All posts by DigitalNetHosting

Load balancing, by definition, is the process of spreading the amount of work that is conducted by a computer system between a number of different computer systems to increase the speed that the work is completed in. There are several different methods in which load balancing can be accomplished by and the technique can use many different types of computer components, including both hardware and software applications. Load balancing is typically completed using a cluster of computer servers that may or may not be located in the same location. Some load balancers provide a mechanism for doing something special in the event that all backend servers are unavailable. This might include forwarding to a backup load balancer, or displaying a message regarding the outage. Load balancing can be useful when dealing with redundant communications links.

There are many different companies that see the benefits of using load balancing and implement the procedure for their companies. Companies that conduct business transactions in large numbers using the internet are prime candidates to use load balancing to ensure that all of their clients and customers will be able to conduct their transactions in a quickly and accurately manner. Companies that need to network a great deal of computers for individual users also typically use load balancing to ensure that all computers will work properly and have the right amount of power to be able to perform the functions that they are intended to perform. It also ensures that the company will still be able to do business if one server becomes corrupted or goes down for an extended period of time.

There are several different methods that are widely used for load balancing. One of the most popular methods of load balancing is Global Server Load Balancing. This technique distributes the incoming tasks to a group of servers in a particular geographic location. This technique is widely used by companies that have a global presence and have a need to satisfy customers or employees in many different geographical locations. Using Global Server Load Balancing ensures that the work load is distributed throughout the entire server system in an easy to manage manner and ensures that all geographical locations are obtaining the correct information from the correct set of servers.

Another load balancing technique that is commonly used is called Persistence Load Balancing. This technique assigns each new client to a different server in a round robin (distributed page requests evenly to one of three Squid cache servers) type of allocation. This client is then assigned to this specific server for the future of their relationship with the business. This ensures that no one server is overloaded with a particular type of client, such as those in a certain geographical area or use a specific type of service and ensures that the clients are distributed evenly through out all of the servers that the business possesses. These server assignments are typically monitored by using the customers IP address as the customer’s unique identification code.

Source by Amy Nutt

Despite increasingly heightened security by merchants and service providers, credit and debit card fraud is still on the rise. Perpetrators are using even more sophisticated methods of infiltration to access sensitive payment card information. The financial cost of fraud to any sized corporation can be huge and the price of preventing it is vast.

Any company which stores, processes or transmits payment card data bearing the logo of the five major payment companies has to comply with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS). These five companies include American Express, Discover, JCB, MasterCard and Visa. These standards were devised in 2004 to provide a common set of industry tools for the storage of payment card data in order to prevent, detect, and react to security incidents.

As well as merchants or banking institutions, compliance is required by any third party who accepts or processes payment cards. This includes call centres who receive cardholder data which they are unable to delete. If merchants use payment gateways to process transactions on their behalf, compliance is not required but they must ensure contractual obligation from the third party that they comply with PCI DSS and are responsible for the security of cardholder data.

Fines for non-compliance or security breaches can be huge, reaching $500,000. High profile cases involving huge corporations have hit the headlines. Some card brands have threatened huge fines against larger merchants of up to $25,000 per month until compliance is obtained. In severe cases, they have even threatened to remove the ability to process credit card payments, which could be economically fatal for any merchant.

While Visa reports that the majority of security breaches occur in small enterprises, any company that stores, processes, or transmits card information has to comply with a strict set of guidelines. Although intended to create a global standard which protects both consumers and corporations alike, these guidelines can be time consuming, costly, and complex to implement. Corporations that require PCI DSS compliance are prevented from storing sensitive credit card information, including security codes, track data from the magnetic strip, and PIN numbers. Information which can be stored includes credit card numbers, expiration dates and customer details, but the method of storage needs to meet certain requirements.

How to obtain PCI DSS compliance

The recommended first step to obtaining compliance is to hire the services of a Quality Security Assessor, who can advise on steps needed to reach compliance as well as completing the official assessments required. Smaller companies that process less than 80,000 transactions per year are permitted to complete a self-assessment questionnaire.

