2023 Recap
Wrapping up this year. New releases, features, maintenance, downtime, and everything else - all in one issue.
📅 Published January 1st, 2023 by Faisal N
Websites Made
Matrix Network
VistaCloud
Updates
Groups and Subaccounts
Groups and Subaccounts are now visible on the Portal! Mandatory groups of up to 10 share services and have shared limits. As the owner of the group, you can create and manage Subaccounts for your friends, colleagues, or clients.
Domain Change
We changed our domain from dangoweb.xyz to dangoweb.com due to conflicts with our old provider. This created many extensive outages which impacted all of our products.
24/7 Policy
A 23/7 Policy for almost no downtime was drafted, and with the DangoID Database migration, it was put into place. It will be officially published next month.
Quick Start
We made a Quick Start guide explaining how to get started using Dango Web Solutions. It explains how to sign up, log in, order a product, create a website, and more. It’s available here.
New Dango Portal
The Portal saw numerous fatal errors after migration to our new provider, and we saw fit to transform the Portal into a fast web app instead of a bulky WordPress installation. Databases and DangoID SSO were added. All orders and user accounts have been migrated, and orders can be found in their MyDangoID account dashboard. We reset all passwords, please contact support to set a new password immediately. This downtime has lasted for over a month, and we are actively working to restore the previous user experience.
Beta Channel
As we start rolling out new products and features throughout the year, the first ones to get access will be our beta testers. With exclusive access to pre-releases and development versions of our homepage, Portal, and API, they’ll help us grow by pointing out flaws and sections we can improve upon before pushing them out to the public. The Beta Tester role is now available to pick up on our Discord server.
New Homepage Design
New Homepage Design
We created and developed a new homepage design! The new design features new layouts on all sections and is more accessible than the old website design as it does not have multiple sliding sections. The design is shown in the image above.
No More CAPTCHAs
We have decided to remove CAPTCHA and bot protection from our Discord server, as these have been automatically implemented by Discord’s new security and CAPTCHA requirements. Additionally, all new users will be auto-verified upon joining the server.
Free Reseller Removed
As an effort to make money, we have removed the option to purchase Free Reseller Web Hosting. If you had a reseller DangoID account with us, it has been downgraded to a customer account.
New DangoAPI Endpoints
In favor of the newly added /discord/server/{guild_id}/members and /discord/server/{guild_id}/members/online endpoints showing members in a guild, the below endpoints have moved.
/discord/server/{guild_id}/members ➡️ /discord/server/{guild_id}/members/count
/discord/server/{guild_id}/members/online ➡️ /discord/server/{guild_id}/members/count/online
We also introduced new Discord guild channel and channel messages endpoints.
/discord/server/{guild_id}/channels — Fetch the channels in your Discord Server.
/discord/server/{guild_id}/channels/{channel_id} — Fetch a specific channel in your Discord Server.
/discord/server/{guild_id}/channels/{channel_id}/messages — Fetch a specific channel in your Discord Server’s messages.
Read more at the DangoAPI documentation: /dangoapi/endpoints#server-channels
Password Resets
Users can now request a password reset via email if they ever get locked out of their DangoID account. This is to ensure privacy and that no passwords are sent over chats to staff. Password resets are now available on MyDangoID.
Longer Session Duration
Tired of re-entering your login details on Dango Portal or MyDangoID too frequently? We’ve changed the session expiration time from 10 minutes to 1 day, allowing you to place your order or manage your account in peace.
.ga & .ml TLD Shutdown
Freenom has announced that they are shutting down the .ga TLD. Below are the details from InfinityFree.
If you are using using a .ga domain, you may notice that the domain is down right now. The reason for this is that ANINF, the National Agency for Digital Infrastructure and Frequencies of the Gabonese Republic, is reclaiming ownership of the .ga extension and will be managed by the French registry Afnic. They have said “As part of this switch-over operation, several million domain names will be deleted as the previous operator has not provided the data that concern them.” The statement seems to imply that ALL registrations have been dropped, including all free registrations. The statement makes it clear that they have no intent to allow free registrations again, and instead want to focus on customers who want to use the domains in relation to Gabon. Registration services will be resumed at some point and the domains will be available for anyone to purchase. In other words: all free .ga domains are gone and you won’t get them back (unless you buy the domain, presumably).
