Hi, I run a small web development business in Australia and usually host my clients with WebC******. They are too expensive for some smaller clients so i have been hosting in the US to save $$$.

Two issues i have are the ping times usually 200-300ms and the downtime that occurs every few days.

I am also concerned about placing dozens of clients on servers on the other side of the world with the risk that one day, the company may just disapear and I'll have lots of angry clients.

So...I'm considering buying my own server. One to start with and placing on a fast network close to home.

As I've never managed my own server before I have been looking at Cobalt RAQ4's and would like to get some feedback on them and their ease of use.

Any suggestions as to what may be a good solution would also be appreciated. I've thought of building my own server but then the software config issues would possibly see me going mad.

I doubt I'll offer any hosting outside my client base so there won't be huge strains on the server.

I need php, mysql, email and maybe asp (how is the chillisoft asp engine - stable?).

Any help, suggestions, offers, or comments would be appreciated.

Thanks.

They are very easy to maintain, and you''ll find lots of information about any questions that may pop-up on this forum and elsewhere on the net.

I think they would do great for your business if you're not a linux guru.