Compliance covers 6 areas of security:

1. Construction and maintenance of a secure network – including installation of a firewall to protect cardholder data

2. Protection of cardholder data – including encryption during data transmission

3. Vulnerability management – with regular updates of anti-virus software

4. Access control – to prevent and restrict access to sensitive data

5. Regular monitoring and testing of networks

6. Maintenance of an information security policy

The latest updated guidelines for PCI DSS are due for release in October 2008.

The benefits of PCI DSS compliance

? Protection from PCI related fines if compliant at the time of breach

? Increased customer confidence in data protection

? Advice on how to remediate any data security risks

? Advice on how to prevent service providers from putting your business at risk from data security

? Increased protection from fraudsters

? Protection from unwanted negative media attention

With this said, there is no question as to why PCI DSS compliance is as important as it is. It both protects the consumer and the merchant, making transactions considerably safer than they would be otherwise.

Source by Amy Nutt

There are different types of hosting available in the hosting industry and Managed Dedicated Server Hosting is one of it. This type of hosting is generally in demand when a business need more private caution to be taken for their online presence. In the managed dedicated hosting the service provider monitors the server performance round the clock, covers all the server management responsibilities and removes all the burden from customers shoulder so that they can focus on their business to achieve the goals. Some of the most important characteristics of Managed Dedicated Hosting are explained below:

Easy Management

The managed hosting offers you a greater level of support that you can’t expect from typical hosting. It includes a wide range of server management services such as security monitoring, daily, weekly or monthly backups, Server Setup, Firewall configuration and regular updates of softwares. The server management includes much more than listed tasks.

Cheap Solution

Though, its known as the most costly hosting solution, however as it free ups your time and helps you business to produce more profit.

Better and Superior Security

Most of the businesses that are dependent on their web presence will always look for a hosting solution that takes the essential precautions to make sure their website is secured properly. The Managed Dedicated Server Hosting offers you Disaster recovery and Server backup restoration service in case if your hardware fails.

24x7x365 Monitoring

In this service your server is monitored 24x7x365 to ensure that your server is performing well. The managed hosting ensures that you get high-performance and availability as issues will be fixed as soon as it occurs.

High-Performance

This is one of our most important aspects of managed dedicated hosting. As the hardware provided by your web hosting company is never shared with any other customers. Hence, you will be the only user that will use that hardware, thus your server delivers high performance.

High-Reliability

Most of the new clients that switches to a dedicated server has to deal with a major amount of downtime, due to the technical problems. The managed hosting team is responsible to provide you a full support for all the technical queries and are always available whenever you need them.

100% Resources and Features

Managed Dedicated Server offers you a complete range of features various programming language support, different types of web applications and services and a large amount of disk space and bandwidth to host your mission critical websites.

Saves your Money

If you go opt for an unmanaged dedicated server, you need to pay someone to monitor and maintain your server. The managed hosting help you to get rid of the full time administrator as your web hosting provider will cover all the administration work.

Customer Support

Most of the Managed Hosting solutions provide round the clock customer support through Live Chat, Phone Support and Email Support (Tickets).

You have a complete freedom to use your Managed Dedicated Server Hosting to host your own business website or for reselling purpose, its all yours.

Source by Anup M

Managed IT Services are becoming an attractive proposition for companies looking to cut costs while increasing productivity.

By outsourcing IT services companies can be reassured that there IT Infrastructure is being monitored 24/7.

Remote Support

The remote desktop solution is a great way for an IT company who only wishes software updates, maintenance at a scheduled time or in case of software failure, a quick response time. Repair technicians can literally log on remotely to any clients machine and run patches, diagnose problems and upgrade software when needed. This has the added bonus of saving of a quick express turnaround, and the client can be safely reassured and get on with business.

