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Written by: Justin James 5/1/2008 11:20 PM
For the last umpteen years, I have been functioning as a Web host for a few companies. The income was decent, and basically paid for me to have a static IP and a machine dedicated to being a server. But it was a real headache too. The biggest problem was that server problems would cause me to drop everything and respond to them, since live, production customers were on the box. Luckily, over the years I got the "formula" right and the server has been pretty problem free (so long as I don't touch it... long story). Well, I had to let the customers go. I just felt like I could not keep giving them the service they need at a reasonable price. I was already charging about 3 times what a normal Web host would, and the only real selling point I had was that when they called, I answered the phone, not some clueless or "I could not care less about your problem, sir" call center halfway around the globe. A few weeks ago, one of the two customers transitioned to another host, and the other customer will be leaving soon. I can't wait. I am really looking forwards to getting to find out if the problems with that server were OS or hardware problems, getting it rebuilt the way I want it to be, and starting to be able to use it as a demo/experimentation server. :) J.Ja
For the last umpteen years, I have been functioning as a Web host for a few companies. The income was decent, and basically paid for me to have a static IP and a machine dedicated to being a server. But it was a real headache too. The biggest problem was that server problems would cause me to drop everything and respond to them, since live, production customers were on the box. Luckily, over the years I got the "formula" right and the server has been pretty problem free (so long as I don't touch it... long story). Well, I had to let the customers go. I just felt like I could not keep giving them the service they need at a reasonable price. I was already charging about 3 times what a normal Web host would, and the only real selling point I had was that when they called, I answered the phone, not some clueless or "I could not care less about your problem, sir" call center halfway around the globe.
A few weeks ago, one of the two customers transitioned to another host, and the other customer will be leaving soon. I can't wait. I am really looking forwards to getting to find out if the problems with that server were OS or hardware problems, getting it rebuilt the way I want it to be, and starting to be able to use it as a demo/experimentation server. :)
J.Ja
4 comments so far...
You need scale to be able to make hosting worth it You need scale to be able to make hosting worth it. Hosting 3 sites for peanuts per site just isn't worth it unless you're offering a whole bunch of other services for them that allow you to charge some serious money per month. If you did application hosting for them, now that would be well worth it.
You need scale to be able to make hosting worth it
You need scale to be able to make hosting worth it. Hosting 3 sites for peanuts per site just isn't worth it unless you're offering a whole bunch of other services for them that allow you to charge some serious money per month. If you did application hosting for them, now that would be well worth it.
Re: Freedom: so close! As much as I try to be at some one's beck and call, I am pretty bad at it. Although with the right hardware it may be easier. Kudos on being a service provider for others. I know the money is a bit tight, but at the same time, if you cover your hosting, that is also a good thing.
Re: Freedom: so close!
As much as I try to be at some one's beck and call, I am pretty bad at it. Although with the right hardware it may be easier. Kudos on being a service provider for others. I know the money is a bit tight, but at the same time, if you cover your hosting, that is also a good thing.
A cheap platform for virtual hosting A few things come to mind when putting together cheap virtual hosting1) Namecheap/eNom (or doing the registrar bit yourself)2) Cheap and redundant providers. If you're paying for more than $10/Mbps/month + power/cooling charges (~$5/amp/month), then you're wasting money. Paying for things like "rack space" or "static IP addresses" are instant de-qualifiers3) Cheap and redundant server hardware. Used/refurb Dell PE servers are really the only game in town4) Use of hardware virtualization technology (Xen on Linux/BSD) along with configuration (ISPConfig) and customer management (SugarCRM community edition)Hardware headaches need to be stabilized quickly, preferably within the first year. If you can remotely diagnose hardware issues (e.g. PC Weasel - which can even detect mainboard failures), this is going to save countless hours of work. Using spreadsheets and MTBF calculations, you can also easily determine when to proactively replace hardware such as hard drives, power supplies, and fans. The idea is to replace the hardware before it fails, and on a pre-planned maintenance schedule.Customer service issues also need to be dealt with as proactively as possible. Every issue after the first requires automation. I suggest reading the Abuse Desk Common Practices document if the issues weigh heavily on the abuse side of the house, where automation is typically least helpful (and the most amount of time investment is required).
A cheap platform for virtual hosting
A few things come to mind when putting together cheap virtual hosting1) Namecheap/eNom (or doing the registrar bit yourself)2) Cheap and redundant providers. If you're paying for more than $10/Mbps/month + power/cooling charges (~$5/amp/month), then you're wasting money. Paying for things like "rack space" or "static IP addresses" are instant de-qualifiers3) Cheap and redundant server hardware. Used/refurb Dell PE servers are really the only game in town4) Use of hardware virtualization technology (Xen on Linux/BSD) along with configuration (ISPConfig) and customer management (SugarCRM community edition)Hardware headaches need to be stabilized quickly, preferably within the first year. If you can remotely diagnose hardware issues (e.g. PC Weasel - which can even detect mainboard failures), this is going to save countless hours of work. Using spreadsheets and MTBF calculations, you can also easily determine when to proactively replace hardware such as hard drives, power supplies, and fans. The idea is to replace the hardware before it fails, and on a pre-planned maintenance schedule.Customer service issues also need to be dealt with as proactively as possible. Every issue after the first requires automation. I suggest reading the Abuse Desk Common Practices document if the issues weigh heavily on the abuse side of the house, where automation is typically least helpful (and the most amount of time investment is required).
Re: Freedom: so close! Andre -All good tips, but really overengineering for the scale I've been working at for this (2 paying customers, plus personal Web sites). Thanks though, if I ever decide to revive this business, I'll definitely examine that route!J.Ja
Andre -All good tips, but really overengineering for the scale I've been working at for this (2 paying customers, plus personal Web sites). Thanks though, if I ever decide to revive this business, I'll definitely examine that route!J.Ja
Adrian's PC Doctor blog Deb Shinder's blog Deb Shinder on Vista Dietrich T. Schmit on Linux Erratasec blog - Security Ed Bott on Microsoft Jason Hiner's blog John Carroll Justin James' developer blog Matt Sherman's blog Martin McKeay Paul Mah, Tech at play Richard Bennett's blog Sunbelt Blog - Security Tom Shinder on ISA Tom Shinder on security ZDNet - Zero day Rich Tehrani - VoIP