On January 7th, 2019, at approximately 10:00 AM UTC, Bitfinex will be performing a data migration from AWS to private, self-hosted servers, improving platform speed, performance and security.
Both Bitfinex and Ethfinex will be down for up to 7 hours to complete the migration. Account holders will not be able to access their wallets, and all features across both platforms will be offline for the duration of the upgrade.
What does the update entail?
Bitfinex will be switching from AWS cloud to a self-designed infrastructure hosted in a Swiss data centre in the heart of Crypto Valley in a move designed to significantly enhance platform performance, speed and security.
How long will the platforms be down?
Both Bitfinex and Ethfinex will be down for up to 7 hours on January 7th, 2019, starting from approximately 10AM UTC. Exact timings will be disclosed in the days leading up to the data migration via our official Twitter.
How will user funds and wallets be affected?
All funds will remain safe and unaffected throughout the entirety of the migration and will not be at risk at any point throughout the update.
Will this affect users in other ways?
As all features across both Bitfinex and Ethfinex will be down for up to 7 hours, users will not have access to wallets, trading, funding, reports or any other features across both platforms, as well as the mobile app. No orders will be executed during downtime. All open orders will be kept (regardless of price movements) and resume once the platform is back online.
Why are you doing this?
Data migration to private servers is atypical in our space, but is one that we felt was integral to provide a service up to the standard that professional traders are used to in other sectors.
The immediate benefits of the new, private server model will include:
- Improved trading speed & performance
- Access to cross-connectivity & co-location services for traders (The FIX feed or ISP link to Bitfinex’s digital asset gateway is for professional traders and institutional firms. For further information, please contact info@marketsynergy.ch).
- Enhanced platform security
Are users required to do anything?
All accounts will remain unaffected and users are not required to do anything leading up to the migration, including cancelling orders or removing funds from the platform. Please, however, do note that no orders can be submitted, edited or cancelled throughout the downtime on January 7th. We kindly ask all traders to review their margin requirements and assess the risk of market movement on their open margin positions before entering the maintenance window.
Will orders and positions remain open throughout the update?
All orders submitted prior to the start of the downtime will remain open throughout and upon resuming. No orders will be executed during downtime.
What will happen once the migration is complete?
We will update all users via Twitter once the data migration is nearing completion. Once the migration is complete, the platform will open in ‘view-only’ mode for 5 minutes, at which point all trading will resume as normal.
Will I be at risk of liquidation during the downtime?
Users will not be liquidated during downtime. However, traders should be aware that if the price moves significantly during this time, they are at risk of liquidation as soon as the platform is reopened and should therefore take the necessary precautions.
What will happen to deposits initiated during planned maintenance?
Any deposits that were pending before, and deposits that arrive during the scheduled maintenance, will be processed soon after the platform comes out of maintenance.
What will happen to withdrawals not completed before the planned maintenance period?
They will be processed as soon as we come out of maintenance.
Why will this take 7 hours?
We appreciate that up to seven hours is a significant length of time in digital asset trading, and we promise we have taken every measure to make this transition as smooth and quick as possible, without compromising on safety or quality. Data migration to private servers is atypical in our industry, modeling traditional stock exchange operations. It has been a considerable undertaking, but one we felt was integral to provide a service up to the standard that professional traders are used to in other sectors.
What will happen on the day?
On the day, users will be met with a holding page whilst the platform is down. All pages on the Bitfinex domain will be inaccessible for users. Our Status Page will log our progress throughout the transition and our customer support team will still be available and unaffected by the downtime should they be required. Users will be alerted 5 minutes before the platform reopens via Twitter, Telegram and our Status Page, and Bitfinex will be in a ‘view-only’ mode for 5 minutes following reopening. All features will resume as normal 5 minutes following this.
How can I stay informed during the update?
Our dedicated support team will be in place to assist with any queries now and in the lead up to the data migration, and all official communications will be shared on Twitter. On the day of the migration, we will regularly update our status page with our progress, and let our users know 5 minutes before the platform re-opens.
We hope you are as excited about this transformative step in our journey as we are and we look forward to embarking on this step with our users.
