Maybe I'll get more suggestions here in the Windows section.

I'm looking for a Windows host for a very low-volume site, plus looking for help with our spam load. Willing to spend up to $50/month.

For the spam, we're currently using Spamassasin and not finding it adequate. In the past I've been on a host that used greylisting and had very good results with it. So, I'm leaning toward wanting that. But, if someone has experience with a large reduction in spam without it I'd be willing to listen.

For the hosting, what I need is SSH2 outgoing (they all have incoming, but I need outgoing to drill through the firewall.) And, I need ODBC Access support. I've been trying to get this going on Unix at Pair.com and not having any luck. I think that coming from Windows should be more straightforward. If anyone has any experience talking to an Access database I'd love to hear what you've learned.

Obviously, good support is necessary, and an active forum of users and a presence by support would be a big plus.

Does anyone have a Windows host that they like? Should I be severing the mail from the host?

TIA,
Drake

There are few hosting organization who can fulfill your requirements , but since offers are not allowed in this section of forums , please check other threads and sections on this forum. You may get better responses.

I'm not really sure about your requirements.
For spam load, are you looking for email hosting service with websites host elsewhere?
I don't know any windows host that offer ssh connection.
ASP & ASP.NET script can connect directly to MS Access database on windows hosting.

There are few hosting organization who can fulfill your requirements , but since offers are not allowed in this section of forums , please check other threads and sections on this forum. You may get better responses.

I was hoping more for user experiences and suggestions rather than marketing copy from the hosts.

Is there really nobody who has a Windows host they like which has greylisting or some other effective spam system? I'm a bit surprised, especially since our budget raises us above rock-bottom.

Feedback actively solicited.

Drake

For spam load, are you looking for email hosting service with websites host elsewhere?

My original hope was to have it all packaged together in the same host. But, I seem to be looking for a rare beast. So, I'm now leaning a bit more toward severing the two functions and using a dedicated email host for that portion. That could simplify my decision a lot.

In fact, I use Site5 for my personal website. They're Linux, but they're very accommodating about installing packages. But, they don't use greylisting. If I use a dedicated email host then that could solve everything for me.

So, if anyone has an email host that they like then I'd love to hear about it. I was surfing threads earlier and saw Rackspace mentioned. But, if I read their site correctly, they want $2/mailbox. That seems maybe a bit pricey for low-volume mailboxes. Any other mail hosts that someone is happy with?

Drake

You are looking for server or hosting? You sound like you are trying to setup the whole Windows server with your wanted requirements.

All I need is hosting, plus possibly one or two modules to give me the functions I need. I'm 99% sure that Site5 would install the SSH2 module. They've installed modules for other customers. And when I was researching this earlier, I got a response on their forum that I could request that the modules I need be installed on the server I'm on.

So, what I'm looking for at this point is a Windows host who has outgoing SSH2 support already installed, or who is willing to install it on the server I end up on. The Access support should fall out naturally.

And while I'm waiting for that info I'm going to impose upon Site5 to see if they'll install what I need so that I can explore the functionality of reading an Access database from Linux. My research thus far suggests that the *nix modules may not do what I need. So, a Windows host could be the more appropriate choice for me.

On top of all that I'm looking for a reasonably-priced email host.

I thought I knew what I wanted when I started this thread, but I'm willing to be pointed in a different direction as I learn more about what's out there.

Drake

For the spam, we're currently using Spamassasin and not finding it adequate. In the past I've been on a host that used greylisting and had very good results with it. So, I'm leaning toward wanting that. But, if someone has experience with a large reduction in spam without it I'd be willing to listen.
When I experienced spam issues (getting HEAPS of spam to my personal email account, using a large chunk of CPU time), I moved my email to Google Apps. Much better, barely any spam gets through Gmail's filters. Might be something to consider. :)

Thank you for the suggestion. I looked at Google Apps early on. I agree, their spam detection is excellent.

But, reading their forum did not instill me with confidence. Their free service provides support only through their message board, which appeared to have very little if any input from the company. Their paid service seems fairly expensive, to me. And I still saw a lot of posts from people who said they were never able to get a reply from a human to deal with any issues.

Have you had any dealings with support? Did you get timely replies? Were they canned replies, or did there appear to be a brain behind them? Or, has it Just Worked and you haven't needed any direct support?

Drake

For me personally, it has "Just worked" and I've never really needed support. There was an issue with domain aliases but I worked out the solution myself.

My employer has also recently switched to Google Apps. The paid version is $50 per user per year and has an uptime guarantee (with an SLA) and 24/7 support.

You may check out Windows hosting services which happy-hosting provides.
They provide their services in a quality way and they are stable and their services are full-featured.

Hi

I too found Spamassasin a bit useless. Years ago I stopped using it. If you have smartermail (newer versions) you can get Commtouch antispam its expensive but its really good, if your looking for a shared host and they have it enabled, then you won't need to pay any extra for it, its a well recommended antispam system, picks up 99% of my spam!