Linux managed server or Windows managed server: Which is more apt for you?

If you are running a business, you would surely like to maximize the scope of profit. In order to achieve this, you need to maximize the scalability, value and performance of the infrastructure that you are using. At the same time, you should also be careful enough to improve the user experience. If you are puzzled to run a lot of critical applications, you should opt for managed hosting server. It’s a solution that has been designed in a way so that it works for specific business needs and the particular infrastructure of a business.

Wondering why you should opt for managed hosting server? Well, there are multiple reasons. With these services, you don’t need to worry about managing the platform, and you can also access the latest technological advancements without paying the upgrade costs. While the benefits of managed server are quite obvious, you need to choose between a Linux based solution and a Windows managed server. While choosing between these two, you need to consider which would be more relevant for your business and the jobs that you are going to perform.

Here are some of the factors that you need to consider while choosing between these two –

·        Security – One of the most important aspects that you need to take care of while choosing a server is security. Both Windows as well as Linux managed servers need very strong security protection. Hence, make sure you investigate what security measures are provided by the service provider. Before you sign up for the service of any service provider, be sure to check the security measures thoroughly.  

·     Cost-effectiveness – Finally, this is another most important feature that you need to keep in mind. Quite obviously, cost effectiveness has always played a major role whenever it comes to opt for a service or buy a product. Remember that for using Microsoft products, you need to pay a certain amount while you can use Linux for free.

·      Scalability – If you need to choose between these two software, you should check the scalability of both the models. For instance, keep this in mind that software that are Linux based are not necessarily compatible with the different Microsoft technologies like .NET. On the other hand, software that are Windows based are usually compatible with Linux features like MySQL and PHP.

·        The language of development – While choosing any of these two servers, you should keep in mind the development language. Most of the Linux hosting environments generally use a MySQL database. If you are planning to use applications that are based on ASP .NET or SQL server, you should opt for a Windows managed server. Make sure whichever you opt for, you check the minimum hosting requirements that are required for running the application. Consider asking your team of developers to specify the minimum requirement.

Once you consider all these, you should be able to determine the more suitable solution for your business. Apart from these factors, you should also check out the performance issues and stability of both the solutions. 

Follow these 3 tips while choosing a cloud service provider for your business

Over the past few years, the entire IT industry has witnessed a huge revolution, in terms of storage and cloud computing. With the increased amount of data, it has become almost impossible for businesses to store the required data on their own and this is why they prefer to opt for cloud based solutions. While the benefits of cloud computing are quite obvious, you might not be able reap the maximum possible benefits if you can’t choose the right cloud service provider. It’s undoubtedly true that opting for a cloud storage solution helps improve the productivity of the developers and also boosts up the time-to-market. But then, finding the right service provider is important in order to ensure the best possible benefits.

While looking for a cloud service provider, you should keep your exact requirements in mind. Not all businesses have the same requirement and this is why you should opt for a solution that fits your requirements best. Here are some helpful tips that you should follow in order to find the right cloud service provider –

• Mitigate the risks – First off, you have to accept the fact that your data is not completely safe anywhere. This is why it’s essential to define the level of risk that you can afford and ask the potential providers whether or not they will be able to satisfy it. Most of the standards and qualifications are quite transparent and these can be easily audited. Make sure the service provider offers PCI and HIPPA compliance. You should definitely check your individual requirements as well. Be sure to sign the deal with a service provider who will be able to minimize the risks to a great extent.

• Find out the right locations – Try to figure out where exactly you would require the Infrastructure as a Service. If your business application crunches the data of customers who are largely based in a particular location, you might consider hosting the data differently. In some situations, there are certain legal implications that you have to take care of. Hence, while selecting the cloud service provider, make sure you are clearly aware of the location well in advance. This will help you avoid the legal hassles in future.

• Be sure about the SLA – Service Level Agreement or SLA is one of the most important factors that you should check for on the very first go. You should note that cloud SLAs vary to a great extent. This is why you should take the SLA as the very starting point and get it clarified by your legal team, section by section. Consider using the customer references and their individual experience with SLAs. Be sure to have a list of questions related to the SLA and treat it as a negotiation.

These are some of the most important tips that you should keep in mind while choosing a cloud service provider. Apart from these, you should also calculate and compare the price that the service providers ask for.