Platforms & tools
Trading VPS setup: reconnecting and recovering after a restart
A reachable VPS desktop does not prove your trading platform is connected or your strategies are running. Check the Windows session, trading connection and account state separately.
Disconnect, sign out and restart do different things
Closing a remote-desktop connection is different from signing out of Windows. A disconnected Windows session can keep its applications running; signing out ends the processes in that session. Ask your VPS provider whether disconnected sessions have a time limit before relying on unattended operation.
This describes Windows applications. A server-side copier has its own controls and may continue after the trading screen closes.
| What happened | What to check |
|---|---|
| Remote-desktop client disconnected | Reconnect to the same Windows session and inspect the running platform. |
| Windows user signed out | Applications in that session ended. Reopen the required software and check the trading connection. |
| VPS restarted | Verify which applications started again. A saved workspace is not proof that a strategy is enabled. |
Sources: Microsoft: disconnecting a Windows session · Microsoft: signing out ends session processes · NinjaTrader: strategy connection-loss handling · Boxcar automation and copy-trading rules
Rehearse reconnecting before relying on the VPS
Use the VPS provider's supported remote client and the same Windows user for later reconnects. Set up the trading platform inside that desktop using the firm's account-specific guide. Your VPS login and trading login serve different purposes.
Moving software onto a VPS does not change an evaluation, simulated-funded or live account's permissions. Use each account's current rules for automation, copying and session cutoffs.
- Confirm the expected account, current market data while the market is open, and the status of any strategies or copiers.
- With no open positions or working orders and automation disabled, disconnect only the remote-desktop client, then reconnect. Confirm the same workspace and account are present.
- If the workspace is missing, investigate the session before starting another platform or copier instance.
Sources: Boxcar VPS access guide · Boxcar trading-platform connection guide · Boxcar automation and copy-trading rules · Microsoft: disconnecting a Windows session
Check account and strategy state after an interruption
After a restart or a trading-connection interruption, inspect the account's positions and working orders before enabling automation. Check the trading connection and market-data timestamp as well as the strategy or copier status.
For example, with NinjaTrader's Stop Strategy setting, a NinjaScript strategy stops once a disconnection exceeds the configured delay. In a hypothetical recovery, the platform connection returns, but that strategy remains stopped because this setting takes no action on reconnection.
NinjaTrader also distinguishes a strategy's internally calculated position from the actual account position. If they disagree, follow the platform's start-behavior guidance before resuming. Do not assume a strategy's historical position is an order held in your account.
Sources: NinjaTrader: strategy connection-loss handling · NinjaTrader: strategy position versus account position · Boxcar automation and copy-trading rules
Keep a private recovery copy outside the VPS
For NinjaTrader, create the backup during planned downtime: first finish trading, confirm there are no working orders, and disable automation. Its documented backup procedure requires disconnecting connectivity providers before using Tools > Export > Backup File.
Choose the settings, workspaces, templates and other items you need, save the archive, and check that the file exists. Keep a private copy outside the VPS. NinjaTrader backups can include account settings and license keys, so treat the archive as sensitive.