- InfinityFree owner, modified.
Soon after, Freenom shut down the .ml TLD unannounced.
While new free domains cannot be registered, if you have any existing ones, they can still be used as normal. It is important to note that Freenom does not have automatic domain renewal. As such, if you fail to renew your free domain two weeks before it expires, it will be seized from you, and potentially lost forever.
There is absolutely nothing we can do, please use a free subdomain from us or buy a domain through us to transfer all data. As Freenom is no longer accepting new domain registrations, you cannot register a new domain either.
Websites Affected
Due to this, many of our and our clients’ websites have shut down. If you have registered a .ga domain through us, you have been contacted. Concerning our websites, DangoAPI, SoarCDN, The Dango Group, and more have been deleted. DangoAPI (dangoapi.ga) has been moved to api.dangoweb.com, SoarCDN (soarcdn.ga) has been moved to cdn.dangoweb.com, The Dango Group (thedangogroup.ga) has been moved to org.dangoweb.com, DWS NFT Network (dws-net.ga) has been moved to net.dangoweb.com, and Chat Pivot (chat-pivot.ga, deprecated) has been moved to chat-pivot.dangoweb.com.
DirectAdmin Access Point Change
The DirectAdmin panel has been moved from portal.dangoweb.com to da.dangoweb.com to protect the Portal from DDoS Attacks. This affects all APIs, email accounts, FTP users, and anything using portal.dangoweb.com.
Crown Subdomains EOL
We have shut down all subdomains owned by Crown Subdomains and we only offer .served.tk/gq subdomains.
CMS
CMSes for new websites created will be available soon. We’ve been working hard to add CMS support to websites we make to give website owners the freedom to edit their own website after the developers make the base site. Through the CMS, you’ll be able to edit every part of your site on all your devices, whenever. It supports basic sites, blog articles, stores, and everything in between. Available for a fee only on paid websites with a backend using our hosting. Interested in beta? Join our Beta Channel on our Discord server for early access. Our homepage and the Portal have successfully been migrated to the new CMS. We are now (hopefully) immune to future DDoS attacks.
Domain Reseller
As there has been absolutely no interest in our Unlimited Domain Reseller product, we have taken it off the Portal and are no longer selling it. We may bring it back in the future if there is interest.
ConjureUp Update
ConjureUp (Beta) will redirect to our CMS, which offers the same features as it would have. Instead of outputting code, it connects to CMS and requires a paid plan. It will not “revolutionize” the work of web developers as planned. ConjureUp (Beta) will be available soon as it needs no real development.
No More Venmo
We no longer accept Venmo as a payment method. We have had a lot of issues with Venmo in the past, and we have decided to stop accepting it as a payment method. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
Domain Price Increase
.com and .xyz domains are increasing in price globally by +14%. If you currently have a .com or .xyz domain registered with us, we encourage you to secure your current low price for future years by creating a ticket. New users can also secure the low price before it disappears for good.
Backup Nameservers
We have ran into issues with our normal and enterprise nameservers registering on some domain registrars, such as GoDaddy and Namecheap. Our backup nameservers, which have the fix implemented, have been created as ns1.dangoweb.faisaln.com & ns2.dangoweb.faisaln.com in case your domain registrar does not accept our normal or enterprise nameservers.
Partnership with Erebus Hosting
We have partnered with Erebus Hosting to provide you with affordable game and bot hosting. Erebus Hosting is a game hosting company that provides affordable game hosting for Minecraft, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Ark: Survival Evolved, Insurgency, Garrys Mod, Team Fortress 2, Rust, GTA San Andreas Multiplayer, and more, as well as bot hosting with support for Node.js and Python bots. You can visit their website at erebushosting.com.
IP Change
Our IP has changed to 54.39.115.224. This has been done automatically for users using our CNAME record or nameservers; no action is required. For everyone else, your domain must be pointing to the new IP for your site to resolve. Resellers, make sure to change the IP for yourself and all clients.
Custom Nameservers
Resellers now have access to custom nameservers. They can make up to 4 custom nameservers for their clients to use. By default, all users use our default nameservers.
Free Bot Hosting Account Deletion
All previous DirectAdmin accounts using our old Free Bot Hosting plan have been deleted as we have recently introduced Paid Bot Hosting using a proper bot hosting panel, Pterodactyl.
