Q1
Will I be sharing my managed server with any other users ?
No, the Managed Server service is specifically for one client only.
Q2
What happens if my server starts to run slow ?
We always over spec our servers to clients to cater for their growing needs however
should the server start to slow down due to heavy usage we will recommend a hardware
upgrade to the existing server, such as memory. We will always endeavour to keep
the cost as low as possible to you and will pass on any hardware costs from our
supplier at cost. We can also increase bandwidth to the server for a small monthly
fee.
Q3
I have approached other hosting companies and their prices seem cheaper than yours,
why is this?
As the saying goes "You get what you pay for". We provide our managed servers on
HP hardware. The server is designed with redundant hardware down to the component
level to make them as reliable as possible. We do not want your server offline any
more than you do therefore we provide the best possible hardware for the job which
we know our cheaper competitors do not. We have been doing this for many years now
and this is why our customers continue to renew their Managed Servers with us.
Q4
Your server contracts are for three years yet I know other companies offer monthly
server contracts which can be terminated at any time. Why do you not offer this
?
We always obtain new server hardware and software for our managed servers to ensure
you get the latest technologies. This means we lease a server on behalf of the client
which covers the contract period. If the client cancelled their managed server contract
with us during the contract period we would be left with hardware which we cannot
redeploy that we still have to pay for. Many host providers do not tell you that
the server you are using may well have been used by another client before you. They
tend to run server farms which takes the next available, already running server
to deploy new customers to. At Total Web Solutions your Managed Server is bespoke
to you and the contract period and termination reflects this.
Q5
What are support incidents and why do I need them ?
All technical support incidents are logged regardless of whether it is for a Managed
Server or other service. With a Managed Server however support incidents tend to
be more in-depth and actually require an engineer to spend a lot of time investigating
it. Each managed server comes with 5 support incidents a month which are over and
above the standard support we offer. For instance we are often asked to archive
logs and other data on a Managed Server which is essentially one support incident.
Some examples of what a Managed Server support incident consists of are below:
-
Change configuration of IIS or Apache
- Archive logs
- Change server file permissions
- Run diagnostics, such as memory or CPU.
- Produce bespoke logging or graphing
data on server resources
Q6
What sort of information can I store on my managed server ?
It is up to you what information you store on your server as long as it is within
the law. In particular copyright, data protection and deformation law must be adhered
to. We would always ask before setting up a Managed Server as to its use and advise
accordingly.
Q7
What if I choose not to allow backups of my Managed Server ?
We always strongly advise that we perform a server backup at least every month.
A server backup will ensure that should there be a hardware fault and we have to
replace the hardware that we can get it back up and running to a near original state.
Otherwise we can only restore the server to its original configuration which usually
does not include your bespoke files. Be aware that without a backup it will affect
your Service Level Agreement in that we can only restore the server to its original
configuration as opposed to your last known running configuration.
Q8
I have a number of files that I require to be uploaded to my Managed Server in advance
of it going live. Would it be possible to send a disk with these files as opposed
to trying to upload these files over the Internet ?
We offer this service free of charge as long as it is prior to the server going
live. We want to facilitate the install as much as possible and are happy to install
files from disk or memory stick.
Q9
What if my Managed Server has to be replaced because of a hardware fault, how will
you know how to get the server back to how it was ?
Each managed server we setup is recorded in a build record which spans many pages.
This build record is unique to your server and facilitates a server rebuild if required.
Some of the build records we have in place currently cover over 100 pages of configuration
information so we take disaster recovery practices seriously.
Q10
Who will own the hardware at the end of the contract period ?
The server hardware is owned by the leasing company and can be purchased at the
end of the contract period for a nominal price (usually one to two months rental).
We rarely get requests for the hardware afterwards but are happy to obtain the hardware
on the clients behalf and ship to the client directly at the clients expense.
Q11
Why do you charge a setup, I know other host providers offer free setup ?
As mentioned we provide a bespoke installation for each Managed Server customer.
This means we have to cover the cost of obtaining the hardware and installation
up front and cover the cost of the server contractually by way of a lease. As it
is a lease there is a risk to us should the customer not complete the contract period
because they have gone out of business say. We mitigate a portion of this risk by
obtaining a portion of the server costs up front. In previous years we have offered
a no setup service to Managed Server customers, which has resulted in losses to
our business through companies that have entered bankruptcy. Therefore it was decided
to meet the customer half way by having a small setup charge (usually 10% of the
contract value).