLPTS service to facilitate our interfaces. This service will be installed at your property and communicate with each of these systems. Our cloud server will also communicate with this service and exchange information with it like guest check ins, room moves, wake up calls, phone call charges, etc. 

    We will provide you with the port number used by Comtrol's LLPTS service once it's installed. This port number can be changed if needed.





Article ID
 cloud_hosting_network___hardware_requirements
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Last Modified
 5/28/2024 9:37 AM