How do you choose a dedicated server from the multiple hosting providers?

We are at a time when hosting providers are rapidly growing, and we still need more performance to keep up with the latest technologies, whether AI, new crypto validators, or the Node boom in the market. We want to discuss a few essential points to check before moving forward with one or another provider.

Bare-metal vs. Virtual servers

As obvious as it might look, we still find clients who send us quotes with 32-core CPUs, for example, 100 USD/month, and ask us to get them a better deal. We are not saying it's not possible; however, most of the time, it turns out to be a 32vCores (virtualized server). Our advice is to always double-check with the provider if your new server order is really a bare-metal (dedicated server).

Support 24/7

The SLA (Service Level Agreement) is the most helpful part. Different hosting providers offer various levels of help. Not to consider that most hosting providers do not provide managed servers. This means you must have at least basic knowledge of logging in and migrating all the server's data to the new machine. Nevertheless, you have to install your hardware monitoring software. If your fan breaks and the server overheats, it might stay like this for days. Always discuss the support responsibilities before ordering a new server.

Support response time

Customer Support is one of the most sensitive parts of the business. I remember having tickets with OVH or Termius for weeks only because they replied once daily. This might be incredibly annoying when your server is off, and no one is here to help you.

Here are a few tips:

Send the Sales quote request via email or the ticketing system. Check their response time. If they are too lazy to get your money, they will likely take enormous time to help with technical difficulties.

Send a message to live chat. Check how difficult it is to fight an auto-response bot and finally get through to the live agent.

Ask for the personal account manager's details, or get him on Discord or Telegram. He is the person who can move things forward and, most importantly, get you your welcome discount!

RAID level

You may wonder what that's all about, but clients need clarification about having 2x 1TB SSD RAID1 on their server and wondering why the storage space is so low. Here is the link to the RAID calculator: https://www.raid-calculator.com/

2x 1TB SSD RAID1

Capacity: 1TB

Up to 2x read speed, no write speed gain

1-drive failure

Always double-check the RAID level you get, the available storage space, and whether it's software or hardware. You can find more details on this here:

Backups

Long story short, always make the server backups! It's your project and your business. Why risk it all relying on your hosting provider? Especially since most of them don't do the server backups or even have the logins to your server. Discussing it through the hosting provider is highly recommended, and always ask, what happens if you miss the payment for 2-3 days? It's a significant change; your server will get deleted on the second day.

Bandwidth usage

You may find the saying Unmetered Bandwidth, which means you can go full speed 24/7, and they don't mind. Reality might be different, as the marketing persons invented this terminology. Some fair usage policies will likely still apply. They may be highly flexible, but a rare one will give you full access to 10Gbps unmetered (~3000TB/month) with the low-end dedicated server for 100 USD.

Make sure to test the speed from your end and your location. Check what bursts you might get and how much traffic your project might consume. Monitor your traffic usage during the week or months to get the average. This will help you schedule your future costs and expenses.

Uptime

Uptime is the myth. You may go through 9 out of 10 providers, and all of them will show the same number: 99.97%

What if 100 servers perform perfectly, but your server got unlucky and broke down twice this week? How should DC measure it? Or should we ask: Do they even measure it?

We highly recommend checking the status page history. You can see the maintenance and outage history there.

In addition, you can find more info about customer satisfaction and reviews on Trustpilot.com or the well-known forum WebHostingTalk.com

Upgrade

A dedicated server (bare metal) can be easily upgraded. This means that you can add more hard disks or increase memory (RAM). However, these tasks require downtime and might require additional costs. They may even need to be scheduled weeks in advance.

Always check your future outgrow possibilities and costs. You don't want to wake up one morning and migrate all the server's data to the new server.

Ping and Server Location

The geographical distance between North America and Europe can significantly affect ping time. To minimize latency, it is highly recommended that you select a server location closer to your web clients and users.

You can quickly test the ping time by pinging the server IP address from your PC's Terminal or Windows PowerShell using the command `ping [server ip]`.

For example: `ping 84.22.6.222`

An acceptable ping time is generally considered to be below 100ms. However, the optimal ping time may vary depending on your project's specific requirements.

Discounts

Server prices and discounts are negotiable. The hosting business is highly competitive, so ask for discounts, free trials, and long-term contracts that lower prices over time. If negotiations aren't your strong suit, contact us for assistance.

Good luck with your hunt, and stay aware of the Terms of Service! 😊