Increased Performance
A large amount of code in the Portal and MyDangoID frontend has been moved to the backend to increase performance. Users will see a significant increase in performance the next time they log in.
Log in with Discord & Github
We have added the ability to log in or sign up for DangoID with your existing Github or Discord account, in addition to username/password and Telegram. On MyDangoID account creation your account will be marked as Staff if you have a staff role in our Discord server or if you have access to our Github organization. Logging in with Github and Discord are passwordless options, meaning that we do not store your encrypted password - everything goes through them. Google Account login is coming soon.
Partner Merge
Our good partner, Erebus Hosting, has decided to merge with Dango Web Solutions. Erebus Hosting has offered cheap Bot and Game Hosting for our clients as well as theirs, however, they realized that the journey to becoming a web host is long, and have decided to merge with us. We welcome Erebus Hosting and its clients, and we will match all prices for customers.
New Portal Theme
We’ve released our new Portal theme! With new backgrounds, designs, and features the Portal is looking sharp. Minor fixes will be published over the coming week. Take a look for yourself over at https://portal.dangoweb.com/!
New Dango Portal - Homepage
New Dango Portal - Newest Arrivals
New Dango Portal - Product Page
New Dango Portal - Footer
New Dango Portal - Search
Rate Limits
We have introduced rate limiting to our entire ecosystem, which will drastically reduce the impact of future DDoS, DoS, and similar attacks. Rate limiting applies to everything, including requests to our IP and DangoAPI. The new rate limit is generous, abusing our systems will get your IP automatically banned. If rate limiting is the reason your connection to the CMS is failing, create a ticket so we can whitelist your website.
Reviews Moving to Trustpilot
We’re requesting all new reviews be made on Trustpilot over at https://www.trustpilot.com/review/dangoweb.com instead of on our reviews channel on Discord. All reviews will end up displayed on our website, but it builds our needed reputation in the web hosting and website creation industry.
New CMS Theme
We upgraded our CMS theme! Enjoy a new glassy view while managing your website - available now.
New CMS Theme - Dark Mode
New CMS Theme - Light Mode
Server Upgrades
Database Migration
We moved the DangoID database to DirectAdmin for easier connectivity to the Portal. This migration ended the login with DangoID error on the Portal. We reconnected MyDangoID and DangoAPI to DangoID, and maintenance was completed.
Provider Migration
In the latter part of the month, we migrated to another provider due to conflicts with our old one. Backups were taken, but importing them into the new provider threw errors due to the system using Apache instead of Nginx.
Migration to XenReseller
We have completed migration to XenReseller, which grants us more control over our resellers. With this, web hosting account management will become easier.
Server Migration
Along with new server upgrades, we have updated our IP to 38.46.219.156! Everything has been migrated and nameservers are working again. The new server has improved networking, increased DDoS protection, NVMe SSD storage, and a much more powerful Ryzen CPU. Client sites and files should be served faster and smoother now. Server location has been moved to United States. Check it out!
New Services
cPanel for Resellers
The cPanel Control Panel is now available for new Web Hosting Resellers that sign up through us. Pricing plans will be available on the Portal next month.
Bot & Game Hosting
Bot Hosting has been fixed and it has been added back to the Portal. With our new partnership with Erebus Hosting, we now offer affordable Minecraft, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Ark: Survival Evolved, Insurgency, Garrys Mod, Team Fortress 2, Rust, and GTA San Andreas Multiplayer Game Hosting. Both Bot and Game Hosting are available for purchase on Dango Portal.
Limited Reseller Web Hosting
We have released our limited version of Unlimited Reseller Web Hosting. The plan has been priced at $5/mo and $35/yr, and has lower limits compared to our Unlimited Reseller Web Hosting plan. The account has the ability to resell web hosting user accounts on DirectAdmin. For custom adjustments, create a ticket.
Users = 20
Disk Space = 15 GB
Bandwidth = 15 GB
Email Accounts = 100
Databases = 100
Domains = 20
Subdomains = 50
FTP Accounts = 50
Inode = ∞
Forwarders = 5
Mailing Lists = 5
Autoresponders = 100
Control Panel = DirectAdmin
Check it out here!
