How to Use VPS in Forex Trading

The selection of trading tools and technologies is growing. The finance industry borrows many approaches and ideas from other industries, adapting them to its needs. Back in the day, a big choice of trading tools was the prerogative of seasoned traders. Nowadays, any person can get access to a wide pool of trading strategies and techniques. The problem is that traders interested in exploring new trading technologies are few. Most people prefer to stick with familiar tools.

Before reading the article and writing your questions in the comments section, I recommend to watch this video. It’s not long but covers the biggest part of questions on the topic.

This is also true for a technology known as a VPS. Most traders find it too sophisticated and confusing. To some people, even the abbreviation sounds scary!

To debunk some of the common myths about VPS and encourage traders to try out something new, let’s take a closer look at what a VPS is, why traders need it, and how to master it without sweat and tears. This article will provide many useful insights for both traders using automated trading systems and those trading manually.

What is a VPS?

VPS is a virtual private server provided to a remote user for personal use. This is a hosting service that grants access to a wide pool of possibilities.

You’re connecting to a virtual remote computer functioning 24 hours a day. VPS runs on the familiar Windows operating system, so you won’t have any problems working with it. You can perform all standard operations, such as installing an anti-virus or using other software.

VPS features a physical server with a central processor, random access memory, hard drive, operating system, and ports with different configurations. Renting a dedicated physical server has always been costly. Prices for this kind of service start from $100 per month. For your money, you get exclusive access to all the capacities of a server. Dedicated servers are an ideal option for sites that require plenty of power and stability, e.g. high-traffic new websites.

The VPS technology was designed as an affordable alternative to a dedicated server. How does it work? One server is divided into several mini servers. For a reasonable fee, you get access to a part of the capacities of a dedicated server. You get practically the same possibilities as if you were the only owner of the server.

You get access to a remote desktop that functions like your home computer. The major difference is that all your operations are processed on your VPS. It’s as if your system unit were located thousands of miles away from your computer monitor. This is why you may experience tiny delays in your server response.

VPS for Forex traders

For a long time, Forex traders had a very hands-on approach. They performed all operations (analyzed the market, opened/closed positions, etc.)  manually. Along with being very time-consuming, an approach like that required that a trader had a deep knowledge of trading techniques and access to powerful technical resources. Plus, having to monitor charts all the time took a psychological toll on a trader. In recent years, automated trading methods have taken over the trading community by storm. What’s so attractive about automated trading tools? The answer is simple. Beginning traders want to find a hassle-free way to make money, whereas their more experienced counterparts aim to reduce psychological pressure, fix weak spots in their trading strategies, and boost their overall trading performance.

There is one serious drawback of automated systems. To be able to use them, you need to have a trading platform running on your computer. What about the times when you have no access to your computer (e.g., when you’re on vacation) or the Internet (power outage, connection problems)?

VPS technology offers a perfect solution to this problem. Working via a remote computer has all the advantages traders can dream of. Let’s find out what makes a VPS attractive for Forex traders.

1. Equipment.

For a relatively low price, you get access to high-performance capacities that meet and exceed your trading needs.

2. Software.

You get access to a remote computer that allows you to perform a wide range of operations, including automated ones. You can install and use trading platforms and robots as easily as you do on your home computer.

3. 24/7

Out of all advantages, this is probably the most solid one. No person can work around the clock. With a VPS, automated tools will be trading for you 24/7. Now you won’t miss lucrative trading opportunities that occurred in the middle of the night or while you were on vacation. With your trading process fully automated, you’ll be able to take a more relaxed approach and have more time for yourself.

4. Access.

Another important advantage is that you can access your VPS from any computer. All you need to do is to change a few basic settings.

5. Price

If you think about the potential profits from automated trading, a monthly fee for using a VPS doesn’t seem daunting anymore. A VPS can save you lots of time, energy, and nerves.

As you can see, a VPS is a great tool that can take your trading performance to a whole new level. Originally designed for web developers, the VPS technology has been successfully adopted by traders. Trading via VPS has become as easy as working on your home computer.

How to choose the best VPS

If you’re determined to try out this amazing technology, here are some important factors to consider when choosing a VPS.

1. Provider.

A VPS provider is the first thing you should consider. Unfortunately, not all VPS providers are worth dealing with. Be aware that there are plenty of dishonest companies that are after your money. Be careful with brokerage companies that provide VPS services. First, they may prevent you from installing and using competitive trading platforms. Plus, now that it has access to your equipment, a fraudulent broker may use unlawful methods to draw money out of your pocket. As for young companies with lower prices, they often lack the necessary expertise and resources. You may end up with subpar customer service, constant freezes, and connection problems.

We recommend focusing on providers who have been in the market for at least 6 months. If a company is serious about improving its performance, it will use this time to optimize its processes and correct annoying bugs. When choosing a VPS provider, ask your fellow traders for advice or browse through user reviews online. High-profile companies value their clients and work hard to keep them happy.

2. VPS parameters.

If you have nothing to do with web development professionally, the parameters of a VPS server are rocket science to you. Luckily, you don’t need to learn all ins and outs of server operation. Knowing a few key parameters will be enough.

