Getting Started With A Forex VPS

This guide will provide you with solutions and ideas of how you can keep your trades running while you are at work or if you simply can't use your computer to manage your trades.

Note: You will be able to run Metatrader 4 (MT4) and any program that runs on Windows through the VPS, using your Apple System. 

Solutions To Potential Trading Problems

You might already be familiar with the following situation: suddenly, your internet doesn't work, and your Metatrader disconnects from your Forex broker. In this case, your positions will stay open without your 'take profit' or "breakeven" orders would no longer exist.  As a consequence, you could potentially suffer from a bigger loss.

Unlike orders in the market, such as take profit or stop-loss orders, an expert advisor is not a fixed order. It needs to be triggered by your price, moving into profit. However, when you set normal take profit or stop-loss orders at the start of a trade, you place them into the market. The broker can see it. It does not matter whether you turn your computer off or interrupt your internet connection. The order is placed and ready to be triggered.

The Potential Problem

As mentioned above, the biggest issue is that when trading using an expert advisor (EA) that runs on auto, you are often required to have your MT4 charts running to adjust orders to break even or lock-in profit. Many factors influence running MT4 charts from a laptop or a computer, and a few of the significant issues that could become a problem, should they not work correctly are:

  • Computer failure
  • Laptop Overheating
  • Internet failure/Outage
  • Electricity outage
  • Wear and tear on computer/laptop – explained below in the solution

Trading with an expert advisor is not just as simple as turning on your computer or laptop and running the indicator.

If you are running a desktop computer, then power is vitally important. Any power cuts will be a significant issue.

Laptops can be prone to overheating with long work-loads. This is something to think about if your computer is not very powerful, and you would like to run the expert advisor on it.

The other tricky part to consider would be the internet connection, which you have no control over at all.

Since 2015, the internet is getting better and better all the time. However, networks often have  15 to 30 minute downtime periods for various reasons, such as technical issues or system upgrades.

Electricity is something that is truly out of your hands, and while outages are rare, they can and do happen. All it takes is a storm or a power line going down, and your house could be out of electricity, which would result in your expert advisor not functioning for a while.

Of course, this is acceptable if you know about it and are there to deal with it.

The Solutions

What are the potential solutions?

There are two solutions to this problem.

You can decide on either solution that you feel fits you best with your trading.

1. Using Your Computer

The first solution is to run your computer 24 hours a day, five days per week, keep the expert advisor working, and ensure that your trades are executed.

This way, you are keeping your MT4 charts live, and your EA will be able to adjust the orders when triggered (move to breakeven or lock in some profit). This is far from an ideal solution, however.

As we just described above, the risk of running MT4 charts on a computer or laptop 24/7 is that your device would get damaged over time.

These are all the issues you will have to think about when using this method.

2.  A Virtual Private Server

We are currently using a Virtual Private Server (VPS).

As we will explain in more depth below, the VPS is doing my computer's job for us. You don't have to worry about having my computer on. You can access your EA from any computer or smartphone anywhere in the world at any time.

Instead of either running your computer or laptop all night, you choose to use someone else's computer hardware. He has a system that is built precisely for the job. He has backup systems in place so that if anything does go wrong, there are other servers to keep my EA up and live in the market.

While your trading laptop is powerful and more than enough for trading, it just does not have enough backup systems in place should anything go wrong. The truth is, it just wasn't built to run 24 hours per day, five days a week.

So, the most crucial question is:

What is a Virtual Private Server or VPS?

Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia, explains a VPS as;

"A VPS runs its copy of an operating system, and customers have super user-level access to that operating system instance, so they can install almost any software that runs on that operating system. For many purposes, they are functionally equivalent to a dedicated physical server and being software defined, are able to be much more easily created and configured."

A VPS is exactly as it sounds. It is a Virtual Private Server that is a computer server you can use for any of your Indicators and EAs you want to use in your trading.

Instead of running them on your computer, you can choose to use a VPS and have it run them.