Downtime
DDoS Attack
We have suffered a DDoS Attack that has taken down all main websites using the CMS. The attack consisted of repeated requests, using up our plan quota, which resulted in an error for all main sites. User websites, data, and DirectAdmin panel were not affected. A few days later, the attackers pushed with more DDoS attacks, and we shut down the websites and backend for DangoWeb, The Dango Group, and MyDangoID. We have identified the threat as a Level 7 DDoS Attack, and have enabled protection to counter it. We migrated all sites and backend to DirectAdmin, and they are up and running. All sites have recovered as of June 1st, 2023. MyDangoID will start working as soon as the DDoS Attack is finished. The attacker’s public post on the subject is here.
The DDoS Attack re-appeared, causing destruction to our websites yet again. We took 31 DDoS Attacks in 2 hours. The entirety of their presence has served a total of 753.92 million requests.
Client DDoS Attacks
We have experienced hours of downtime this month due to DDoS attacks on clients. Our providers are working on upgrading their servers, and this should be completed by the end of the year. This upgrade should eliminate these issues and boost performance. If nothing changes after our provider upgrades their servers, we’ll switch to our new partner for hosting.
Failed Switch Upgrade
An upstream network issue affecting the entire network has appeared, and we were informed that our server provider was doing a switch upgrade that had failed.
What’s Next?
Domain, Game, and Bot Hosting Reseller
We plan on releasing a Domain Reseller program, which will allow you to resell domains to your clients. We also plan on releasing a Game and Bot Hosting Reseller program, which will allow you to resell Game and Bot Hosting to your clients. Both programs will be available for purchase on the Portal.
Workspaces
Introducing Workspaces, a group account for your DangoID account. Invite your friends, family, or team members to manage websites, web hosting accounts, domains, emails, and more - all from MyDangoID. Of course, this means MyDangoID is getting a makeover with a new design, email invites, pages for each service, and lots, lots more. Included is a preview of the new dashboard design.
Workspaces - Dark Mode
Workspaces - Light Mode
Dango Web Solutions for Education
Educational organizations, upon verifying validity, will receive free Web Hosting Reseller for administration, and free Web Hosting for teachers and students.
- Administration can manage teachers and students, and also can set up a website for themselves.
- Teachers can link a single domain and manage student websites and files, while students have access to their own website under their teacher’s domain.
- Individual students will receive Web Hosting with no limits from teachers.
Contact us to see if you’re eligible. Automatic verification will be available through the MyDangoID dashboard. All plans are limited. Available only in the USA.
Lockdown Mode
Remotely lock pages on your DWS-made website with a password or PIN. This instantly locks pages and restricts access at the frontend, blocking users from seeing the page content. You will able to integrate your own system using DangoAPI, or use the DangoAPI bot for Discord and Telegram to do this remotely. Only the owner or Workspace administrator of the website will be able to use this feature. Available soon for new DWS-made Node.js webapps.
Affiliates & Gold Dangos
Refer users to us, and for every purchase they make on the Portal, you’ll receive Gold Dangos, which, unlike regular Dangos, can be used to buy Domains, Bot Hosting, Game Hosting, and other paid services.
The user must sign up using Discord, Google, or another provider to ensure that the user is not an alternative account. A purchase must be made in the first 2 days of account creation and they must have entered your affiliate code beforehand.
Users are only allowed to enter one affiliate code each, and purchases made for MyDangoID Workspaces are not counted. Gold Dangos may be shared within MyDangoID Workspaces.
You may manage your invite links, affiliate codes, and Gold Dangos from your Affiliate Dashboard. Gold Dangos will not be attainable through events and giveaways. The Domain Reseller program will also be a way to gain Gold Dangos.
Game Hosting Planned Shutdown
Due to the number of members who have purchased Game Hosting, we may shut it down to drastically cut costs. Bot Hosting will still be available but at reduced specifications, as nobody has bought that either. If anyone plans on buying Game Hosting or Bot Hosting, please do it before we shut Game Hosting down. Thank you.
WHMCS DangoAPI Endpoints
We plan on adding WHMCS integration to DangoAPI so products and key management can be used through the API you already use.
Portal Revamp
We plan on revamping the Portal. The new version will have better product pages, commissions, invoicing, and ticketing.
Portal Revamp