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Avoiding
Web Hosting Nightmares
Tips
for choosing a reliable hosting service for your Web site and what to do
if you have problems from About.com
You've finished
your site and chosen the perfect (or at least the best available)
domain
name. You think your headaches are over. All that's left is to choose
a Web
hosting service, upload your site to their server,
and you're set -- right? Not necessarily. I am hearing more and more stories
of Web hosting nightmares. Including situations where:
-
the host server is
down for extended periods of time
-
email is inaccessible
for days or even weeks
-
FTP access is unavailable
-
domain name registration
fees aren't paid
These problems can
cause irreparable damage to an online enterprise. So, what can you do?
First, let's look at how to improve your chances of choosing a reliable
hosting service, then we'll consider what to do if, in spite of your best
efforts, you get caught in a Web hosting nightmare.
How
to Choose a Hosting Service
Identify Your
Basic Requirements
-
Do you need a secure
server, CGI-bin access, FrontPage extensions, streaming audio or video,
database access, or other specific capabilities?
-
How much server space
and data transfer will you need?
-
What are your email
needs -- autoresponders, redirects, number of boxes?
-
How much are you
willing to pay?
Make a List of
Expected & Desired Services
-
Is technical and
customer support available by telephone?
-
During what hours
is technical support available?
-
Are upgrades in service
plans available in case your requirements change?
-
How long before your
account is active?
-
Are domain name registration
services available?
-
Are site usage statistics
provided?
-
Is access to raw
log files available?
-
Is online documentation
available?
-
Is online account
access provided?
-
Is there a money
back guarantee?
-
Is server uptime
guaranteed?
-
Are flexible contract
lengths available? (You may want to try the service for a few months before
agreeing to a long-term contract.)
-
What type of server
will your site be hosted on? (UNIX, Microsoft)
-
What is the server
connection speed and its distance to a major Internet backbone?
Then comes what is
perhaps the most important step....
Look Before
You Leap
How can you tell
if a hosting company is likely to be reliable and responsive? Do as much
research as possible.
-
Look for companies
that meet your requirements and check ratings of their services in Hosting
Directories. (Check to see how the ratings were determined on each
site.)
-
Ask about specific
companies or the experiences of others in the Hosting Experiences folder
in the Web
Design Forum.
-
Search the Google
newsgroups for references to companies you are considering.
Take Nothing for
Granted
After your site
is located on a server, it never hurts to keep an eye on it. You may become
aware of a problem before it can cause damage to your business. Site monitoring
services, such as NetMechanic
Server Check or Alerta,
monitor your Web server 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, at given intervals,
alerting you if your server goes down.
What
to Do About Hosting Problems
While it would be
unreasonable to expect no problems whatsoever (computers and the Internet
being what they are), hosting problems should be few, far between, and
of very short duration. Unfortunately, once your site is located on
a server, quick and easy remedies are often difficult to come by. However,
as in dealing with any incompetence or negligence, I strongly urge you
to make as much noise as possible.
-
Contact the hosting
service and ask them to immediately remedy the situation. Ask for a
time frame in which you can expect the remedy to be effective. Take notes
of who you talk to and when. If the solution or time frame is not reasonable
or improvement in the situation simply doesn't happen, escalate the
complaint to a supervisor or other manager.
-
Move your site
if problems are persistent. It's cheaper in the long run. If you are unable
to change servers because you cannot receive a move confirmation email,
contact your InterNIC
registrar. There are solutions available for problem situations. If
you are unsure of your registrar, your new hosting service will most likely
be willing to help.
Share your
experiences. The Internet is a surprisingly small place for a worldwide
entity. The willingness of each of us to share our experiences gives us
unprecedented power as consumers. If we share our hosting experiences,
we can help each other avoid nightmare situations. The Web
Design Forum is a perfect place to do just that -- there's a topic
category for discussions of hosting experiences. If you have a horror story
of your own, I hope you'll take a moment to post it there. Not only will
we all benefit -- but it feels good to vent, too! Likewise, let us know
if you've had long-standing good experiences with a hosting company. When
reviewing comments (either good or bad) be sure to note the timeliness
of any posts -- sometimes bad services can fix their problems and become
good services, or good companies can develop problems.
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