A beneficial thing about the VPS providers is that the competition is high. So, you can find providers who specialize in Forex and concentrate on helping just people who trade Forex.

This is important because it makes it a lot easier.

Instead of going to a VPS provider, signing up, and just seeing a massive bunch of gobbledygook that makes no sense at all, you can now go to a high-quality VPS provider, as we will describe below.

This makes a massive difference because straight away, the customer support is dealing with Forex traders every day rather than just once in a blue moon like the other providers.

The other important factor is that your native MT4/MT5 is built-in. You know that not only do they work, but the tech team is going to be able to help you with any questions or issues you may have because they are dealing with these charts every single day.

Installation is also a lot simpler because the MT4/MT5 is already pre-built into the VPS. All you have to do is login and add your indicator rather than work out how to install the MT4 platform with an average VPS provider.

Comparisons – Quality VPS Providers

When you compare different Virtual Private Server providers, it is highly essential you are very clear about your demands out of your service and what you are looking for.

With your VPS, you are a Trader, not a web developer.

You do not want to feel like you need a tech developer every time you want to just log in and check on your expert advisors or that I need a qualification in rocket science to set up and install my VPS.

What do you want out of your VPS?

  • Do you want a super high- quality VPS provider that is stable? A provider that supplies good uptime? In other words, one that has a perfect record of their servers staying online?   
  • Do you want to be able to manage easily by yourself without any stress and strain? 
  • Do you want good support that gets back to you fast with the answers you need? Do you want a fair price for your package?

Here are several  examples of the things you may consider in a quality VPS provider: 

  • High Quality Super 
  • Stable VPS 
  • Quality Support Which  Has Experience With Forex Traders
  • Good "Uptime" Record
  • Easy to Install and Manage
  • Built Especially For  Forex Traders

Why Should You Use DigitalForex as Your Forex VPS Provider?

You should use DigitalForex because they are a hosting company that is built, especially for  Forex Traders.

Unlike other hosting companies, where you have to dig around and search for a relation to Forex, the main home page of DigitalForex is all about Forex and the Forex packages.

We offer a stack of value, having 99.9% uptime with their servers, which means my indicators will be live 99.9% of the time. (no one can quote 100%!).

Our customer service is swift and efficient, and our packages are the best value for money compared to others.

As you will see below, when we take you through how easy it is to get started, install, and set up all your indicators with DigitalForex, the best thing is probably that we will do the most challenging part. You contact us. We will install the MetaTrader platform and help you upload your expert advisors, indicators, and other tools.

From there, you can access your VPS from any computer, smartphone iPhone, iPad or tablet, from anywhere in the world at any time.

Some of the Major Benefits of DigitalForex:

•             It works with any Forex Broker

•             It works with any technical indicator or expert advisor

•             It can be accessed from any computer or smartphone/tablet in the world at anytime

•             It comes with a dedicated IP address and full Administrator access

•             It supports Metatrader 4, Metatrader5, NinjaTrader, TradeStation, and any other Forex software.

How to Install A DigitalForex VPS?

Installing and getting set up with a DigitalForex VPS is pretty straightforward and, as mentioned above, self-explanatory. But there are a few tricks and tips that will take you through.

You will receive a welcome email after signing up and making sure that your payment is clear.

This email contains all of your instructions, your username and password, and information about how to log in and access your server.

You will access your server or your Virtual Private Server from what is known as a "Remote Connection."

There is no need for any concern if you are not sure of this because it is pretty simple.

A remote connection allows you to access a computer running Windows from another computer running Windows or MacOS.

This is super-efficient because running it this way means you are then able to check in on your indicator from anywhere in the world, literally at any time from various  devices

You will access the remote connection right off your computer and then treat it as a standard MT4 setup.

There are a few tweaks and differences that I will take you through, but the major principles such as loading the EA, how the EA works, etc., remain precisely the same.

The first step in this process is registration, which is very straightforward, and this will take you through the process of asking you what configuration you want and also if you want to sign up for a longer period, because the longer you sign up for, the cheaper the packages are.

