Virtual Private Server (VPS) Web Hosting
Before plunging into the nitty-gritty, let me interject on behalf of those who might not have the time to pore over each and every page .. by saying » after considerable research, and after comparing the plans of many different web hosting providers (drum-roll, please), I came to the conclusion that » WiredTree offered the best VPS hosting package.
Mini-update » After posting this guide, I've noticed interesting specs & pricing for numerous VPS providers contained in the ads (hosted by Google) seen throughout these pages. Worth investigating, if you have the time to compare features. </update>
No, WiredTree didn't have the prettiest website, or the coolest name. And it's possible your web hosting criteria may differ from mine. But nothing I've seen in the months since our move has caused me to regret my decision. (No buyer's remorse here.)
In other words, WiredTree continues to exceed expectations. The only thing they ever refused to help me with was working some Apache mojo .. to "radify" (alias *.html to » *.rad) some of my web pages with mod_rewrite. But I didn't expect them to, anyway. Tho, that didn't stop me from asking.
When selecting a web host, numerous factors deserve consideration .. such as » prompt responses (to our questions) from technical support, and deploying recent versions of popular web technologies, such as » Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP, Perl, WHM/cPanel, Fantastico, etc, and (most importantly) » daily back-ups (to name a few).
Before addressing the specific factors that influenced my decision, let me say that (prior to deciding) I reviewed many of the lists you find posted on the web titled "Top 10 VPS Web Hosting Providers." And I've come to the conclusion that providers listed on these pages must be paying for placement ..
.. because many of these so-called "top-ranked" providers suk. See for yourself. Compare their plans (like I did) with those of unlisted hosting providers.
Reasons I Chose WiredTree as our VPS Web Host
• Quick responses to my emails, which inquired about the details of their hosting plans .. even after normal business hours (well after). I really like not having to wait until the next business day (like I did with Spry), or until after the weekend is over (like with ServInt Sales) .. in order to get my questions answered.
When I'm ready to research a host, I like someone on the other end to answer questions .. be that phone, email, live chat, whatever.
But don't take my word. Send them an email, asking some basic hosting question. Better yet, send it at 3AM (Chicago time), and you'll see what I mean. This is the best support I've ever had. Period.
• The WiredTree Sales and Support people seem to be one and the same. They seemed genuinely interested in answering my questions (especially Joe). Whereas other hosts sometimes act as if my questions annoyed them. (I admit: I *do* ask many questions, and I can be, uh, "persistent" if my questions receive vague answers.)
• WiredTree employs recent versions of popular web technologies, such as PHP 5.x, MySQL 5.x, and CentOS 5. You might think (as I did) that *all* web hosts today would be using current web technologies, but (surprisingly) this isn't true. Some hosts weren't even close to current.
If a company did not offer (as a minimum) default installations that included PHP 5.x, MySQL 5.x and Apache 2.x, I would not even consider them. They were automatically rejected.
• A Chicago-based data center makes WiredTree centrally located .. for all US visitors (which represent the bulk of my reader-base). A host located on the West coast would've been okay (since I live in SoCal). But I did not want to host with a company based on the East coast, such as ServInt (Virginia/DC), which would've handicapped me with slower response times.
• WiredTree takes security seriously (even more than I do). Nice to know, since getting hacked is never much fun.
• Software updates. Like I already mentioned, you start with up-to-date software .. and WiredTree keeps you current. This includes regular updates for things like the operating system, cPanel/WHM, and patches for newly discovered high-risk vulnerabilities.
Other things, such as updates to the latest version of PHP, are done upon request (since these updates can affect the function of your currently-employed scripts).
Also worth noting .. is that your control panel can limit your choice of software options. For example, our server currently runs version 5.0.45 of MySQL. Upgrading to version 5.1 is not possible because the current version of cPanel does not support anything beyond MySQL 5.0.x (currently v5.0.51b).
My reasons for choosing WiredTree as our VPS web host continue (and conclude) on the next page. See below for linkage.