VPS Hosting Database questions.

[sabretache]

I run a few sites with another provider whose service I can't fault.

I recently started a shared hosting reseller account with them. However, I have increasingly run into problems relating to php configuration in a shared hosting environment. I am not convinced by some the answers I have been given either - ie a refusal to configure php 5.3.0 to handle Sqlite because of 'shared hosting implications for other users' (since when was providing an additional facility going to be a turn-off or have any adverse consequences for other users I ask - The answer I suspect is that it would detract from their Mysql income but no matter).

Their servers are all Windows based too - no Linux - which regularly throws up niggling time-consuming little problems since my internal development environment is Xampp Apache.

It has been suggested I move to their Hyper-V VPS service so I've looked at VPS quite carefully. It's clear to me that VPS is the way to go for me. However, I also think a Linux/Apache set up would be a far better option than Windows given my already considerable time/learning curve investment in XAMPP and the obvious benefits of having identical development and hosting server set-ups.

So; question:

What are the charges over and above the Hosting UK Linux VPS Business plan to set it up as a reseller system and account?

I'd also be grateful for any other observations thought relevant.

Oh and is that 'free domain name for life' offer still open?

[IanSmithISA]

Good morning,

I have very little experience of SQLite so I am happy to be corrected, but my understanding of it is that it is a file access database library rather than a database server.

If you use a file access database library (which includes JET/ MS Access) and give it a simple query such as

SELECT col1 FROM table1 WHERE KeyValue = something

and then ask it to do the same thing again, it will reevaluate the whole query because the database library has no way of knowing that it has just done it. In practice and on small datasets you might see some performance improvements on the second and subsequent execution as the OS may have cached the areas of the disc that need to be read.

These sort of libraries can very quickly become disc bound, which is a problem for all hosts with servers and shared users, if you have your own server it's just your problem

A database server such as MySQL/SQL Server/PostgreSQL can be aware that this query has been run and return the result without executing the query all all, it can be aware of frequently use tables and indexes and choose to cache them in RAM and all sorts of other tricks to reduce disk access and processor load.

I have a VPS and I would hope that the hosting company is looking at accounts that have Access/SQLite type databases to make sure that they are not gobbling up too much disc access. As I understand it, the VPSs here don't get their own physical hard disc, so someone thrashing the disc using Access will affect the performance of my virtual disc.

I am curious why you want to use SQLite if MySQL or SQLServer is available? SQLite's strengths are it's free and it doesn't require configuring as a server process, neither of these seem to be relevant in this case.

My own personal view on choosing to host on Windows or Linux is in part based on the type of sites that are to be developed, I believe that Windows/ASP.Net/SQL Server is a faster development environment then Linux/PHP/MySQL/PostgreSQL but that ASP.Net sites require more resources. If you are confident in one of these two environment swapping to the other is no great hassle. Given that there are Express versions of Dev Studio and SQL Server I can't understand why you would develop on Linux and deploy on Windows though.

Bye

Ian

[sabretache]

Ian

Interesting observations. Thanks.

On Sqlite I have no doubt that there is the real possibility of the sort of system performance degradation you describe and, to give my existing hosts their due, that is probably the dominant reason for their refusal. The reason I considered Sqlite was simple: It was to implement a WebCalendar application with just 5 users. I've installed it many times, all others with Mysql but, the hosting plan that this particular site sits on only provides Mysql at extra cost - albeit just £25 pa. So I thought 'what the hell' with the biggest installed user base of any database on the entire planet ( taking mobile phones etc into account - sqlite.org.) I'll give it whirl. Worked like a dream on my development system but Hosting Company said no, so I ended up forking out another 25 quid.

I agree your Windows/Linux comparison observations. Thing is, whilst I've managed a few sites going way back to the mid-1990's, I'm only just embarking on a serious developer/reseller type venture. Most of my previous stuff was done with MS Frontpage and I was never much interested in the pros and cons of the hosting environment itself (other than its having FP extensions). Things have moved on light-years from FP and thus everything I've done over the past 6 months has, without giving it much thought, simply defaulted to using XAMPP/Apache/php/Mysql plus a host of gradually aquired tools and trying hard to maintain rigorous w3c standards. It's been a steep learning curve and I don't feel inclined to install a whole new set of tools and another development platform. Also, the niggles produced by testing on one platform and installing on another, whilst manageable, are irritating and time-consuming. I think I'd rather be shot of them altogether.

Actually, as an aside, I did download a whole pile of the latest free MS stuff a few weeks ago - bloody near a Gb of it as I remember! It caused me no end of grief trying to get it going and a whole lot more cleaning the machine up and restoring it to its status quo ante so to speak when I finally decided it was just too much hassle. A whole day wasted - or rather to learn that making such basic changes is something not to be undertaken lightly. I'm not a particular enemy of MS but Bill Gates is rich enough and, for all kinds of reasons, I'm attracted to the Open Source movement and would like to support it when there are no serious downsides.

[Jan]

Originally Posted by sabretache

So; question:

What are the charges over and above the Hosting UK Linux VPS Business plan to set it up as a reseller system and account?

I'd also be grateful for any other observations thought relevant.

Oh and is that 'free domain name for life' offer still open?

You may consider Linux VPS Business plan to resell hosting service. You will just have to pay for the Linux VPS Business plan i.e. £28 per month and £5 per month for cPanel/WHM.

No setup charges or hidden fees.

Originally Posted by James

We at Webhosting.uk.com are pleased to announce FREE Domain name registration/transfer with all the Linux/Windows shared and reseller hosting plans

The Offer is still open for Linux/Windows shared and reseller hosting plans only.