Remote Desktop

Remote desktop or Terminal Services is a great solution for those with many offices or who wish to hold data on a central location. The user desktops are hosted across the Internet, and therefore software deploys or upgrades can easily be distributed regardless of the location of the employees.

Hosted Exchange

A great IT service which until a couple of years ago was only available to enterprise size business. Now this is available to most business. Email is hosted on a dedicated server at the managed IT provider premises, and this avoids costs of installing a maintaining complex hardware and software solutions.

When looking for a provider for the above IT services here are things to bear in mind.

Over-selling/Flooding servers – This is where the provider, over sells the servers capacity. This can cause slow response times or over saturation of the network.

24/7 monitoring – Your server information should be monitored 24/7

Data Centers – Find out where the information (data) will be held and what contingency plans there are in case of failure.

In summary, managed IT services can provide a great solution for companies who are looking to concentrate on doing business and leave the technical stuff for the technicians. With a range of services, from email and web hosting, remote desktop services, and remote support, a company can save money while increasing productivity by keeping there IT Infrastructure constantly monitored. Staffing levels can also be managed as there is no longer a need to have one or two inhouse individuals who are responsible for the IT support. Also with a managed service budgeting support is made easier as this can be scaled back or improved as the business grows or in case of downturn.

Source by Neil Maycock

In this day’s websites normally requires simple web hosting plans for smooth performance of the website and email transfer that is essential. There are two modes of hosting planes are generally available, first is Linux hosting and second one is Windows hosting. Both have several advantages and disadvantages respectively but Depending upon small business owner’s requirements suitable managed hosting plan can be selected for a specific website.

Well in most of the normal situations, the general preference of small business owners for choosing web hosting plan moves towards the Linux server hosting plans rather than window server hosting, because there are numerous optimistic factor that influence people to choose it.

Expenditure Factor

The truth is that Linux hosting plans are much economical than Windows servers plans. For all small business people the web hosting price matters vastly. They wish to receive many options or you can say facilities at a tiny expenditure. Most of them not required supreme type of security and they also do not bother whether it is MS-SQL database server or some thing else to develop their database. Thus Linux server is the best option for them at really least cost with several kinds of features.

Open Source Factor

Linux is an Open Source code and enables people from all around the world to promote their own knowledge for its development. This is one of the main reasons where Linux servers have the power to eject Windows servers far away form competitive hosting industry. Now a day’s, due to its farthest adaptability Linux becomes a unique platform for lots of fresh technologies that are mostly used in competitive hosting industry. This means that a Linux server gives you numerous features than Windows servers can does.

Scripting Language Factor

There are many scripting language available on the Internet like Perl, Python, Java, and PHP to build your site. All these scripting languages and have been developed on Linux / UNIX web servers and they do not required Microsoft support to run them. But when you use those scripting languages which can be run on windows servers like ASP.Net then you require MS-SQL to develop the database and other supports of Microsoft. Now it is easily understandable that for small business owners Linux hosting is best to host their website into the internet.

Dependability Factor

Now a day’s Linux is vastly known as really steady and dependable. This means that Linux servers are little faster, easy to use and reputed as non crushable than a Windows server. Thus, Linux servers will provide more upgraded facilities for your website at a minimum outlay.

Familiarity and Executing Speed Factor

Linux servers have years of experience for providing services than Windows servers in hosting industry. There is no such recommendable difference in executing speed between Linux servers and Windows servers, but it is viewed that Linux servers are slightly quicker in processing normal website pages.

Efficiency Factor

Windows support ASP which is a programming language supported by Microsoft, which allows people to fabricate dynamic database motivated website pages by connecting with a MS-SQL server or Access server. It increase the production cost as well. Linux neither requires ASP language nor MS-SQL databases to build dynamic database driven website pages, because it simply uses MySQL database which is freely available.

Source by Joanna Gadel

Why Dedicated Servers?

