[SGVLUG] Linux Virtual Private Server Providers

[James McDuffie]

I have used Slicehost, Linode and various discount VPS providers.

First off Slicehost and Linode often get compared. I think that they are 
pretty much feature equivalent. But Linode is definitely cheaper for 
more features. In fact Linode every so often upgrades all their plans 
gratis. I don't think I have ever seen Slicehost do such a thing and 
their offerings seem to have stagnated.

The nice thing about a Xen provider such as Linode is the amount of 
customisation you can do to your virtual machine. You can partition you 
allocated disk space however you want and even upload your own distro 
image. All of this capability is subject to limitations of course such 
as any installation image counts against your disk space allocation, so 
you might have to get creative on the lower plans. Also since it is Xen 
your distro has to be running a Xen Linux kernel.

Now if you are willing to trade off some of that flexibility for price 
you can go to a different class of VPS provider. This enters the realm 
of a buyer's market since there are so many of these companies. However, 
buyer beware because some of them come and go in a matter of months. 
And, not being hyperbolic here, some are run by teenagers who outsource 
support to India, seriously. You can identify this class of provider by 
the fact that just about all of them you manager your container using 
SolusVM. Also for the most part they all use OpenVZ. You should look and 
see if what SolusVM provides is an interface that would meet your 
criteria for what you want to do with a VPS. Pretty much all it allows 
you to do is deploy a new image (have to use theirs), reboot and log 
into the console should networking be down.

The best resource for such providers is:
http://www.lowendbox.com/
Every quarter they ask for comments on best host:
http://www.lowendbox.com/wiki/top-providers

I have had a good experience with both BuyVM and Quickweb as listed in 
their top providers. Every so often BuyVM has available $15 a year 
OpenVZ container that sells out within 30 minutes. Quickweb used to 
offer bigger discounts than they have recently. With any provider you 
pick check Lowendbox for discount codes also check WebHosting Talk:
http://www.webhostingtalk.com/
for offers. Always look for what other people have said about any of 
these companies. Check how long the domain has been registered and if 
they seem legit. If you do your due diligence you can get a pretty good 
deal.

On 05/19/2011 09:18 PM, Matthew Campbell wrote:
> A client just subscribed to Linode, James McDuffie may be able to
> comment on his experiences.
>
> There are various groups around town buying and co-lo-ing their own
> servers and selling slices that are much more cost competitive than
> the big guys.
>
> Matt
>
> On Thu, May 19, 2011 at 7:56 PM, Braddock Gaskill<braddock at braddock.com>  wrote:
>> I'm looking for a new Ubuntu VPS provider for my personal mail and web
>> server.  Was wondering if anyone had any recommendations.
>>
>> I've been a VPSLink customer for the past five years.  They used to be
>> tops, but they've gone downhill since they were acquired - they don't
>> even offer an Ubuntu image newer than 9.04, and their pricing is no
>> longer so attractive.  I'm looking to spend ~$20/mo.
>>
>> My lead candidate is Linode.com.  Any advice appreciated.
>>
>>         -braddock
>>
>>
>
>
>