Client Not Providing Access

[sunny_kat]

I hsve a client who is not ready to provide me the access to the FTP and the CMS details.

The complete website runs on database and The CMS does not seams to allow changes to be made on meta elements.

How can i move further with the same?

Help!

[sunny_kat]

Common

Help Guys!

[willybfriendly]

If the client is unwilling to work with you, then why are you willing to work with the client?

WBF

[sunny_kat]

He is willing to work with us and has paid us also.

The only problem is that he is not able to provide is the access to the website..

[GaryK]

I hsve a client who is not ready to provide me the access to the FTP and the CMS details.

The only problem is that he is not able to provide is the access to the website..

If he's not ready then what are the repercussions to your business if you've already been paid? If there are none then a polite letter to the client informing them you'll be available to work on the site when they're prepared to move forward might suffice.

If he's not able then perhaps alternate arrangements can be made such as moving to a new host.

Honestly it's hard to offer advice when there's so little to go on. :)

[vincevincevince]

It may be that he has purchased the service as an 'all in hosted solution' from a third party. I have have a couple of potential clients like that in the past. They want to do SEO, they know their SEO is awful, but they can't actually change anything. The service providers will never let you into the server - they regard the code as proprietary.

[sonjay]

Can't is one thing, won't is another. Which is it?

As to what vincevincevince said, that could be the case. I've had several clients come to me with "solutions" like that, and I told them straight out they had to change hosts -- which typically entails completely re-developing their site from scratch, as the "solution" is based on the "solution" provider's proprietary design, proprietary content, and proprietary CMS. After you take away all that, you're lucky if the client is left with ownership of the domain.

[jtara]

See if they can provide you with the CONTENT and a copy of the CMS (if it isn't a free, open-source CMS). Install on your own server and make the changes. When the changes are approved by the client, they can be migrated to their server.

At the time of approval, the bulk of payment should be due, regardless of whether they ever provide access to their server.

Really, you were going to do this LIVE?

[sunny_kat]

I have asked him to create a development server where we can make changes.

:)

[cmarshall]

I have asked him to create a development server where we can make changes.

This should be a standard best practice anyway. I usually have two levels of sandbox: One on my laptop, and another on the same server as the deployed version, with an independent DB.

Some CMS systems (Like WordPress 2.1) make it difficult to sandbox, because they can have many references to the server in their DB, and you have to slog through it and change the URI to your sandbox.

Other CMS systems can make it easy to slip a little extra code into their config header to detect whether or not you are in a sandbox, and change the URI accordingly.

I am looking at my WordPress installation now, to see if I can make it easier to adjust the embedded URIs.