Managed hosting provides better access to data and more efficient disaster recovery than office-based IT, it has been claimed. Managed hosting allows an end-user to connect to centrally-based information from wherever they are.
Having it hosted means that you've got that accessibility anywhere and in general you also get better availability and backups. That's the general benefit of getting a hosted service opposed to buying servers and software and sticking it under someone's desk.
When people understand their data, applications and software can be better looked after through managed hosting than they can do themselves, more people in the IT and technology industries will begin working from home.
In January, virtualization is becoming increasingly popular, with 50 per cent of UK businesses using it to cut costs. To know more about Managed hosting services and server virtualization, visit http://www.navisite.com
Source: Google News
Friday, March 13, 2009
Friday, March 6, 2009
Managed Hosting - What You Need to Know
As a small business owner I have been looking into the different types of host packages and services available. I have decided to go for a managed hosting service. Managed hosting refers to a hosting solution for a website where the site is housed and managed on a dedicated secure server. The customer leases a server for their own use and therefore they do not have to share the server with other clients. Having your server has a number of advantages in terms of security and management. Below I have listed the five main areas I feel you need to consider before deciding on your managed hosting provider.
Operating System
One of the major advantages of having a dedicated server is that you can chose which operating system is used to manage and run the server. The operating system depends on personal preference, its worth talking to you web development team and asking them which one is the best for your website. Linux operating systems are often bundled in free with the hosting plan, Microsoft SPLA or other Red Hat systems may require extra payment. You need to ask the hosting provider if the package includes updates to the OS, service packs, patches and software upgrades.
Management
Managed hosting as the name suggests will include a degree of management but there is no industry wide standard to clarify what the management element will contain. For some providers it is having a full team of service engineers waiting to sort out any issues that arise for other it is simply having a control panel that you can access yourself. Depending on your own experience and skills in website hosting you need to ensure that the service level won't leave you in a blind panic if something goes wrong. Managed hosting is normally set at three different service levels:
Self Managed - This is the basic or bronze level package that would include some maintenance and updating but customers manage most of the services themselves.
Managed - The next level up, the silver level package would normally contain monitoring, updates and limited levels of support.
Fully Managed - The gold standard of management hosting. A fully managed service should be like having your own IT department. You should get monitoring, reboots, security, OS upgrades, customer support and software updates.
Security
Dealing with issues of security and keeping all the software and operating systems patched and updated is one of the great advantages of managed hosting. You shouldn't have to worry about the security of your site as the security measures provided by your hosting provider should be the most current. You need to check that security updates are included in the service level you have signed up to.
Software
Much like the choice of Operating System you can also chose the software that will run on your managed server. You can pick and mix your database software and other applications that might be required to run video and audio on your website. The choice of control panel software is important as these can be as simple of complex as you require them to be. They can be configured to allow you to control all aspects of the server remotely via a web based interface.
Bandwidth
You will also need to set and pay for the amount of bandwidth you think you are going to use. Purchasing bandwidth via a managed server provider often works out cheaper than attempting to purchase the service in isolation. Economies of scale allow managed hosting providers to get discounts on the base cost of bandwidth. There is no industry benchmark or pricing structure for bandwidth. It can be sold as part of the package or as add on depending on projected usage. It is worth setting the bandwidth limit higher than you think you will use as most providers will pile on the cost if you go over your allotted usage.
Once you have addressed these issue you can then think about making a choice about which managed hosting service provider best fits your requirements. You need to make sure you have sorted out which OS and software is running, how secure the server is, the level of management involved and the provision of adequate bandwidth. Take you time and make sure you are completely comfortable with the service. Don't be afraid to ask questions and get clarification on technical issues.
Operating System
One of the major advantages of having a dedicated server is that you can chose which operating system is used to manage and run the server. The operating system depends on personal preference, its worth talking to you web development team and asking them which one is the best for your website. Linux operating systems are often bundled in free with the hosting plan, Microsoft SPLA or other Red Hat systems may require extra payment. You need to ask the hosting provider if the package includes updates to the OS, service packs, patches and software upgrades.
Management
Managed hosting as the name suggests will include a degree of management but there is no industry wide standard to clarify what the management element will contain. For some providers it is having a full team of service engineers waiting to sort out any issues that arise for other it is simply having a control panel that you can access yourself. Depending on your own experience and skills in website hosting you need to ensure that the service level won't leave you in a blind panic if something goes wrong. Managed hosting is normally set at three different service levels:
Self Managed - This is the basic or bronze level package that would include some maintenance and updating but customers manage most of the services themselves.