A dedicated server includes an operating system (mostly some variants of Linux or Windows) a Web server, related software (such as a MYSQL server, Control Panel and much more) and connection to the Internet, housed in the Web hosting company’s premises. It is typically required for a Web site or a group of related company sites that may develop a substantial amount of traffic. The server can usually be configured and operated remotely from the client company and you can customize the server to your own needs. It can be assigned to function only as a resource server and cannot be used as a client. The server is owned by the web host and you don’t have physical access to the server.

A dedicated web hosting is beneficial while developing a complex business or a high-end e-commerce site as you will need more space and security – a web server dedicated to your business. It is purchased by a company when they want more control of their server. They purchase or rent the hardware from the hosting company who then normally support and manage it. Internet connectivity is provided to the server, in many cases over 10 or 100 Mbit/s Ethernet. Dedicated servers are most often housed in data centers, similar to co-location facilities, providing redundant power sources and HVAC systems. You do not need a large initial investment to set it up.

Commonly, unmanaged hosting plans include hardware, operating system, web server and Internet connection. Managed plans however include the basics and pretty much everything else that the only thing you need to worry about is your web site and content.

A dedicated server could also be a computer that manages printer resources. However, it is important to note that not all servers are dedicated. In some networks, it is possible for a computer to act as a server and perform other functions as well.

If you are looking for cheaper dedicated servers, you should be careful while choosing the right specification and package. Things to consider are operating system, data backup and monitoring service, hardware options, space, bandwidth and technical support. Ask the hosting providers to give you a few websites for references, read hosting reviews before you sign up and be sure that the price is affordable. We know that the dedicated servers on this site are the one that will give you the most reliability and flexibility for your money.

Source by Shawn Burgy

After designing of website next important thing is to get it hosted on the internet. The task is not at easy as there are so many companies offering various types of web hosting packages like shared web hosting, dedicated web hosting, managed web hosting etc. Now the problem is which one to use?

In general it is considered a good idea to go for shared web hosting if the user is in a small business and wants to save cost. However before finalizing the deal it is good to know what is shared web hosting service and what are the merits and demerits of shared web hosting.

Defining shared hosting:

If extremely high performance and high bandwidth are not the points in question, then shared web hosting service can be a most convenient and economic way of hosting web sites.. As name implies, in case of shared web hosting service, the web server that hosts the web pages is shared by several other websites. Talking about number of websites on a shared hosting server, they can be in thousands. Now due to the fact that just one server is fulfilling the requirements of many other websites, the plus point is they can offer cheap prices for their server.

As there are so many websites hosted on a single web server, still there is no pint of worry for the user as the web hosting providers will not compromise on any kind of security and performance issues in case of shared hosting servers. Not only that, shared hosting web servers are operated, monitored and look after around the clock by IT professionals, so as to minimize server downtimes.

Shared hosting servers run on UNIX or other multi-user operating system and each website hosted on the web server is provided a separate account in the operating system. These websites hosted on shared servers are provided unique shared IP addresses and are provided with a fix amount of web resources.

The following are some of the merits and demerits of shared web hosting:

Merits:

1. Cost effective: Due to the fact that many websites are hosted on a single web server, web hosting providers provide economic shared web hosting services. Generally, the cost is as low as $5-10 per month for shared web hosting services. Now-a-days due to cut throat competition in web hosting industry, one can find several web hosting companies offering huge web space and bandwidth with as high as 1000 MB disk space and 40 GB bandwidth.

2. Feasible: Due to the fact that shared hosting web servers are operated, monitored and look after around the clock by IT professionals, who are experts in their respective field, one can concentrate more effectively on his/her web business and the problem of downtime and maintenance will not bother him/her any more.

3. Utility options: In case of shared web hosting, though web resources are shared, utility options are provided by the hosting company so that user can manage his/her website using control panel or similar tools. User is having an option to upload files, modify /remove web pages, add database, check web statistic etc. Not only that, user is also provided facility to create domain name specific e-mails accounts.

4. Efficient: Now-a-days shared web hosting service usually comes with web space and bandwidth that are more than sufficient for small business websites. Efficiency lies in the fact, that in addition to above, one can add more resources and can even overrun the web space or bandwidth usage.