What you need to do at this stage is to decide the size of the package required. If you are only using up to 3 Expert Advisors, then the Greenback VPS will be more than enough.

If you use a scalping EA or a high trading frequency EA, you should order a high-frequency forex VPS. The performance is better, and it is only slightly more expensive.

Select the VPS plan that you are comfortable with to service your expert advisors.



Here you confirm your order and checkout or continue shopping.

If you want, you can also book a regular auto backup. This protects your data and can be restored if necessary.

DDoS protection is also exciting. An extra firewall protects your VPS. The firewall can help in specific smaller attacks, but your server may still be null routed if you are hit with a massive attack. We would suggest purchasing DDOS protection if attacks are a problem for you.

The choice of the VPS location is crucial. It is essential that your VPS is as close as possible to the location of the forex broker. This enables you to achieve the fastest possible connection (latency). We have put together an overview of the most famous brokers. If your broker is not there, we will be happy to help you find the right location.

After signing up, the confirmation and a welcome email will be sent out.

You may need to have a little bit of patience because the VPS needs to be installed, which can take 1 hour or so.

There are separate instructions for connecting to the remote connection for each different operating system and device.

The way you connect to the VPS and use the VPS once it is set up is the same no matter what computer type you are using or using an iPhone. However, there are differences in getting it all setup.

The reason for this is because each device or computer has its software.

For example, the remote desktop connection that is used for people with Windows 7 is not the same as the people that are using their iPhones or Mac.

These people have to go to the App Store and download a remote desktop client that will work with the iPhone/Mac exclusively.

Each connection is shown and explained in the welcome email that you receive.

While each device connection is different, the base method to connect the same for all devices.

The only thing changing is the device being used to connect you to your VPS.

We will show you how to make a remote connection to your VPS If you have Windows 10 on your computer.

To find the Remote Desktop Connection shortcut, click the Windows Start button.


Find in the menu “Windows Accessories” and click on the “Remote Desktop Connection”.

To quickly open Remote Desktop Connection, open the Start menu and then type:´“mstsc” in the search box, which should bring up the “Remote Desktop Connection”. If this does not work, then search for “Remote Desktop Connection”. Click on this to open it.

The Remote Desktop Connection will open, asking you for the “Computer's” name. This is the Forex VPS IP address that DigitalForex has made for you and has been sent out in your welcome email.

Please put this in and click “Connect”. See the image below.


You will then be asked to enter your credentials to log in and confirm your account to connect.

You will have been given these in your welcome email.

Please find these and enter them in the "User" and "Password" fields and then click "OK".

You will then be connected to your VPS account, which is just like being connected to another computer from afar.

How To Use The DigitalForex VPS

As I just mentioned above, using a remote connection, whether you are using it through Windows 10 or an iPhone, is just like using another computer from afar.

You are granted access to your server and can use this to manage your EAs and accounts.

Once logged in with the DigitalForex VPS, it is a  priority to get your MT4 or MT5 account up and running.

As soon as the remote desktop connection starts, you will be taken into a new screen, your new connection to your  Virtual Private Server.

This is running windows and has MT4/MT5 right there for you to access. This works just as your normal PC or Laptop does.

Once again, this is just an ordinary computer connection that you are accessing from afar. So, you can open the  MT4/MT5 simply by clicking on them.

How to Open MT4 & Open A New Account in Your VPS?

This is one part that was not covered anywhere, so please take notes:

Uploading the MetaTrader software to your VPS is relatively easy. You can download the terminal.exe from your broker's website to your home PC, and then you can copy/paste (CTRL +C / CTRL +V) to transfer the file to your VPS.

After executing the terminal.exe, MT4/MT5 will be installed on your VPS. After installation is complete, please click on the "Open an Account" button, which will then bring up a new box, as shown in the image below:

When you have your normal brokers MT4/MT5 charts open, please click the "File" and then the  "Open Account" button.

