Once you start to get serious about using Expert Advisors as a part of your trading strategy you will probably want to consider making use of a Forex VPS.
A Forex VPS (Virtual Private Server) acts as a virtual computer and runs on the providers hosted server. This dedicated environment allows you to run your MetaTrader Expert Advisors with uninterrupted service, twenty four hours a day.
There is no more worrying about leaving your personal computer switched on, hardware crashes or even a dropped Internet connection stopping your systems from trading.
Most providers will offer a guarantee of at least 99.5% up-time so you can be assured continuity of service. Updates or upgrades to the server are generally scheduled to occur out of normal market hours.
This is vitally important as missing trades when running these strategies can often prove to be the difference between making a profit or a loss at the end of the month.
How MetaTrader VPS Hosting Works
The diagram below gives a simple overview of how a Forex VPS Hosting solution works.
When you open an account with a Forex VPS Provider you are given a login and password which you use to access your virtual server via your usual web browser. Once you have logged in you will have access to the server desktop environment. Here you can bring up Metatrader and install or adjust your Forex robot settings as you would normally do on your PC.
Once finished you then simply log out of your account and close down your web browser leaving your robots to run uninterrupted on the server.
Key Benefits
- They provide a solid and reliable platform on which you can run your Automated Forex trading software
- Your software can be left to run uninterrupted, twenty four/ seven
- Hosted servers are constantly monitored to ensure ‘uptime’; this ensures continuity of operation
- You can run multiple instances of MetaTrader on your account allowing you to run as many Expert Advisors as you want
- You can access your VPS easily from anywhere that you can gain access to the Internet
- MetaTrader hosting gives you control, security and flexibility for you trading
In using a Forex VPS you are providing yourself with both a secure and reliable environment to run your automated trading software.
While hosted servers are nothing new, using a dedicated Forex hosting provider will mean that your hosted environment will already be setup and optimised for Forex trading.
You will normally find the MetaTrader platform installed for you, so all you need to do is enter your broker’s login details to be up and running.
A further benefit of using a dedicated provider is that they will also be more familiar with the needs of the Forex trader and therefore should be better able to resolve any problems you may encounter.
Recommended MetaTrader Hosting Providers
Here we give our recommendations on the best Forex VPS Hosting providers that we have made use of. There are of course countless providers on the market offering anything from basic server access to specific ‘Forex’ tailored packages (i.e. MetaTrader pre installed).
We can personally vouch for the providers below which have all been used by us at some stage. We are happy to report we have had no real issues with any of them. Access, reliability and speed have all been good and where we have had support requests, they have been dealt with efficiently and crucially without interruption to service.
Any of the providers below would make a potentially good home for your Expert Advisors. Therefore short of giving an out and out recommendation, you will want to select the package that best matches your requirements.
Points to consider will be your level of IT proficiency, your requirement for a Windows or Linux based VPS and of course the physical location of your VPS. You need to make sure that your VPS is situtated as close to your broker as possible in order to reduce latency (communication time with the broker).
Finally think of how many systems you intend on running. The most basic packages will allow you to run a handful of Expert Advisors comfortably which will be enough for most users. However if you find yourself wanting to run more then it is useful to know that you will be able to upgrade your package at a later stage if you need to.
- Windows Server and Linux server solutions available
- Choose US or UK server hosting location
- Free support installation and assistance
- Wide range of competitive hosting plans
- Monthly or upfront discounted fees
- 30 day money back guarantee
- Visit www.SWVPS.com
- Broker/EA Independent – Use with Any Broker or EA
- Choose US or UK server hosting location
- Pre-installed MetaTrader trading platform
- Free support installation and assistance
- 3 Enterprise VPS Plans available
- 30 day money back guarantee
- www.ForexVPS.com
- Web based MetaTrader management (Unix/Linus platform)
- Supports Metatrader on Mac OS, Windows and iPhone
- Pre-installed MetaTrader trading platform (Broker/EA Independent)
- Support for multiple operating systems
- 24/7 monitoring of servers providing 99.99% up-time
- 60 day money back guarantee
- www.ForexHoster.com
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