Nine Things to Know Before Selecting the Web Host for Your Business

Enterprise Networks & Servers, Aug 2004 by Kivlehan, Chris

It may seem simple yet it is often times overlooked. When it comes to choosing the right Internet hosting provider for their Web sites, the majority of business owners or companies know very little about making the best Internet/Web hosting decisions.

What makes a good Internet/Web hoster for a business Web site? What makes a bad one?

How can the wrong Internet/Web hoster help/harm your business?

What are the different types of Internet/Web hosting services? Which ones are best for which industries?

Here are some tips to help you make the right decisions.

1. Understand the distinctions between shared, collocated, unmanaged dedicated and managed dedicated hosting so you choose the one that is right for your business.

It is crucial to understand the difference between the types of hosting offered. As the hosting industry has matured, hosting offers have split into a couple of distinct categories, each with its own strengths and weaknesses.

Shared hosting (sometimes called virtual hosting), means that you are sharing one server with a number of other clients of that company. The host manages the server almost completely (though you maintain your site and your account). They can afford to charge you little since many clients are paying for use of the server. However, companies other than yours are using the resources of that server. That means heavy traffic to one of the other sites on the server can really hammer the performance of your site. Also, you are typically not able to install special software programs on these types of machines, because the host will need to keep a stable environment for all of the clients using the server.

Collocated hosting means that you purchase a server from a hardware vendor, like Dell or HP for example, and you supply this server to the host. The host will then plug your server into its network and its redundant power systems. The host is responsible for making sure its network is available, and you are responsible for all support and maintenance of your server. Good hosters will offer management contracts to their collocation clients so that you can outsource much of the support to them and come to an arrangement similar to managed dedicated hosting. Most collocation hosts do not offer this service, however.

Unmanaged dedicated hosting is very similar to collocation, except that you lease a server from a host and do not actually own it yourself. Some very limited support (typically Web-based only) is included, but the level of support varies widely from unmanaged dedicated host to unmanaged dedicated host. This type of server can be had for around $99/month. Support levels are typically only provided in general terms. Ask the host to go into specifics about what support they will provide (will they apply security patches to your server?) before signing up. This service is typically good for gaming servers (like Doom or Counterstrike servers) or hobbyist servers, but not for serious businesses that need responsive, expert-level service.

Managed dedicated hosting means leasing a server from a host and having that company provide a robust level of support and maintenance on the server that is backed by quality guarantees. This maintenance typically includes services such as server uptime monitoring, a hardware warranty, security patch updates and more. Be sure to make sure your managed dedicated host is specific about its managed services included so that you can be sure they are not disguising an unmanaged dedicated offering as a managed dedicated server. This has been known to happen unfortunately, which is why it is important to do your homework and ask the right questions.

2. Ask if your potential host's network has blackholed IPs.

Many hosts care little about who is actually hosting on their networks, so long as the clients pay their bill. That means many hosiers will allow porn sites, spammers and servers that create security issues on their network for the sake of the dollar. Even if you are to place ethical issues aside, this does have a negative impact on customers in general, however, when a network gets blackholed for spamming, for example. Getting blackholed means that other networks will refuse e-mail originated from IPs that are blacklisted. Some hosts have a number of entire class C (up to 256 IPs) networks blackholed and redistribute these tainted IPs to new clients. That means if your business relies on legitimate closed loop opt-in e-mail marketing to drive sales, being on such a network can severely cut response to your campaign because your e-mail may never get to its destination.

Check with any hosts you are considering to see if their networks are blackholed. Also, here is a link to a third party source that tracks blackholed networks and lists them: www.spamhaus.org/sbl/isp.lasso.>The following URL is a good resource to help you understand what is labeled spam and what isn't: www.spamhaus.org/mailinglists.html.>3. Don't confuse size with stability.

Just because a Web hosting company is big does not mean it is stable and secure. In fact, many of the biggest filed for bankruptcy protection or were saved by being sold to some other company, in some cases causing uncomfortable transitions in service for their clients. How do you protect yourself? Ask some key questions.