If you are using Roboforex, for example, i will then open a new box just like the image below:


With this "New Account" box open, you will be able to see the server names. Your name will show up after the company's name.

You only need the start of the server names so that the new MT4/MT5 scanner in the VPS can scan through and find the correct broker.

The problem is that, because these days, there are so many brokers with so many white labels, every man and his dog has their broker, which means there could be a lot to scan through.

Please go back into your VPS and back to the first box that will still be open.

There is a space to enter the name of your broker where you clicked on the green button,

You can either enter the full name or just the start. Enter it in and then click "Scan".

NOTE: If you entered in the full name and for some reason, it did not come up, try just putting in the first part and then re-scanning.

This will then bring up a whole host of possible servers for you to use.

Usually, when you open an account with your broker, they will instruct you on the exact server you should be using, whether it is "Live server 5" etc..

Select the server that you need to use (you can also select a demo server if you need to or open a new demo account) and then click "Next".

After selecting your server, you will be asked to select an account type, whether it is an existing account, a new demo, or a new real account that you want to open.

If you want to open a new demo or real account, you can simply just click on one of the two tick boxes down the bottom and then click finish, but if you want to connect and open your existing account to your normal broker like most Traders will want to do, then click on the "Existing Trade Account" button and enter in your login and password. After you have done this, click "Finish".

How to Install and Use an Expert Advisor on a VPS Remote Connection?

The same base principles apply for installing Expert Advisors (EAs) on the remote connection. Expert Advisors are not indicators, and we need to make sure we put them in the right spot and not in with the indicators. Because we are using a remote connection, there is a slight change in how we are uploading Expert Advisors into their folders.

We will be transferring files from our computer to the Forex VPS Desktop rather than saving them or downloading them. Because we already have the Expert Advisors saved on our computers, we need to transfer them to the Forex VPS. Usually, what you would do is download or save the new Expert Advisor into your MT4/MT5 "Experts" folder, but you can't do that on a remote connection.

You have to transfer the files over into your server, which is pretty simple, and that is what I am going to show you now.

If you have Windows:

To transfer files from your desktop or mobile computer to ForexVPS desktop:

  1. Before you connect to VPS, open your Remote Desktop Connection
  2. Go to Options/Local resources/More
  3. Check (Tick) Local Drives on your desktop or mobile computer where your files are
  4. Click OK.
  5. Once connected to your ForexVPS
  6. Click on Computer in your ForexVPS
  7. You will see under C:\ other drive - the drive C:, D:, etc. of your desktop or mobile computer
  8. Double click and browse your desktop or mobile computer drive C:
  9. Copy and paste your files from your desktop or mobile computer to Forex VPS desktop.

If you have a Mac:

Before you start the Remote Desktop session, make the Mac disks available to the

Windows-based computer.

  1. On the RDC menu, click Preferences
  2. Click Drives and then on the pop-up menu, select the option that you want

Your disk or folder is now available so that you can access files that are on your Mac from the ForexVPS Windows desktop.

If you make this change after you connect, the disk or folder that you select becomes available the next time that you connect.

  1. Connect to your ForexVPS
  2. On the Start menu, click computer
  3. The Mac disk or folder that you have made available is listed with all other disks and folders on your ForexVPS
  4. Note: If you can't see the Start menu, on the View menu, click Full Screen
  5. To return to window mode later, point to the top edge of the screen until the
  6. RDC menu bar appears
  7. On the menu bar, click View, and then clear the Full-Screen check box
  8. Open the disk or folder that you want to copy from
  9. On the Start menu, click computer
  10. Open the disk or folder that you want to copy to
  11. You should now have two windows open, one for the location that you want to copy from and one for the location that you want to copy to.
  12. Drag the document that you want to copy to the location that you want.

Using VPS In Windows

Note: All of the preceding steps will be followed in Forex VPS.

In Windows, now go into your VPS and open up your MT4/MT5 charts. Click "File" and "Open Data Folder".

