Investigating server errors and how Chinafy can help – Chinafy

Seeing a server error on your Chinafy site? The first step to get help is to identify what the error is.

This article explains the five common server-related errors and ways that you can help:

DDoS mitigation
Bot mitigation
"DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN"
"Your connection is not private"
Other errors "404" & "timeout"

1. DDoS mitigation

What is DDoS Mitigation?

DDoS mitigation is the security protocol that addresses a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack during which a flood of Internet traffic is sent to your infrastructure with the malicious intent to disrupt your site.

This is managed by Chinafy, your developer, & or your CMS provider on a global level (including China). Having DDoS mitigation in place keeps your site secure though in some cases, it can also prevent large but healthy traffic in China from browsing your site.

Is your site down? DDoS protection only temporarily prevents traffic in certain regions from going to your site and your site remains online elsewhere in the interim.

How you can help: Raise the rate of limit/threshold for your DDoS protection or ask your CMS provider to do so on your behalf.

How Chinafy can help: If you're seeing Chinafy's DDoS protection, contact us so we can similarly raise the threshold to allow for more verified traffic.

Shopify's DDoS mitigation looks like this to your visitors -

Chinafy's equivalent

2. Bot mitigation

What is bot mitigation?

Bot mitigation helps filter bot traffic from your visitors often by requiring suspicious visitors to i) verify their "human" status, and ii) temporarily blocking them from viewing the site.

This is managed by Chinafy and your developer on a global level (including China).

Is your site down? No, the bot mitigation only applies to individual users with the site remains functional upon verification.

How you can help: If you'd like to remove the verification step for certain users, ask your developer to whitelist the IP of the specific visitor seeing the reported message.

How Chinafy can help: Share with us your testing environment (device & browser) and IPs if possible so we can explore whitelisting.

Example of bot mitigation

Chinafy's equivalent:

3. "DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN"

What is DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN?

This means the domain you've entered has failed to connect with a web server. This error is a result of DNS lookup failure - so the best place to start troubleshooting is to take a look at your DNS.

How you can help: Make sure your DNS is configured properly as per our suggested settings (more here).

How Chinafy can help: Send us a screenshot of your latest DNS to our support team. We will verify the settings alongside you.

Example of the error on Chrome

Example of the error on Safari

4. "Your connection is not private"

What is "Your connection is not private"?

This happens on your "HTTPS" site when its SSL certificates have expired/are not working as intended. SSL certificates authenticate a website's identity and enable an encrypted connection between your web server and web browser.

How you can help: Visit your site both in China and elsewhere to identify whether the error is regional vs global. If you're seeing the same issue globally, consult your developers. If the error applies only to China, contact Chinafy Support Team.

How Chinafy can help: SSL certificates are renewed on Chinafy automatically. As Chinafy manages the SSL certificates of your Chinafied site, our support includes SSL-related issues that apply to your Chinafied site.

This involves 1) validation, 2) resolution, 3) future recommendations to share with you/your developers for further action on an as-needed basis. The investigation typically completes in 48 hours, if not sooner.

An example on Chrome

An example on Safari

5. Other errors

What are the common ones?

These include "404" and "timeout" errors with root causes varying on a case-by-case basis.

How you can help: Visit our site in China and globally.

If the reported error applies on a global level, kindly consult with your developers.

If the error applies only to China, take a screenshot of what you're seeing to report to the Chinafy Support Team. Kindly make a note of your testing environment (e.g. browser & devices) if possible.

How Chinafy can help: Chinafy support will investigate any reported errors, which involves 1) validation, 2) resolution, 3) future recommendations to share with you/your developers for further action on an as-needed basis.

The investigation typically completes in 48 hours, if not sooner.

None of the above applies?

Contact Chinafy Support Team.