Managed - The next level up, the silver level package would normally contain monitoring, updates and limited levels of support.
Fully Managed - The gold standard of management hosting. A fully managed service should be like having your own IT department. You should get monitoring, reboots, security, OS upgrades, customer support and software updates.
Security
Dealing with issues of security and keeping all the software and operating systems patched and updated is one of the great advantages of managed hosting. You shouldn't have to worry about the security of your site as the security measures provided by your hosting provider should be the most current. You need to check that security updates are included in the service level you have signed up to.
Software
Much like the choice of Operating System you can also chose the software that will run on your managed server. You can pick and mix your database software and other applications that might be required to run video and audio on your website. The choice of control panel software is important as these can be as simple of complex as you require them to be. They can be configured to allow you to control all aspects of the server remotely via a web based interface.
Bandwidth
You will also need to set and pay for the amount of bandwidth you think you are going to use. Purchasing bandwidth via a managed server provider often works out cheaper than attempting to purchase the service in isolation. Economies of scale allow managed hosting providers to get discounts on the base cost of bandwidth. There is no industry benchmark or pricing structure for bandwidth. It can be sold as part of the package or as add on depending on projected usage. It is worth setting the bandwidth limit higher than you think you will use as most providers will pile on the cost if you go over your allotted usage.
Once you have addressed these issue you can then think about making a choice about which managed hosting service provider best fits your requirements. You need to make sure you have sorted out which OS and software is running, how secure the server is, the level of management involved and the provision of adequate bandwidth. Take you time and make sure you are completely comfortable with the service. Don't be afraid to ask questions and get clarification on technical issues.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Web hosting 101: What to look for?
Today, I came across an interesting article on 'Web Hosting' in CNN Money. The article shed significant light on how to look out for the best web hosting services that can grow with your business. Thought to share it with all of you.
Here it goes:
If your business has an online presence, picking a Web host is one of the most critical decisions you'll make. The host manages the servers on which your site will run and literally has control of your company's connection to its customers.
But picking the right one can be daunting: Because most major hosting companies offer similar features, it takes some sleuthing to figure out which one will best suit your company's needs.
A quick overview
As you start your research, be wary of side-by-side comparison sites. Some are affiliated with hosting companies - their "reviews" are actually paid advertisements. While it's good practice to use a wide variety of sources to get multiple opinions, it's best to conduct your own fact-check with the host itself, which may require a thorough look through the fine print.
Some hosting companies contribute financially to Herskovitz's site, payments that he says help defray the site's operating costs, but Top 10 Web Hosting's reviews process is editorially independent.
After you've identified legitimate resources for comparing hosts, the next step is to evaluate the features most vital to small businesses.
Customer service
Hosting experts say good support is the most crucial issue for a small business owner. Nothing is more frustrating than paying on a monthly basis and not being able to get through to customer service for hours and then having to pick up the pieces after the damage is done.
Make sure that support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week," suggests Herskovitz. "Technical problems could occur any time."
Test the hosts by calling or e-mailing them with questions and concerns. If they can't deliver an answer within 24 hours, ditch 'em. Contrary to popular belief, it's not technical issues that usually require immediate responses. It's the legal ones.
There are many small business Web sites taken down without notice, causing headaches and financial setbacks. Web sites that allow users to post content are particularly risk. Under current law, if copyright owners find their work illegally posted on a Web site, they can send a message to those who run the site demanding the content's removal. Those messages usually go to the Web host.
"The hosts tend to have a knee-jerk reaction when they get these notices, and they pull down the site without question," Syverson says. "The unfortunate part is that the host is not required to look into the matter but is required to take down all alleged infringing content. Hence, bogus claims can shut down a site. This is why it's important for the host company to be responsive."
If a site gets shut down, the business owner can file a counter notification within 10 days, and then the burden is on the complainant to file a copyright infringement suit in court. The process, lasting days to weeks, usually results in lost business.
(One way to keep this from happening is to ask those who see copyright infringement to contact you directly. Remember to publicly provide an e-mail address.)
Reliability
Reviews from current users, on forums, can give you a sense of how reliable a Web host is. Does it have effective backups to prevent data from being lost? Does it often shut down for maintenance?
Disk space
Once you've established which companies have five-star support levels, the next thing you should look at are the specs for their hosting plans. What's best will vary depending on your site's needs - both now and in the future. If you'll be using the site as an online business card for your crafts business, for example, you probably won't need many features. But be sure to think ahead. As you grow, you may want to start selling those crafts online, and you'll be out of luck if the host you chose doesn't have a quality checkout application.
