Keep your web host from costing you money

Michael Lynn

Now that you've probably just spent hundreds of hours and possibly even thousands of dollars to build your web presence, one of the most important decisions you'll make next is where to host your website.

Choosing a Platform It may be true that Unix tends to be more reliable than NT, but it is even more true that any server when overloaded with sometimes 250+ web sites, like most web hosting companies do, will not be as stable as you need it to be. Don't expect your site to incur 100% availability if you are on a shared virtual server. There are too many things that can go wrong when 250 different sites are competing for the same resources. If your web host doesn't publish how many sites they put on a single server, find out from them, they shouldn't have anything to hide. By the way, 255 sites is the maximum that Windows NT will allow per server, and most web hosts take full advantage of that for their lower end solutions.

Web sites running on NT/Windows 2000: *Rapid application development with scripting languages such as ASP or Cold Fusion. *Typically is easier to administer in a shared hosting environment. *If need ODBC to support database driven a site. *FrontPage tends to work better on NT

Web sites running UNIX/LINUX: *Scripting languages such as PERL, PHP or any CGI applications. *If you only need email or a static site, use Unix/Linux, it's cheaper. *Tends to be more reliable then NT in a shared hosting environment.

Web site running on a dedicated server: *If Uptime, user experience, branding, and site performance are a main concern. *If you new to hosting, check out the Cobalt RAQ.

Narrowing the Selection: Price – Its true here like most things, you get what you pay for. Don't expect enterprise class uptime for 20 bucks a month, even if they guarantee it. Options – Don't skimp on your options, if you need extra email address, get them. Some options are a "must have" depending on your websites functionality. Site traffic reporting tools are extremely useful also. Support – Most of the top web-hosting providers have 24/7 support. Make certain that your host has a toll free number for support. Waiting for someone to email you back when your site is down and you're losing business is no fun.

Expect to Pay: $10-15 Basic email, static site, and 25-50 Megs of space. $25-30 Added features like scripting support, Windows NT, basic databases, site reporting, and SSL. $50-150 Will add advanced database support, e-Commerce, and shopping carts. $199-375 Dedicated Cobalt Raq server. $250-Up Dedicated Windows NT, and Unix servers.

Monitor Your Site: Your newly created web presence needs to be up and running 24/7 in order to be effective. Most top-notch web hosts offer money back guarantees if your site is up for less than 99% of the time.

That is considerable when: An avg. uptime of 99.9% is 10 minutes of downtime per week. An avg. uptime of 99% is 1 ½ hours of downtime per week. An avg. uptime of 98% is 3 ¼ hours of downtime per week. An avg. uptime of 95% is 8 ½ hours of downtime per week.

This is downtime where your business has effectively closed its doors to potential customers. It is recommended you take advantage of web-based site monitoring services. This will allow for accountability between you and your provider. The fact is, you can't be there checking to make sure your site's up at 3am everyday, but a good web site monitoring service will email or even page you when your sites down at anytime with diagnostic data to help pinpoint the problem. In the end, these services can potentially save you money or even justify you switching providers completely.

References: http://www.hostcompare.com - compare web hosts http://www.cobalt.com - rack optimized servers http://www.serverpatrol.com - advanced website monitoring

Michael Lynn is the webmaster at Serverpatrol.com

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Did You Know?

How to Choose a Reliable Web Host ? The first thing you should do before beginning your search for a reliable web host, is to make a list of your specific web hosting needs. How much space will you need? How much transfer allowance? How many emails? Will you need a database? Will you need a shopping cart? Will you need a merchant account? Are you going to set up a forum or chat feature with your web site?....etc After all, A Reliable Web host should first be a web host that meets your specific needs. But there are some things that every web host should have in order for you to consider using there services, and they are listed below. Up Time and Reliability You'll want to make sure that your web site is accessible. Ask your web host whether he quarantees a certain percentage of uptime. Many web hosts will guarantee your web site to be available 99.5% of the time. Ask about the hardware used, the connection, and what safequards are in place to minimize downtimes. Reasonable Price Your web hosting company should offer you a reasonable price for services and flexibility in payment methods and schedules. Look for hidden costs when comparing prices. You will find that some web hosts charge a setup fee. Don't rule out a web hosting company just because of this expense. Some of the best companies charge a setup fee to help in covering the cost of having high quality technical support available. Bandwidth Some services give you a small limit on the amount of material that can be downloaded from your site each month and charge you large amounts when that limit is exceeded. Some offer huge traffic allowances for the same price. You may not need more than a hundred MB a month now, but why put yourself in a position where you have to move when your traffic takes off? Plan ahead and allow for growth. Make sure you have at least 1 GB of data transfer. Always stay away from web hosts that say that they offer Unlimited Bandwidth Because there is NO SUCH thing called unlimited bandwidth More...