Before I put real money in, I want to verify platform stability and server quality, not just rely on marketing claims. I can run a week on demo and a few micro live trades, but I would like a checklist.
What specific tests do you run on MT4 or MT5? Ideas I have: continuous ping to the trading server, watch Journal and Experts logs for disconnects or trade context busy, send market and pending orders during quiet hours, rollover, and a news release, compare fills across two brokers side by side, and keep screenshots and timestamps.
What tools or scripts do you recommend, and what would you consider an acceptable result to greenlight funding?
Journal errors and ping spikes mean unstable server.
Three checks: connectivity, execution, and stability under load. Run a continuous ping to the server for a week and log packet loss and spikes. In MT4 or MT5, script ten micro market orders per hour, plus a few pending orders around spread changes. Record request time and fill time from the Journal. Note off quotes, trade context busy, and disconnections. Compare on a VPS near the broker and on your home line. If loss stays under one percent and fills stay consistent, I fund.
I look for clean logs.
No off quotes, no trade context busy, and no random disconnects for a few days. Place small orders at rollover and once during news to see behavior.
Demo can look perfect. Do one week live with 0.01 lots. You will see real fills and rejections.
I run two platforms side by side on the same VPS and timestamp every trade with a script. If one broker shows frequent requotes or big slippage when the other stays normal, I pass. Also watch disconnections per day and max spread during rollover. Over five days you should see near zero drops and steady fills. A small live test is worth more than any sales page.