"Disk space" is the amount of content and data that you can store on your host's server. If you've only got text, there's little you'll need to worry about. But if you've got images, downloads or audio and visual files, pay attention to what is offered.
"Most simple Web pages average about 40KB in size," says Herskovitz. "Thumbnail images will probably be about 2KB or 3KB, and full-size images can be kept to as low as 150KB to 200KB without sacrificing too much in the way of quality. An 8-second video clip will be about 1MB in size. Any site that is graphic-intensive or has downloadable files will need a large amount of disk space for storage."
Here it goes:
If your business has an online presence, picking a Web host is one of the most critical decisions you'll make. The host manages the servers on which your site will run and literally has control of your company's connection to its customers.
But picking the right one can be daunting: Because most major hosting companies offer similar features, it takes some sleuthing to figure out which one will best suit your company's needs.
A quick overview
As you start your research, be wary of side-by-side comparison sites. Some are affiliated with hosting companies - their "reviews" are actually paid advertisements. While it's good practice to use a wide variety of sources to get multiple opinions, it's best to conduct your own fact-check with the host itself, which may require a thorough look through the fine print.
Some hosting companies contribute financially to Herskovitz's site, payments that he says help defray the site's operating costs, but Top 10 Web Hosting's reviews process is editorially independent.
After you've identified legitimate resources for comparing hosts, the next step is to evaluate the features most vital to small businesses.
Customer service
Hosting experts say good support is the most crucial issue for a small business owner. Nothing is more frustrating than paying on a monthly basis and not being able to get through to customer service for hours and then having to pick up the pieces after the damage is done.
Make sure that support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week," suggests Herskovitz. "Technical problems could occur any time."
Test the hosts by calling or e-mailing them with questions and concerns. If they can't deliver an answer within 24 hours, ditch 'em. Contrary to popular belief, it's not technical issues that usually require immediate responses. It's the legal ones.
There are many small business Web sites taken down without notice, causing headaches and financial setbacks. Web sites that allow users to post content are particularly risk. Under current law, if copyright owners find their work illegally posted on a Web site, they can send a message to those who run the site demanding the content's removal. Those messages usually go to the Web host.
"The hosts tend to have a knee-jerk reaction when they get these notices, and they pull down the site without question," Syverson says. "The unfortunate part is that the host is not required to look into the matter but is required to take down all alleged infringing content. Hence, bogus claims can shut down a site. This is why it's important for the host company to be responsive."
If a site gets shut down, the business owner can file a counter notification within 10 days, and then the burden is on the complainant to file a copyright infringement suit in court. The process, lasting days to weeks, usually results in lost business.
(One way to keep this from happening is to ask those who see copyright infringement to contact you directly. Remember to publicly provide an e-mail address.)
Reliability
Reviews from current users, on forums, can give you a sense of how reliable a Web host is. Does it have effective backups to prevent data from being lost? Does it often shut down for maintenance?
Disk space
Once you've established which companies have five-star support levels, the next thing you should look at are the specs for their hosting plans. What's best will vary depending on your site's needs - both now and in the future. If you'll be using the site as an online business card for your crafts business, for example, you probably won't need many features. But be sure to think ahead. As you grow, you may want to start selling those crafts online, and you'll be out of luck if the host you chose doesn't have a quality checkout application.
"Disk space" is the amount of content and data that you can store on your host's server. If you've only got text, there's little you'll need to worry about. But if you've got images, downloads or audio and visual files, pay attention to what is offered.
"Most simple Web pages average about 40KB in size," says Herskovitz. "Thumbnail images will probably be about 2KB or 3KB, and full-size images can be kept to as low as 150KB to 200KB without sacrificing too much in the way of quality. An 8-second video clip will be about 1MB in size. Any site that is graphic-intensive or has downloadable files will need a large amount of disk space for storage."
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
NaviSite Wins FindMyHost Editors' Choice Award for Its Dedicated Hosting Solutions
NaviSite, Inc., a leading provider of Enterprise Hosting and Application Services, has won the FindMyHost.com Editors' Choice Award in January 2009 for its hosted dedicated server products for small and medium sized businesses. With a focus on bringing enterprise class reliability and performance to the SMB market, NaviSite's Dedicated Hosting division has raised the bar on customer expectations by delivering a cost effective suite of fully managed dedicated server products, applications, and support services designed specifically for small and medium sized businesses.