See the screenshot below for the button I am referring to:

After clicking on "Open Data Folder", it will bring up all the MetaTrader folders of the MetaTrader account that you are working in.

  Here you need to open and save your Expert Advisor (EA). Leave these folders open for the time being.

Go into the spot on your computer where you have the Expert Advisor saved that you want to transfer into your VPS.

For you, that may mean that it is in your MT4 files because when you first received the Expert Advisor, you saved it or downloaded it in your MT4.

If this is the case, then go into your computer's C-Drive or C-Disk, click on "Program Files" and find your brokers folders, for example.

It will often look like this; "MetaTrader 4 – Roboforex".

Note: It will say Roboforex if Roboforex is your broker. If not, the name of your broker will be shown.

Click on "MQL4" and then open up the "Experts" folder to find your Expert Advisor.

If you have your Expert Advisors stored somewhere else other than in your broker's charts, then now is the time to find the one you want to transfer.

In this "Experts" folder of your Forex Broker, you should be able to find all the

Expert Advisors that you are using in your current live broker's charts.

PLEASE NOTE:

These Expert Advisors will often split into two.

This means you will download or save both Expert Advisors, so when you go back into the same "Experts" folder, you will then see two of the same EAs.

They will have the same file name; however, they are not the same as different file types.

One is an EX4 file, and the other is a DLL file. You are to be concerned about both files.

Please find the Expert Advisor you want to transfer over into your Data Folder in VPS.

When you have found it, click on it with your mouse to select it –

Making Sure The 'Expert Advisor' File Is In The 'DLL' And 'EX4' As Per Above.

When the Expert Advisor is selected, using your mouse, right-click and select the "Copy" option to copy the EA.

You can also hold down Ctrl + C, which will copy anything you have selected and a quick short cut.

Anything you can select can be quickly copied using this method.

As we are already in the VPS connection, go back to where you have already opened up the "Data Folder".

Now, we need to get to the right place in the VPS MT4 for you to store this EA, which is precisely the same process as normal, so in your "Data Folder", please click on "EX4" and then the "Experts" folder.

Using your mouse, please right click and select "Paste" to paste the Expert Advisor in the "Experts" folder. You can also hold down Ctrl + V, which will also paste whatever you have just copied.

We also need to now get to the right place in the VPS MT4 for you to store the second EA, which is precisely the same process as normal and above, so in your "Data Folder", please click on "DLL" and then the "Libraries" folder.

Using your mouse, please right click and select "Paste" to paste the Expert Advisor in the "Libraries" folder. You can also hold down Ctrl + V, which will also paste whatever you have just copied.

Finally, to make the Expert Advisor that you have just transferred load and start showing up, you will need to refresh or restart the MT4 just the same as standard MT4.

This does not mean that you have to close the VPS connection; you have to turn the MT4 off and back on again.

Or you can do this by refreshing the Experts Advisors in the "Navigator Tab", or by switching your MT4 off and on and then clicking the windows start button at the bottom left, which will bring up the menu that includes MT4 & MT5, where you can then restart it.

Once you restart your new Expert Advisor, you should be good to go.

To open your EA, just hit the "Navigator" button in your MT4, followed by the "Expert Advisors" tab in the row, which should open the row to show your EA to be available, should you have completed the process correctly and put the EA in the correct spot.

Below you'll see a screenshot of how to 'Refresh' the "Expert Advisors" in the "Navigation" Tab.

Trading in the Forex markets can be tricky and frustrating at times. We need strategies and, most of all, tools that help us both minimize our work-loads and maximize our output.

Just like the Pareto principle or the 80/20 rule where 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes when we are either adding a new indicator to the toolbox or searching for a new one, the reason should not be just to add another tool for the sake of adding a tool; but instead, to be able to have the tools that do the most professional and successful work for you, so that you have to do the least amount of work possible.

If you have any questions about anything you have read or need help, just contact us.

We wish you all the very best in your Trading endeavors!

Yours DigitalForex Team

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