• Operating system.

Many traders tend to overlook the importance of this parameter. Your selected server must run on Windows. Otherwise, you won’t be able to install your trading platform and advisor. It doesn’t matter whether the Windows on your VPS was released in 2002 or 2008 or whether it’s an x32-bit or x64-bit version.

• Processor.

Metaphorically speaking, a processor is the heart and soul of your server. As mentioned earlier, you won’t be using an entire processor but a pre-determined part of its capacities. It’s extremely important to choose the right plan to enable stable operation of your operating system, trading platform, and trading advisors. Usually, a basic plan with a frequency of 400 MHz can fully cover the needs of one MetaTrader platform and advisors. If you’re planning to use several trading platforms at the same time, be sure to take the processor issue seriously.

• RAM.

The choice of RAM is closely related to the choice of a processor. The more trading platforms you’re going to use, the more RAM you’ll need. Anyway, 256 Mb is your must-have level.

• Hard drive.

While you don’t need hundreds of gigabytes, you still need to have enough space on your server to ensure a fully-fledged operation. A couple of gigabytes will be more than enough to run several trading platforms, advisors, and other trading software.

• Connection.

Here you should pay attention to both incoming and outgoing data communication channels. Your provider must not limit the amount of communicated data. Plus, connection speed must be high enough so that you can comfortably work with both your remote desktop and trading platform.

• Price.

And last but not least. Money issue. If you’re a professional trader with several thousand dollars in your trading account, paying $40 a month for a highly functional VPS won’t make a hole in your budget. If, however, you’re just starting out or simply unwilling to part with your hard-earned money, you can easily find a reliable VPS (for one trading platform) for just $1 a month. At the same time, the average monthly fee for using a VPS server varies from $4 to $8. For $10 and more, you can rent a server with enough capacity for multiple trading platforms.

Now you know the key characteristics to consider when choosing a VPS for Forex trading. To conclude this chapter, here is one more piece of advice: before paying for your selected server, be sure to find out whether it’s available in demo mode. By testing a VPS in demo mode, you’ll be able to get the hang of how it works and choose the right plan.

How to use VPS in Forex trading

Let’s break down how to work with a VPS step by step. Suppose, you registered an account with your selected provider, paid your monthly fee, and received your authentication data to your email or customer area on the website. What’s next?

1. Log in.

For starters, you need to make sure you have all the necessary data to log into the system. To connect to your remote desktop, you need to enter your username, IP address (or domain name), and password. Without these data, you won’t be able to access your VPS.

2. Start the application.

As the next step, you need to start the “Connect to remote desktop” application in the “Standard” folder. This is the easiest way to connect to the server.

Then you need to enter your IP address or domain name and click “Connect.” Proceed by entering a password sent to you by your provider. To stay logged in the system, you need to check the “Remember me” box. Then Windows may ask you to enter a password again. If, however, the system has already remembered you, you’ll get directly to your desktop.

3. Desktop.
   That’s it! Now you can use your desktop as you please. You can see three icons – My Computer, My Documents, and Recycle Bin.

For example, you can use Internet Explorer to download a trading platform, advisor or other trading software from the Internet. There is no need to describe the installation and setup process because it’s absolutely the same as on your home computer.

4. Upload files.

You may need to upload a local file to your remote desktop. Of course, you can upload the file to a cloud server, such as Google Drive, but why bother when you can simply drag the file?

To do that, you need to start a program you’re using to connect to your server. Click the “Show parameters” button. In a new window, you’ll see multiple options. Open the “Local resources” tab and click “Show more.”

You’ll see a directory to choose devices and disks from. Select a disk or folder you’ll be using during your session. You can even choose the entire Disk C if you want to. Don’t worry! It won’t affect the way your computer or remote desktop works.

Now you can add any file from Disk C to your remote server. To do that, simply copy the selected file on your computer. Then go to your remote desktop and paste the file. Even a child can do that! Keep in mind, though, that you can only copy the files located on Disk C. To be able to copy files from any folder on your computer, simply check all the disks.

This is all you need to know to effectively use your VPS. As you can see, working with VPS is not as hard as you might’ve thought. You can easily master it in just a couple of minutes.

We recommend that you enable autoload for trading platforms installed on your server. Why? Unfortunately, you can’t fully avoid force majeure situations when a provider has to reload their systems. After such a reload, your trading platforms will start automatically. To enable autoload, simply drag and drop your MetaTrader programs to the “Autoload” folder. This way, you’ll have a fully automated system that won’t require user action even in case of force majeure. To receive updates on your remote server operation, you can use specialized software.

Bottom line

We hope that this article contains enough reasonable arguments to convince traders to switch from manual trading to automated systems. Paired with VPS, automated trading systems can bring your trading performance to a whole new level, allowing you to automate your money-making process.

If you’re already using trading advisors, you must try out a VPS as the next logical step. Ignoring the possibilities of VPS, you’re missing multiple trading opportunities and wasting your time and energy on managing the system that could operate without you. We strongly recommend including a VPS into your trader’s toolbox!