some tips....

[Carl]

hey

i've been thinking about setting up my own fwp(ie. not portland) for a bit now and i think that i will be able to manage this financially next year.

users will have
- 5 megs
- 500meg bandwidth limit
- php
- mysql(if possible)
- cgi
- ssi
- domain hosting
- footer banner

the small space & bandwidth is so that it only attracts personal sites and not warez or other illegal sites, i also believe that if a site is well design size wise this is plenty of space.

i am still unsure where to host this and was wondering whether i should use a dedicated server or a hosting plan at first(until i get enough users to justify a dedicated server) and where i should get the server.

thanks
carl

 

[Chicken]

Now we're talking! Something reasonable to work with!

With a starter plan like this you could proboably do either. Some hosts allow you to host multiple domains, though moving SQL db's is something I have no idea about (as they are out of reach from the user).

For this, you could start on a RaQ, but one of the drawbacks there is that transfering from a RaQ to a non-RaQ (or from one RaQ to another RaQ for that matter), isn't the easiest thing to do (so I've been told). If I'm wrong and this can be done easily, someone please correct me.

I can find you a starter server, for around $100-$150/mo, but before I bother asking around, is this something that you'd want?

 

[Carl]

yeah, something like that. mysql isn't such a big thing and neither is domain hosting. aslong as i can manager to scrape enough money together. or would it be better to just buy my own server to start with and get it co-located?

 

[Carl]

would something like http://powerraq.com/ be suitable?

 

[Chicken]

Powerraq is one way to go, though there have been complaints from their users about "hidden" DNS charges. Cobaltraq is another one that some users that I've spoken to have expressed dissatisfaction.

Inexpensive starter solutions that you might want to check out:

http://Tera-byte.com (inexpensive starter colo plans and email them for inexpensive servers)

http://Cheapservers.net (email or call Charles Baker - (316) 618-6923 Ext 101) http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?threadid=3071 - sample link to one of their offers.

http://whhq.net now, they have some crappy servers, and support is questionable, but if you buy your own server, they seem to have some inexpensive colo prices, and one person I talked to said it was just right for him (starting at $20/mo colo)

http://www.bnnetwork.com/hostingpackages.asp or http://www.brinet.net - haven't heard much about these guys only that they offer multiple domain hosting with their packages.

I want to point out that much of what I am recommending here is just for starters. If you want some more robust (also more expensive solutions), I wouldn't recommend some of the above and I have no experience with brinet what-so-ever.

Stepping up into the $200-$400/mo range, I'd check out http://ultraspeedusa.com (as well as http://catalog.com , http://rackspace.com , http://www.dn.com ).

Dedicated server providers have different methods of calulating your transfer bill, and this is something to look out for. You can't always compare two company's prices due to this. Apples and oranges.

 

[Gcites]

I use interaid.com they are just great and there support replies in 2 minutes to an email!

 

[Carl]

ok, so i think i'm gonna get my own server. where can i get a cheap 1U server, or would it be cheaper tyo actually build my own as i have found many tutorials on this. thanks

 

[Koolguy]

BTW, allways get a rack type server. Regular desktop-like servers usually have an extra mo. fee acctached to them because they take up more space and can't be stuck in a rack.