Sep 14

What is a Virtual Server?

vps 2 Comments »

Virtual Dedicated Servers feature full root access. Running on highly powerful and reliable host systems, a VDS gives you the full flexibility of a dedicated at a lower cost – ideal for low-usage niche applications, monitoring systems and more.

A VDS provides the full flexibility of a dedicated server – you are free to install your own software and configure the system to your exact needs as there are no other users – at just a fraction of the cost. They are perfect for development environments, simple applications, and sites which need the security of a dedicated server but don’t need the additional power.

Tagged with: •
Aug 30

Virtual Dedicated Server versus Reseller Hosting

vps 2 Comments »

A virtual dedicated server (VDS) is a virtual machine hosted on a physical dedicated server. There can be many virtual dedicated servers on a single physical dedicated server, and the beauty of this is that you get the flexibility of your own physical server without the cost.

You are provided with the root login/administrator access to the virtual dedicated server, in the same was as if it were a physical server. You can choose your operating system, (e.g. Linux CentOS, Windows Server 2003) and can install and configure your own software exactly to your own specifications. If you require a custom Apache configuration to host your website, you can do this.

Sometimes it is recommended that a user purchase a virtual dedicated server instead of a reseller package. With a Windows or Linux reseller hosting account, you are effectively free to resell a number of websites, based upon the amount of space/bandwidth you have purchased wholesale from your reseller hosting provider. This is especially suitable for a novice web hosting user, who need to host a number of websites but who doesn’t have the systems administration experience required to keep a virtual dedicated server running smoothly and securely. Additionally, a web designer who wishes to offer web hosting to their clients may benefit from a reseller hosting account – they want to offer website hosting to their clients but without the added problems of worrying about administering the server, making sure all of the scripts and server software is up to date etc.

So whilst a reseller account is very convenient, and cost effective for a user wishing to host a large number of websites, it doesn’t quite offer the flexibility of a virtual dedicated server, which may be more suited to a developer running multiple websites requiring custom Apache/MySQL/PHP/Ruby on Rails hosting requirements. In conclusion, for most users a reseller hosting account is usually the better option to take, whilst as a user gains more experience and understands the details of administering a linux hosting server, a VDS may be an option to progress to later on.

Tagged with: •
Aug 30

VSphere – VMware

virtualization news, vps No Comments »

VMware http://www.vmware.com

The host profile feature of vSphere 4 is useful in streamlining host profile set up and eases diagnostics.

As part of its ongoing testing of the VMware vSphere 4 platform and its rivals, eWEEK Labs puts the new host profiles feature to the test. Host profiles streamlines the configuration of new ESX hosts, and makes it easier for administrators to check for compliance.

New in VMware vSphere 4 is the ability to streamline the configuration of new ESX hosts. (ESX being the management component of the server infrastructure.) As part of my ongoing testing of the vSphere 4 platform, I put the new feature through its paces in the lab.

Host profiles help to solve the finicky problem of ensuring uniformity among the groups of physical ESX host systems that support the virtual machine environment. The host profile feature is a good addition to vSphere 4, but the need for it may be lessened by the abilities of the new distributed switch that was also added in this overhaul of VMware’s flagship data centre virtualisation platform.

Tagged with: •
Aug 25

HAProxy Load Balancing and Proxy

vps No Comments »

HAProxy is a very fast, efficient piece of software that enables you to load balance multiple servers behind an HAproxy front end. It supports tends of thousands of concurrent connections with moderate hardware requirements, whilst also being incredibly reliable.

The layer 7 load balancing software can even act as a rudimentary firewall – placed in-front of a single server it can screen requests to see if they are malformed or similar. Protecting your Apache server from overloading its CPU or exceeding it’s RAM and going in to swap is a massive worthwhile benefit.

Unfortunately the main feature that HAproxy doesn’t support, is SSL; but there are multiple ways around this which I’m sure you can explore. The official HAproxy website is here: http://haproxy.1wt.eu/

Tagged with: •
Aug 24

Dot Not Panel for Windows VPS

vps 1 Comment »

http://www.techmixer.com/free-windows-hosting-control-panel-dotnetpanel-express-edition/

DotNetPanel Express Edition, a free hosting control panel for Windows Hosting that help Windows webmaster or windows home hosting simplifying Windows Hosting management operations. This free Windows hosting control panel offers its users with greater flexibility. It is written in C# and comprises with the latest technologies such as WMI, ADSI, SOAP Web Services with Web enhancements and N velocity Templates engine.

