Automated Trading - Replacing orders
Author: thodder
Creation Date: 3/4/2010 3:59 PM
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thodder

#1
If I run an intraday strategy in Strategy Monitor in auto mode and generate a exit stop order on every bar, the previous order will cancel and a new one will be placed each time the price changes. Is this a true cancel/replace order, or is the previous order being cancelled and a new one placed?

I read the WLP User Guide and I wasn't clear if this was handled as a two step process by WLP, or if a single request was sent to cancel and replace. The reason I'm getting picky is that a few traders in my user group mentioned that they lost their ISP during the day Monday. A single request to cancel and replace would ensure that either my old stop was active or the new stop was active. That is good. If it is done as a two step process to cancel followed by placing the new order, then I have the potential of the cancel getting through but the new stop order failing. That could leave me exposed if the security moved against my position.
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Eugene

#2
On a side note, have you had any experiences with a Dual WAN router? It provides the level of redundancy you're looking for at the cheap.
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Cone

#3
It's sent to the Fidelity backend as a true cancel/replace.

Note!
There's currently an intermittent bug, however, that cancels/replaces orders even if the trigger price of the stop/limit order does not change. It's likely that WLP is doing that, and if it is, those orders may be canceled and then replaced.

There are a few bugs like this one and the one about Alerts not being Auto-Staged/Placed that required constant monitoring for the time being.
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thodder

#4
Thanks Eugene and Cone!

Good to know that the design is a true cancel/replace. Knowing that a protective stop should be active for the day even if I lost my connection is comforting.

I'm more concerned with WLP design than bugs at the moment. The design sounds like what I was hoping for. I have only looked at paper account trading with forward testing using auto mode for intraday strategies. I am not ready to run an intraday strategy against a live account yet. Hopefully any bugs that cancel and place an order instead of a true cancel/replace will be fixed in a future release.

I have not tried a Dual WAN router, but it does sound like something to keep in mind if there are intermittent ISP issues. I still would like to plan for the worst. You can never account for all the possible situations where connectivity is lost to your broker. If you plan for it, then you'll be prepared if it happens.

Btw, I don't believe any one in the group was using WLP in auto mode at the time, so this question is mainly for future reference when constructing strategies. The few that want to use auto mode on intraday strategies are still going through the motions to get the Fidelity approval.
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