The key criteria factored into FindMyHost's decision to recognize NaviSite with their award were the team of 'Always There' TM support professionals, enterprise grade hardware platforms, and an extensive offering which included range of Linux and Windows managed dedicated and virtual server plans. FindMyHost also identified 100% Service Level Agreements, an award-winning comprehensive control panel, and unwavering commitment to deliver a premium customer experience as evidence of NaviSite's excellence in serving the SMB marketplace.
"NaviSite has leveraged its extensive experience in the enterprise arena to bring a whole new class of service to the managed dedicated hosting industry," said Sumeet Sabharwal, Senior Vice President of Dedicated Hosting. "As the service and support needs of our SMB customers are similar to large businesses, we have built an offering that is anchored around enterprise class reliability, performance and service. We are pleased to be recognized by this award and will continue providing solutions with the best value in the industry."
"Editors' Choice Award winners must exceed expectations in a series of rigorous benchmarks and we strongly believe that NaviSite's experience, qualifications and dedicated server products are more than worthy of this recognition," said Christian Henning, President, FindMyHost, Inc. "The selection of NaviSite's Dedicated Hosting solutions is a strong vote of confidence for small and medium sized businesses who need enterprise class solutions and services."
NaviSite's dedicated hosting solutions feature the latest technology, including dedicated servers with Intel® Quad-Core CPUs, Red Hat®, CentOS, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 or 2003®, and Virtual Dedicated Servers with VMware. Other available advanced services include shared and dedicated Cisco® firewalls, shared and dedicated load balancers, Parallels Plesk control panels, managed backup, and SAN storage.
About FindMyHost
FindMyHost, Inc. is an online magazine that provides editor reviews, consumer hosting news, interviews discussion forums and more. FindMyHost.com was established in January 2001 to protect web host consumers and web developers from making the wrong choice when choosing a web host. FindMyHost.com showcases a selection of web hosting companies who have undergone their approved host program testing and provides reviews from customers.
About NaviSite
NaviSite is a leading provider of enterprise hosting and application solutions. Over 1,500 customers depend on NaviSite for managed application services, application development, implementation and management on its web infrastructure platforms in 17 state-of-the-art data centers supported by more than 650 professionals. NaviSite provides customized and scalable solutions leveraging its broad range of application development capabilities, packaged software implementation expertise, deep portfolio of best in class technologies, and a full suite of web-hosting and internet infrastructure options.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Linux vs. Windows: Which is a better Web host?
It's not that there aren't differences between the two. Security, programming languages, and more all differ between Linux and Windows. But it's a great coup for Linux to note that, if anything, the functionality available for Linux meets and often exceeds that provided by Windows, making one's choice less about operating systems and more about the Web host's other services:
It is better to pick a Web host based on its features and services rather than on what operating system...is running on its Web servers, as the difference between the two is very little. However, if your Web site particularly requires a certain language due to the programmers you work with...it would be prudent to check for system compatibility before subscribing to a Web host.
If you do not require such specific details, you should simply sit back and let the Web host handle these complicated technical details, and focus on your Web site itself. After all, the content is way more important than the programming language or the OS of the Web servers.
Some will argue with this contention, suggesting that Linux is always better than Windows (or vice versa). It's simply not true--not anymore at least.
I believe that this is a huge step forward for Linux. It has narrowed the functionality and ease-of-use gap and, if anything, has put some distance between itself and Windows as it steps into the lead.
This is what we should want for any operating system: less attention on the operating system and more attention on higher-level features and services. It makes Linux and Windows, in this case, foundations for what users really care about. How well the operating system does its job and then gets out of the way, without calling too much attention to itself, should be the next decade of OS competition.
It is better to pick a Web host based on its features and services rather than on what operating system...is running on its Web servers, as the difference between the two is very little. However, if your Web site particularly requires a certain language due to the programmers you work with...it would be prudent to check for system compatibility before subscribing to a Web host.
If you do not require such specific details, you should simply sit back and let the Web host handle these complicated technical details, and focus on your Web site itself. After all, the content is way more important than the programming language or the OS of the Web servers.
Some will argue with this contention, suggesting that Linux is always better than Windows (or vice versa). It's simply not true--not anymore at least.
I believe that this is a huge step forward for Linux. It has narrowed the functionality and ease-of-use gap and, if anything, has put some distance between itself and Windows as it steps into the lead.
This is what we should want for any operating system: less attention on the operating system and more attention on higher-level features and services. It makes Linux and Windows, in this case, foundations for what users really care about. How well the operating system does its job and then gets out of the way, without calling too much attention to itself, should be the next decade of OS competition.
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