[Request Review] Server hardware/software/management for starting web hosting business

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Posted by YardenSadeHive, 05-01-2017, 12:22 PM
Hey guys! After 1 year of searching and re-searching, 2 threads on WHT about it, I have finally made some advance regarding putting together a server best suited for WordPress based hosting. Now this is probably not the end as in the next weeks/months I will keep learning everything to make sure I have a solid bussiness plan and the right knowledge to handle everything, but I thought this is a good time to see if my current approach is correct and what I could do better. So this is the current information: - Server location: Western Europe. (Germany, Italy, France, Netherlands) - 1 Dedicated server. - Total budget is up to 330$. (mothly, I am not commiting to anyone for more than 1 year before testing their service for some time) Purpose: ======== Elastic web hosting for mostly private clients (in my own country, not international) (Currently standing on 70 active cpanels). Most clients require only shared hosting, some need vps *power*, I don't plan on having resellers on the start until the server runs stable for some time. Hardware: ========= 6 Cores CPU, probably Intel Xeon E5-1650v3 - 6c/12t - 3.5 GHz/3.8 GHz or better. 64GB DDR4 ECC 2133 MHz RAM or more. SoftRaid1 2x450GB NVMe. 500Mbps-1Gbps bandwith / 30TB monthly of bandwith or more. 1TB remote backup storage. *DDOS protection atleast on basic level Budget: up to 190$ (per month) Software: ========= Jetbackup: 4$ (Because of the awesome team) Softaculous: 1.5$ CloudLinux: 10$ Cpanel/WHM: 30$ WHCMS: 19$ Kernel care: 3$ *Lightspeed: 31$ (nginx/most lsapi as free alternatives, I hope to hear about pros/cons for that, so far I did not see conclusive data to support paying 31$ per month for that) Budget: 67.5$ without LS. (per month) Service: ======== Even tho I have started to learn linux and server admin course including LPIC 1 + 2 Certs, I prefer the server itself to be fully managed by external team so I can focus on giving my own clients the best service and making sure I don't have to deal with server side would be my best interest. The server should be monthly checked to be fully optimized to support wordpress websites, constantly up to date, secured like hell, proactive approach in case of downtime. I have found that companies who normally offer both servers and managed support aren't giving those sorts of extensive managed support, and they price their managed services lower around the 30-45$ mark, but that is just not good enough for me. Also I require fast response time. (my clients expect me for such a response time as well, so it is part of the business) In terms of optimization the server would need to practically have cache for everything to make sure websites are simply flying with the least amount of resources taken. Just to make sure, the server management will not include dealing with my clients at all, nor their websites, this is stricly server side. Budget: up to 75$. (per month) ========= All in all, this is the server aspect of the business, and I am currently also working on the business side, in terms of website and a solid business plan. I do not intend to rule the world but extend the service I currently provide to more users and make it better. Keeping it small but high quality is what I'm searching for, not opening another big time hosting company. Any review / tips / recommendations about possible providers for any of those aspects will be much appreciated. If I seem to be off somewhere or missing anything, this is a good time for me to know so I can consider that before purchasing everything. Bless you all.
Posted by MechanicWeb-shoss, 05-03-2017, 02:52 AM
For the hardware part, you may want to consider something with at least 8 cores and hardware RAID 10. It doesn't have to be SSD or the latest generation of CPUs. For software, because you will be hosting WordPress sites, you may consider SpamExperts outbound filtering. It will save a lot of headache dealing with outbound spam due to compromised scripts, and help you keep IPs away from blacklists. You might be able to get it from your server provider at a much cheaper rate. You may also consider Immunify360 - KernelCare is included with this. You may consider Let's Encrypt to install free SSL certificates instead of Comodo via AutoSSL. That budget seems good. You should be able to get all that I recommended within your budget. Edit: Start small with remote backup storage and grow gradually when you need it.
Posted by YardenSadeHive, 05-03-2017, 03:48 AM
Thank you very much for the info! It is very helpful, I will surely be looking into SpamExperts and imunify. About the CPU, I've been looking at few options and it seems to me when going from hex core to 8 or 12 the CPU becomes dual cpu setup where you have like 8 cores but each of them is signifincatly lower. For example: Intel® Xeon® E5-2600 v3 @ 2.10GHz Octa-Core So I wonder, is there a point taking octa-core xeon like that vs the Intel Xeon E5-1650v3 hex-core if I'm not gonna get dual cpu?
