Managed Hosting
Managed hosting is a dedicated server that is accompanied
by a full suite of technical support, maintenance and monitoring
services. This differs from dedicated Web hosting, where
customers are provided with their own servers but are still
responsible for virtually all administrative and maintenance
duties.
Managed hosting are meant for those websites that are designed
to host busy e-commerce sites and dynamic, database driven
Web pages. Perfect for organizations that dont have the
time or capital to invest in server administration.
MANAGED SERVER = DEDICATED SERVER + COMPLETE SUPPORT TO
SERVER ADMINISTRATION
A managed server will come equipped with all the features
of a dedicated server, plus instead of leaving most of the
administrative tasks to the customer, a managed provider
will typically handle that as well.
Many companies will often assign you a dedicated service
representative who will cater only to you and a handful
of other accounts. This support also comes in the form of
proprietary control panel technology that enables the inexperienced
administrator to easily set up and maintain sites on a server.
This is achieved through an intuitive and user friendly
point and click method rather than by typing complicated
commands at a prompt line.
Hosting companies offer a supplementary suite of features
and services that related to managed hosting, including
application and database management, high-availability services
and load balancing. These hosting companies will back up
their services with performance guarantees and Service Level
Agreements.
Unmanaged services, on the other hand, give the customer
complete remote server administration capability and freedom.
The downside to this is that unmanaged servers require a
large amount of time and technical expertise, as the customer
is ultimately responsible for the instillation and management
of the server - not the Web host. For this reason, unmanaged
servers are only recommended for individuals and companies
with extensive server administration resources or expertise,
as well as a significant amount of time available to take
care of the server.
Conclusion on managed hosting
If you're unsure about which service to choose, give serious
consideration to choosing a managed server. While taking
the managed route is more expensive, it is also much more
reassuring for the inexperienced administrator. Remember,
you can always downgrade your account to an unmanaged service
later, once you've acquired some expertise in server administration.
Though once you opt for the personal attention you will
receive through a managed host, you might think twice of
turning into an unmanaged service later on.
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