Demerits:

1. Problem with response time: As the web server is shared, websites in the shared web hosting have to face problem of slower server response time as compared to dedicate server hosting.

2. Problem of Reliability: In case of shared web hosting, problem of reliability remains as usually web hosting providers may take care of the security and performance of the shared server but it is also possible that some of websites hosted on the shared server run a nasty program or script or over-utilize the resources, resulting in bringing down the web server. Thus due to fault of one all websites have to suffer downtimes and inaccessibility in case of shared web hosting.

3. Problems related to sharing: As discussed above also, due to fault of one all users have to face the problem for example if there is any one “bad” website in shared web server, due to it all websites on the server can be banned altogether by ISP or search engine due to shared IP address. However it is worth to note that one can always pay extra to get a dedicated IP address to avoid the above problem.

4. Problems related to Security: As many websites shared one server, problem of security always remains in case of shared web hosting as it is quite easy to hack one’s sensitive datas by another on the same server.

Thus in conclusion it can be said that before deciding to deal with shared web hosting, one should consider all the merits and demerits of shared web hosting as highlighted above. One should not forget the success of his/her business depends upon his/her website which in turn depends upon good host provider.

Source by Web Hosting

Too Big for a Small Business

As businesses began to increase their focus on having reliable and available data centers, data centers began to grow in size and complexity. No longer a single room housing a comparatively simple computer system, businesses now required very large Internet data centers. These large data centers are expensive to run, expensive to maintain, and expensive to staff.

These huge data facilities were out of the reach of many small businesses. These smaller organizations also needed the high speed Internet connectivity and high availability of data, but they did not have the resources to build such physically large and expense data centers. Even the equipment required for such an endeavor was often out of the financial reach of a small business.

The Advent of Data Center Outsourcing

Private data centers became the go-to solution for small to medium business information technology needs. Data center outsourcing grew in popularity, largely because it was a practical and financially more viable solution to the problems created by huge, on-site data centers.

Not only are outsourced data centers more affordable, they also lift much of the heavy responsibility from the business. Disaster recovery, adhering to industry standards, ensuring a secure and hospitable environment for information storage and management, and many other practical concerns can make in-house data centers a logistical nightmare. When organizations place their trust in an off-site data center, they do not need to shoulder this burden alone.

What to Look For in Outsourcing Data Storage

When you outsource your data center responsibilities, you want to be selective in your choice of a data storage partner. Every moment that you network is not up and running, your business is being affected. A high availability data center will place a great deal of emphasis on the following:

– Skilled IT Professionals: A data center is only as good as its staff. Security and networking teams need to be well-trained, skilled, and experienced. Network technicians need to be trained to the highest industry standards.

– Proper Environment: The environment of a data center is of the utmost importance. There must be an uninterruptible power supply or backup generator, a highly sensitive HVAC system to filter air, a fire suppression system, and proper installation of equipment.

– High Level of Security: Your data needs to be protected, and the first level of defense is the physical security of the building. There should be controlled access, video surveillance, and extensive employee background checks.

– Top of the Line Equipment: Network infrastructure is one of the most important aspects of data center planning. When selecting a data center, make sure equipment selection and infrastructure set-up receive the emphasis they deserve.

– Strict Adherence to Standards: Industry standards are around for a reason. They help make sure data centers provide high quality service, maximum availability, and top-shelf security measures.

The Advantage of Outsourcing

In house data centers simply cannot offer the same kind of reliability and economic viability as off-site data centers. An organization must allow its focus to remain on the health of its business operations, rather than getting bogged down in the details of managing data. Outsourcing your data center allows you to keep your focus where it should be: on your own organization.

The complicated and expensive nature of today’s data center needs make it impractical for a company to expend huge amounts of resources on an in-house data center. It just doesn’t make good financial sense. Instead, outsourcing your data center allows you to put those resources back into your company, further strengthening your organization.