Posted by HostXNow_Chris, 05-03-2017, 04:03 AM
If cPanel accounts are not using too much then I would skip the dedicated server for now and use a VPS instead as you usually get better overall specs for better value for money. I have seen quite a few times where some individuals/businesses overpay for what they need e.g pay for a dedicated server when they only need a VPS. I agree about the licences, though I use cPremote, not JetBackup (interested whether JetBackup uses "pull" method which is better/more secure). As mentioned already, Kernelcare is included within Imunify360. You can use Let's Encrypt plugin to allow your customer to issue free SSL themselves.
Posted by YardenSadeHive, 05-03-2017, 04:10 AM
Well what I really need right now is VPS strong enough to hold around 70 + accounts of cpanel, and also the ability to grow. (not all of them are simply shared, few of them need more resources) If not then it forces me to have VPS+reseller combo with the same provider and keep the same quality of software/hardware for both. The way more expensive yet maybe unavoidable solution would be going all dedicated and hoping to catch up the missing revenue as fast as possible with a really good product.
Posted by HostXNow_Chris, 05-03-2017, 04:25 AM
Let's say the requriments were 100GB storage and I could choose between the following: managed dedicated server $150 2xTB SATA no raid 4 x CPU 100MB Port 6GB MEM managed vps $75 120GB PURE SSD in RAID 10 6 x vCPU 1GB Port 12GB MEM I know which one I would choose.
Posted by MechanicWeb-shoss, 05-03-2017, 05:25 AM
Dual CPU is not a must to start with. You could simply go with a single CPU. Intel® Xeon® E5-2600 is actually a product family: https://ark.intel.com/products/serie...Product-Family If you compare E5-2603 vs E5-1650v3, I would go for the later. To me, these are the important aspects of a CPU: Cache: the more the better Hyper-Threading: enabled needed No of Cores: the more the better No of Threads: the more the better Processor Base Frequency: the more the better Lithography: the lower, the better A CPU with lower base frequency but higher cache should perform better. I would choose a CPU that has 2x threads than its cores. Also, note that the CPU might not always deliver the frequency listed in the specs. A bit googling will help you get an idea. A VPS is not recommended to offer shared hosting, not to mention, it itself falls under the category of shared hosting. If you want all the features of a decent hosting, you would need software license. With all those licenses the end cost of a VPS will become close to that of a dedi. While a dedi can offer far better performance and scope to host many more client sites.
Posted by HostXNow_Chris, 05-03-2017, 05:34 AM
Some might think you are saying that because you do not not offer VPS range yourself!? I know someone who started reselling hosting from a Reseller account and then upgraded to VPS and so know 100% a VPS can work because they did the same using Unmanaged VPS and already have own techs and so using Unmanaged VPS with very nice specs was fine for them. Then they moved from VPS to Dedicated. So VPS can work, though it is best to use KVM VPS so you can fully use CloudLinux LVE, etc. Though the advantages to using OpenVZ is the kernel is updated automatically and all containers use latest kernel automatically. Everything has their pros and cons, of course.
Posted by MechanicWeb-shoss, 05-03-2017, 05:45 AM
Someone would always say whatever comes to their mind. I do not take an issue to that I just don't see any point in spending an amount for a VPS that could get me a dedi with adding just a few bucks. If you see any point, that's your opinion and I respect that.
Posted by HostXNow_Chris, 05-03-2017, 05:57 AM
Would you like to give some comparisons to backup what you are saying e.g show that VPS cost around the same as a dedicated server for the same specs?
Posted by MechanicWeb-shoss, 05-03-2017, 06:15 AM
What I said is: Let's not steal this thread. If you are intended to discuss further regarding the comparison, let's take the discussion over PM.
Posted by HostColor, 05-03-2017, 07:03 AM
@YardenSadeHive The bandwidth figures sound very unrealistic to me. As far as fro the CPU, it is always better, when it comes to a bare-metal physical server, to get a platform which would use 2 x CPUs, even if you'd start with one CPU. I would suggest you to look around for a virtual dedicated server or a Cloud-based solution. Why? If you do not want to commit to 1 year or a longer contract, the cost would be higher with any quality service provider.
Posted by YardenSadeHive, 05-03-2017, 07:08 AM
Hmmm so its better going off with lower performance cpu for the sake of being able to upgrade later? (Provided scaling up is possibility by the provider ofc) Also I wonder what is unrealistic about the bandwidh? I've seen many vendors with thos numbers so far, am I missing anything?
Posted by HostColor, 05-03-2017, 07:22 AM
Well, each and every provider has different costs for network & bandwidth based on the location. I would say that any price lower than $1 per Mbps (for any commitment lower than few Gbps) is either a promotional offering or means that the web host uses low cost wholesale bandwidth providers (and/or uses a lot of IX traffic). It is important where your customers are and what do you expect from the networking service. Many would disagree, I guess