Shared Hosting - What questions to ask your host

[PR Wales]

I just answered a post elsewhere on this forum, and it got me to thinking how many other people may fall into the same trap the gent I answered, (and I before him) had fallen into.

Unlimited Everything :woot:
So the marketing hype on most shared hosting goes these days, its unlimited everything. Fill your boots with gazzillions of squigabytes of bandwidth, the same amounts of physical storage, etc etc.

Mark my words if it sounds too good to be true, it is.

What they don't tell you is for the most part your shared hosting account lives on a server with untold numbers of other websites.

So if one of those other websites hits the front page of Digg, and the Digg-Effect kicks in, the amount of processor use rockets, and for the most part each website on a shared server, is allocated a set amount of "resource utility", (processor space). And once you go over this amount, the host will switch you off without warning, and the first you know about it is when someone says, "whats up with the site - been down all weekend".

If you spent a year trying to hit the front page of Digg, last thing you need is to be switched off in themidst of your personal traffic blizzard. Arse!!

So the host says, "You were impacting on the service of others on the shared server, so we had to shut you down", without so much as a by your leave.

So if you are thinking of shared hosting check out the amount of processor resources your website is allocated.

Mine was a piffling 5%, and to put that in some sort of perspective, as soon as I was regularly hitting between 500 and a thousand uniques a day, I was exceeding this all the time. The highest I went was to 16% resources used, but that was after I agreed to a dedicated solution, so I guess it would have been silly to switch me off before they got my signature on my new dedicated hosting deal.

You have been warned. ;)

Ian

[JamieBeeston]

to be fair Ian, what did you expect from a Shared hosting platform?

You've done the right thing in moving to your own dedicated platform now, this gives you full control, and oversight on exactly how much resource and performance you have available.

Shared hosting is just a rung on the ladder, and it's a ladder you should be happy to climb :)

[PR Wales]

Problem is fella, the experts are only around after the event. So we live and learn the hard way huh?

Thing is when someone has an idea for a website, 9 out of 10 are not likely to jump into a dedicated solution from the off.

So if my post above can help the 99% who start off with a shared solution, its all good.

Cheers

Ian

[JamieBeeston]

Hi Ian,

Sure.. you start on shared, you move to dedicated (or virtual dedicated) then you move to multiple dedicated servers.. so is the way of things..

I wss just taken aback by you calling 5% piffling, given the nature of shared hosting.. unless of course you were sold higher at the start!

J

[PR Wales]

Nah I wasn't sold higher. I didn't ask the right questions as the information was all there. My host did nothing wrong, and never have in over two years.

But the whole point of my post is, how many people actually read the small print? Or would understand the technicalities of it even if they did read it?

Fact is, unlimited this, and unlimited that is completely worthless with only 5% resources available to you. And thats a fact you would find it hard to argue against surely?

Ian

[JamieBeeston]

Fact is, unlimited this, and unlimited that is completely worthless

The rest of your quote wasnt necessary :)

Unlimited doesnt exist, anyone who thinks and pays otherwise gets what they pay for, IF they're lucky!

[PR Wales]

The fact is, as I pointed out in the first post in this (my) thread, if you plan on attracting any traffic, (IE. content rich sites, such as those I create day in day out), 5% resources, (shared hosting) is no good to you, so I wouldn't bother.

Regardless of what anyones opinions are, thats my experience. They're the facts as I have experienced them.

To be brutally honest JamieBeeston, the fact you attempted to shoot my experiences down ("to be fair Ian, what did you expect from a Shared hosting platform?") with your opinions sucks big.

Also the fact most posts you make are an attempted sale ("give my sales guys a ring - be quick") devalues those opinions further.

Moreover, the methods you use, like trying to sow seeds of doubt amongst more inexperienced webmasters, (IE. saying "hosting companies pay people to spam forums" - which I'm sure may well have happened in the past, but its certainly not the norm), just because someone gave a recommendation on a company which wasn't yours, breaks every rule of business as I see it.

You came into my thread, in which I was giving solid, well-founded advice designed to help people early in their enterprise, and tried to devalue and discredit it with your tacky sales pitch.

So seeing as the thread has degenerated into one containing opinions not facts, I thought I would give some of my own.

That age old adage on forums fits particularly well here. The one which states "If you have nothing constructive to add to a thread its probably better to stay out of it".

As is usually the case, it generally ends in a $hit-fest, and no-one wants that do they?

So I'll make this my final word on the matter as I think our 'exchange' is over. Certainly from my perspective as you have absolutely nothing constructive or credible to add to it.

Ian

[JamieBeeston]

:) you appear to have dropped a few of your toys on the floor, bless you.

This isnt your thread, this is everyones thread, you simply started it.. grow up!

As an assumed expert in this field, I was simply adding to this thread so that anyone whom may take the time to read it, is faced with a balanced view..

If you feel hard done by, then you need to get out more..

You may fee embaressed as your self-professed mistake of not actually checking what you bought, and finding the limitations of just believing the hype.. but you shouldnt feel so bad, unfortunately it happens to alot of customers the first time round.. This is why I feel it's important for customers and potential customers of any hosting company to read the reality of the industry.. unlimited can not exist on a finite physical resource, and anyone trying to sell you otherwise is misleading you.

I'm happy to discuss, chat, debate or listen to/with anyone.. openly and honestly..
You're new here, so welcome.. and I hope you continue to provide your opinions on a wide variety of topics ;)

J

[Dominic Taylor]

Guideline number 1 - unlimited doesn't exist!

It never existed with phone plans, internet usage (we saw how that one turned out), offers on TV.....anywhere.

Most hosts I know don't survive on selling 'unlimited' in any way shape or form. Look at the quality UK hosts not the kiddy-run US hosts / massive whitebox, cheap, large-scale US hosts, and you'll be fine :)

[stugster]

I hate how people are actually allowed to advertise this magical Unlimited thing.

[d30web]

you get what you pay for . That is true for most things in life and hosting is no diffrent

[JamieBeeston]

you get what you pay for . That is true for most things in life and hosting is no diffrent

:) Alas in hosting, Very rarely do you get what you pay for.. but even rarer still do you get what you dont pay for!