Webservers

Cantab.

Will probably need to go dedicated soon enough...

Very expensive by the looks of things!

If I bought my own server rack (i.e. quad-core dell with maybe 4GB of RAM, RAID, running RedHat), what kind of data connection would I need? How much would this cost? Normal consumer ADSL connection? What would happen if I did this?! How reliable would this connection be?

Also, electricity is a factor... How much would this cost on a 24x7 operation?

So, really I'd like to know how much of a saving I could expect by going down the DIY route?

CoNfOuNd

I'd highly recommend you have your server professionally co-located. A business ADSL line will not be suitable!

The cost of electricity has increased significantly, but you are still better having your server in a datacentre environment with multiple power supplies and backup generators.

You may make a saving by going the DIY route, but it won't be worth it once you start experiencing power and connectivity problems.

Bob the Builder

IMO go co-located.

a normal adsl connection would buckle, and the problems you will experience will be unreal. save yourself the hassle, co-locate it and make the money back on a few ads.

mneylon

Running a server in your office is not practical for a number of reasons.

You can get a dedicated server from about 150 euro / month and it's going to be a lot more reliable than anything you try to run of a DSL line

Cantab.

Thanks for all the input!

I think the datacentre option sounds like the best option...

CoNfOuNd

Also I'd recommend that once you choose a datacentre, you buy the server yourself from Dell and have it delivered directly to the datacentre for setup/installation.

Sposs

not all datacentres will unpack and set-up your new server, especially a co-located server so check with each provider, fully managed is cheaper and more secure in the long run.

mneylon

Sposs wrote: »

not all datacentres will unpack and set-up your new server, especially a co-located server so check with each provider, fully managed is cheaper and more secure in the long run.

Most of the data centers wouldn't do server installs. I can imagine several of them rolling around the floor laughing at the idea

colm_c

If you just want a basic OS install just talk to one of the hosting companies and they'll be able to setup and install the server once delivered to them.

Depending what you want to do, managed, VPS, Cloud computing like Amazon ec2 could also be options.