Meanwhile, DotNetPanel Express edition support for Exchange Server 2007, Windows Share Point Services, IIS 7.0, Microsoft Dynamics CRM and a new VPS solution for complete Enterprise level automation of virtualization. It is reputed as the fastest AJAX enabled control panel.

The DNP Express Edition is ideal for VPS and dedicated server owners, home hosting, education and evaluation use. You can manage an unlimited number of domains or websites, install it on three servers with up to five users, and it runs on Windows Server 2008 Web edition. And, best of all, it’s FREE!

Tagged with: • •
Aug 21

Virtual Hosting With PureFTPd And MySQL On Debian

vps No Comments »

This document describes how to install a PureFTPd server that uses virtual users from a MySQL database instead of real system users. This is much more performant and allows to have thousands of ftp users on a single machine. In addition to that I will show the use of quota and upload/download bandwidth limits with this setup. Passwords will be stored encrypted as MD5 strings in the database.

http://www.howtoforge.com/virtual-hosting-with-pureftpd-mysql-on-debian-lenny

Tagged with: • •
Aug 18

Microsoft Hyper V

virtualization news, vps No Comments »

http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/44452

During this week’s Converging on Microsoft podcast interview with Mike Schutz, Director of Product Management for the Microsoft Windows Server Division, we discuss the relevant steps necessary to secure servers running Hyper-V. Microsoft has a number of resources you will find helpful (links at the end of this article) and Mike’s interview is also a great place to learn what’s happening with Hyper-V security.

One of the most valuable tools Microsoft has for securing Hyper-V is their Hyper-V Security Guide. The Hyper-V SG layouts it out in three steps: Hardening Hyper-V, Delegating Virtual Machine Management, and Protecting Virtual Machines. Here are some added thoughts and commentary beyond what the document offers.

Tagged with: • •
Aug 17

Load Balancing

vps No Comments »

http://techwebinarmaven.com/s/632.load-balancing-in-virtual-server-environments/

No good deed goes unpunished, especially when it comes to IT. As server utilization rates increase thanks to virtualization, the network tends to get punished because where there was once, for example, ten servers there are now 100 virtual servers.

In a Learn How to Virtualize Mission-Critical Applications with VMware and F5 webinar sponsored by F5 Networks and VMware, how to balance application loads across virtual servers is squarely addressed.

Charlie Cano, solution architect for F5 Networks, and Sanjay Aiyagari, a senior partner solutions manager for VMware, take turns discussing how to optimize network traffic using F5 Network appliances that have been tuned to support new VMware technologies, such as AppSpeed, and existing VMware capabilities, such as the Distributed Resource Scheduler.

For instance, F5 Network has added the ability for its products to not only tell VMware that a new virtual machine needs to be spun up, but then also automatically balance network traffic to accommodate that new instance of a virtual machine.

Overall, Cano says the use of F5 Network appliances can result in anywhere from 30 to 50 percent more virtual machine density per physical server because of all the tasks have been offloaded to the F5 Network appliances.

Tagged with: •
Aug 14

Virtual Private Server

vps No Comments »

Virtual private servers provide the cost savings of sharing the server with others yet the guaranteed performance of having a dedicated portion of the server for your site. This delivers a high level of bandwidth and speed resulting in a good user experience and provides more options on which software you can use for your site. Virtual Dedicated Hosting is perfect for small to medium sized organizations with high-traffic sites.

Tagged with:
Aug 11

Virtual Private Server News

virtualization news, vps No Comments »

KVM (Kernel Virtual Machine), the next generation of virtualized technologies, is a recent addition to Linux. KVM provides full virtualization that is currently considered superior to all other full virtualization technologies. It combines support for the latest hardware virtualization capabilities and the rapid feature development of the Linux kernel into a complete, highly functional, virtualization platform. KVM is the only virtualization technology that is fully incorporated into the Linux kernel. With Red Hat’s acquisition of Qumranet, the inventor of KVM, KVM is backed long term by the industry leading Linux distribution provider as well as the Linux community.

With a VPS Server, you will not have this problem since you have unlimited root access because your website is virtually isolated from other clients sharing the server. Other features that make a VPS Server a good choice include more available bandwidth and better data security. Although you are still sharing the server with other clients in a Virtual Private Server, at least you know that there is a portion dedicated only to your files, which means that you have your own operating system. A VPS is more secure because you do not share storage space with other clients. In a shared hosting service, once the security of one customer is compromised, the other clients sharing the same space may also be at risk.

Previous Entries Next Entries
preload preload preload