Here’s an interesting exchange with a trader named Angel R. (name used with permission) about using a local trading computer or a remote VPS (virtual private server).
Angel’s situation seems like a slam dunk for using a VPS.
Angel R:
Congratulations on the first year of the podcast!
The episode of Line Your Own Pockets was very interesting about trading when traveling.
I was not familiar with Chrome Remote Desktop, I like to use Anydesk to access my trading computer at home, but I think that the connection with Teamviewer is too slow.
But I am wondering, what do you think about a VPS for running IB Gateway (from IBKR) remotely? I am considering it to have a stable network (avoiding connection and power issues at home), and also to reduce latency on IB servers (I am living in Panamá).
I imagine I will need to access the VPS every morning to log into IB Gateway and run my scripts.
Dave:
When you have a questionable internet connection, I think it makes a lot of sense to use a VPS and the IB Gateway or TWS.
Are you considering the IB Gateway for performance reasons?
Angel R:
Yes, I am testing IB Gateway for better performance. The worst-case scenario I’ve seen with TWS is an 11-second delay when placing an order (I am a day trader), which can be quite long, but with IB Gateway, orders are placed fairly quickly (about 1 second).
Dave:
The IB Gateway is a headless version of TWS – basically just a local endpoint that exposes the IBKR API in the most efficient way.
I knew it had lower overhead than the full-blown TWS, but I didn’t realize the performance difference was that dramatic!
In this case, the benefit of a VPS seems overwhelmingly worth the cost.
I’m curious, are other IBKR traders using the IB Gateway rather than TWS?
Reply and let me know.
-Dave
P.S. Have a great Labor Day weekend!
