Application hosting

Server Type

When it comes to setting up a server to host a web app, you have three options: Hybrid, Cloud, and Dedicated Servers. The server type you select is primarily based on the amount of visitors you anticipate on your website, as well as the server resources required to power the site.

Dedicated Servers are the most powerful option for app hosting. They allow full customization of hardware such as processor, disk configuration, and RAM. Hosting an app on a Dedicated Server means that you are the only site being hosted on the server and can use all system resources. As Dedicated Servers can be more expensive than other hosting options, they are more popular for businesses and other revenue generating projects.

Cloud Servers are the right choice for sites that may increase or decrease in volume quickly, as they can be instantly scaled to your needs. This means you can increase or decrease system resources as needed in the event of a surge in traffic. Cloud Servers spread your web app’s content across hundreds of servers to deliver 100% uptime and the most redundant configuration of any server type.

Hybrid Servers are best for smaller sites that don’t require the dedicated resources or scalability of other server types. They utilize the same technology behind Virtual Private Servers, with less tenants per server. This delivers superior performance when compared to traditional VPS hosting.

Processor Requirements

The processor you select for your web app will greatly impact how efficiently your website pages are delivered to visitors, as well as how many visitors your site will be able to accommodate in the future.

Start by reviewing the system requirements recommended by the application you are looking to host. This should give you a good starting point when reviewing processors. Xeon E3 processors are a good starting point for sites with moderate traffic. For larger ecommerce or community sites that have heavy database usage, a Dual Xeon processor provides incredible processing power and performance.

Hard Drive Type

There are three main types of storage disks: Hard Disk Drive (HDD), Solid State Drive (SSD), and NvME. SSD and NvME drives provide significantly faster I/O performance compared to HDD, so they are the best choices for any web app hosting that demands optimal website speed. These drives will allow your visitors to access site resources at blazing fast speeds and are great for running the databases that web applications use.

Data redundancy is an important aspect in application hosting. RAID is a great option for maintaining disk integrity. It duplicates and stripes data across multiple hard drives to ensure that no data is lost in the event of a drive failure. RAID is ideal for any server hosting websites that needs to remain online 24x7.

Network Routes

When setting up an application hosting server, it’s important to choose a provider that uses premium network routes. This ensures that users connecting to your website around the globe will not experience unnecessary latency or connectivity issues.

Take a look at the network upstream providers that your app hosting provider utilizes. A company that stands by its connections will provide you with IPs and files to test against in order to see how it performs to your location.

You should also look for a provider that offers Tier 1 connectivity and redundant network routes. A Tier 1 network is a network that can reach every other network on the Internet solely via settlement-free peering. This guarantees problem-free connectivity as the network doesn’t rely on paying peers.

Another important factor is the Service Level Agreement (SLA) that the provider guarantees on network connectivity. A web app server needs to be accessible at all times, so look for a provider that offers a 100% network uptime guarantee.

Network Speed and Bandwidth

Your provider will offer you the option of selecting the speed of the network port connected to your server, as well as the amount of data that can be used each month on that network port. The amount of bandwidth you require will depend upon the number of visitors to your site, as well as how much traffic the average user will use. For new websites, the default bandwidth plan included will likely be sufficient for your needs as many providers start at 10TB of traffic included per month. For existing sites, look at your historical bandwidth usage to find the perfect bandwidth plan.

Look for a provider that offers a variety of bandwidth plans and network ports. The provider should offer 1Gbps ports standard and it’s also a good idea to choose a provider that offers 10Gbps ports, just in case your app needs it in the future.

DDoS Protection

Every website server on the internet is vulnerable to a Distributed Denial of Service attack. Server botnets target a server in order to take it offline, often for a ransom. Adding DDoS protection to your app hosting services provides advanced protection against all known DDoS attack types.

When DDos protection is engaged, traffic is continuously filtered through DDoS protection appliances, resulting in no delay in protection when an attack begins. Industry leading DDoS appliances can detect attacks and mitigate them within 0 to 90 seconds.