Source by A. Nutt

Are you a web designer and have a number of websites that you have created for your clients?
The easiest and most effective way of managing multiple websites is to host them in one place.

I would advise that you sign up with a web hosting company if you are unable to host the websites on your own. This requires infrastructure like servers and substantial bandwidth. It is also time consuming maintaining this infrastructure like making updates, providing data and power backup. Ensure that you research the web host before signing up. Inquire about the reliability,
customer support among other factors. Choose a web host that allows you host multiple domains and sub-domains with unlimited web space and gives you good bandwidth. Better still you could sign up for a reseller account that allows you easily manage multiple websites. There are web hosts that allow you setup a reseller account and create and manage multiple domains or websites. You create control panels for these accounts where the user can manage their domain or website with very little help from you. The control panel allows them change passwords, create email accounts, etc.

Some web hosts even offer reseller accounts that have a billing manager to manage payments. You can even acquire extra domains at discounted prices. The reseller accounts also have Private Name Servers that you could use to customize your reseller account.

There are web hosting companies that give you dedicated IP addresses from say 1 – 16. Take note of extra features that may be given like free domain name registration.

Source by Ken Kachope

There are five main methods for a company to host a website; in-house, co-location, shared, dedicated and ‘dedicated and managed’. The choice regarding which method will be used depends upon the technical skills of the in-house staff and the requirements of the business.

Hosting Options: The in-house solution involves the company itself purchasing all necessary software and hardware together with the leasing of a high speed internet connection. One of the main considerations of in-house hosting is that the company is required to employ system administrators to maintain all aspects of running the site such as; security, monitoring site responsiveness, reliability and backups. The costs involved in running an in house server are considerable. The largest cost by far is the expense of employing trained and experienced personnel to deal with all aspects of running the server.

Co-location allows companies to locate their server hardware in a location owned by the hosting company. The hosting company provides the bandwidth, an IP address and the electrical power to the server. The advantages of co-location include; a low cost for the bandwidth provided, control over what hardware is used and a UPS in the form of independent generators. Disadvantages include not having immediate physical access to the hardware and the difficulties associated with finding a provider that offers this service which is local to the business.

One common method of hosting a web site is through a shared web server provided by a hosting company. Multiple web sites from various companies are located on one server with the hardware resources and internet connection being shared between all sites. Shared web server services are only suitable for sites which generate a small amount of traffic and are available at a fairly low cost. The main drawbacks are; limitations on bandwidth, no control over the operating system software and security breaches on another site which is hosted on the same server could affect the site.

The term dedicated web-server refers to the rental and exclusive use of a computer that includes a Web server, related software, and connection to the

Internet, housed in the Web hosting company’s premises. With the dedicated approach a server is leased from a hosting company which is responsible for maintaining the hardware and internet connection while the company that owns the web site has unlimited access to the operating system, software applications, and database applications through the ‘control panel’ provided by the hosting company. Upon further investigation, dedicated hosting companies – such as Donhost Ltd – often supply the server with the necessary software and employ technicians to take care of configuration, security updates and provide advice. Dedicated hosting can cost from around £1,000 to £5,000 per year depending on the requirements of the web site. Most dedicated web hosting companies now offer servers with a pre-installed operating system and server/security software in addition to offering some level of technical support and backup procedures.
There is usually a need to use a dedicated web server when the use of a web site produces a considerable amount of traffic. The main advantages of using a dedicated server are a high level of reliability, a high bandwidth and efficient user response times.

‘Dedicated and Managed Hosting’ refers to a service similar to the dedicated web-server approach with the added advantage of being able to choose from a variety of technical services from the hosting company such as; monitoring, advice, administration, support, security, updates and upgrades, testing and troubleshooting.

In conclusion the main factors surrounding the choice between the various hosting methods are cost, in-house expertise, expected bandwidth/traffic and the level of service. Sites with highly sensitive information, high volume, or special software requirements will probably need a dedicated server.

Source by Mark Jones