With lowering costs of hardware and so called plug and play server applications many companies are considering hosting their own web servers versus having sites hosted by ISP's. On several occasions we have been called in after the decision has been made only to watch the process disintegrate into a chaotic mess because the client failed to take into account the real world variables involved with hosting a web site.

At MMD, we have historically not become involved in the setting up or support of web servers. It is not that we do not know how to do it, it is simply a matter of resources and corporate liability that we choose not to. However, since our end product typically must interface with whatever server our clients have chosen, we do have opinions and experience which you may find valuable.

At MMD, we have a distinct bias against Microsoft Server Apps such as MS 2002 Server and IIS. The reason is quite simple; it has a long distinguished history of insecurity. With every proclamation by Microsoft on its security, shortly thereafter, new security holes are revealed. The last round exposed 10 specific security issues with the IIS product.

Another issue we have with MS Server is that we have never seen a single server installation achieve the same up-time percentages as other server applications. The typical MS server installation that we have seen usually involves multiple MS Server Boxes, so that as one Server is rebooting, another takes over the load.

Many MS aficionados will correctly point out that other web server installations will also have multiple box installations, which is true. However, those choices are based on hardware reliability and load and not inherent software issues, such as locking up.

The application of choice in our mind is Unix/Apache. Unix in one form or another is the de-facto standard for the web. The Apache server is the server of choice for millions of web sites for a reason, it is well tested and secure while Unix is an inherently stable platform. Plus both have the advantage of being free while MS Server is around $700.

PC based platforms running Linux and Unix has become popular as web servers although for industrial strength servers; Sun is still the platform of choice. The major drawback to Sun however is cost. The basic configuration of a PC based server, no matter what the underlying server software should include dual power supplies, RAID with hot swappable drives. Good practice for mission critical web sites would also include a backup server. A large UPS capable of handling the server for several hours should also be included.

Based on the above configuration guidelines, a basic server installation would cost round $5000 minimum. In addition to that you must also factor in suitable routers and other connectivity hardware, which could potentially add $1000, plus to the installation.

The biggest ongoing cost for most server installations will be net access. We have seen several clients who have been told that an ISDN installation is suitable for a small web server application. Our general feeling is that the minimum bandwidth, which should be considered, is DSL or cable. The cost of these connections can range from under $200/mo to around $500/month. Partial and full T1 access generally runs from $600/month plus to well over a $1000/month.

The biggest single drawback that we see to going in house with a web server is support. Very few companies have staff on hand with the expertise to set up and maintain a web server. Staying abreast of security patches alone is almost a full time job. This means that most companies will need to contract out web server support, which will be expensive. Virtually no one in the industry with the requisite expertise will support a server with any time guarantees without a service contract. A standard one-day response service contract will typically run $200+/month which means your web site may be down for more than a day even with a contract. Four-hour response contracts usually cost in excess of $400/month. This is on top of the initial server setup and configuration fees.

At MMD we have conducted several cost studies on the inherent real world cost of web servers for small to mid sized companies and generally our finding are that until a company reaches a point where hosting costs exceed $1000/month, most companies are better off having their sites hosted by an ISP who maintains the hardware and OS systems. Even then the cost benefits are minimal and we really only see significant returns on investments when companies have in house IS departments.

An alternative solution that can in certain circumstances make sense is co-locating a server. In this situation, the business owns the hardware and contracts out connectivity and local hardware support to a service. Where we have seen this work well is when a web application is very hardware intensive such as search engines, special web server application systems such as Cold Fusion or high traffic sites along with streaming media applications. A careful examination and analysis however is called for before entering into a co-located agreement since there are many pitfalls to avoid.

Choosing an ISP Web Host:
The primary consideration for most business concerns is going to be cost. This however should be tempered with consideration for service and uptime along with available resources. We have for example found very scalable plans for domain hosting as low as $14.95/month with a company that has excellent reliability and support. Conversely we have been brought in on projects where the hosting fees have been outrageous and the service and reliability are sub-standard.

Minimally you should look for hosts that support cgi scripting, online databases of which MySql is a standard, 99%+ guaranteed uptime and a e-commerce backbone if you have that need. Further your hosting should include a full statistics package for site usage analysis and basic mail administration functions for users. When choosing you should also pay particular attention to bandwidth limitations and fees!

Summation:
For most companies, in house hosting of a web server will not make financial sense. The economy of scale enjoyed by most ISP's and web hosting services are significantly attractive enough to warrant contracting those services out of house. Sharing the cost of a T-3 or better across several clients makes more sense than supporting a partial T-1 in most instances. Further, allowing companies with an invested interest in maintaining server OS systems is very attractive over contracting such services for an in house server.

Our final advice therefore is to look closely before you take this step.

Copyright © 2002 Rick Williams

Multi-Media Design
P.O. Box 397
Newburgh, IN USA 47629-0397
Ph: (812) 858-0333 Fax: (812)-858-1136
email: info@themmd.com