Hi,

I'm looking for opinions on what web hosts you all think I should consider. Technically, I need a host that supports:

1. ASP.NET 2.0
2. SQL Server 2005 (2000 may suffice if necessary)

I need to be able to host initially about 10 websites, but this figure could rise to 100 or eventually a 1000. Each website will needs it's own domain name (which will be purchased externally and pointed to the host), contain the same set of ASP.NET files but will need it's own database. The size of each application will be roughly 30Mb and I don't expect each database to grow to more than 50Mb. I will manage the customers files, so they do not need FTP access to their site.

I'm based in the UK, and so will all of my customers and their users. I don't expect each website to have much traffic (maybe 0-200 visitors a day).

If I had to list an order of what is important to me, I'd probably say:

1. Budget (ideally, this would be around 50-200GBP maximum per year)
2. Reliablility
3. Support
4. Speed
5. Bandwidth

If at all possible, I'd like an account that can "grow" with my business i.e. start off relatively inexpensive with a small number of clients yet allow me to add more and more domains/sites as I get more customers. If the price increases with this then fine, as long as it doesn't create more work to maintain the sites (i.e. I don't have to "move" sites or anything like that).

Are there any hosts that may be suitable based on all of the above, and that anyone would recommend?

Thanks,
Mark

Hello Mark,

It sounds like reseller plan would suit your needs. Did you require the hosting to be based in the UK?

Cheers,

Mark

Not necessarily, although I don't really understand the implications of it not being hosted in the UK if all my customers and their visitors will be from there. Would this affect performance or SE rankings?

It would be better if you can get hosting in the UK due to reduced latency, SEO considerations and locally based support.

OK, thanks for the info.

I'd be interested to hear if any UK based companies match my requirements then, but I am prepared to host outside the UK if necessary.

You can either go for Reseller or Multiple domains hosting shared plans if you do not need the reseller features like private nameservers and individual control panel for each of the domains.

Did you checked the offers section? I'm sure you'll find the right host suiting your needs.

Shared Hosting: http://www.webhostingtalk.com/forumdisplay.php?f=4
Reseller Hosting: http://www.webhostingtalk.com/forumdisplay.php?f=130

Good luck!

hi

your .com/net/org (etc) domains will be ranked on google UK so a UK host is best for you if you want your domains to show on google for UK visitors.

We use UK2.Net and they are offering free SSL's now so it might be worth checking them out.

We are using Server Intellect and have found that by far, they are the most friendly, responsive, and knowledgeable support team we've ever dealt with.

I use Server Intellect. They seem to really give you a lot for the money and their customer service has been very helpful.

I don't understand why a reseller account is needed. A shared account should be more than enough for what the guy is looking for.

Its nothing to do with where its hosted in terms of where it appears on google.

I have a US based site, primary target is the UK and we are ranked number two on google. So location has nothing to do with.

I don't understand why a reseller account is needed. A shared account should be more than enough for what the guy is looking for.

if they want to provide control panel access to each of their customers to manage their own emails, etc - then a reseller account makes sense.

Its nothing to do with where its hosted in terms of where it appears on google.

I have a US based site, primary target is the UK and we are ranked number two on google. So location has nothing to do with.

it actually does. however, it is more related to the IP ownership as to which regional searches sites will be featured on. the one that really doesnt matter is the US, as there isnt a google.us and google.com is an overall type of representation (I was never clear on this until google explained it to me - lol - still dont think Im 100% clear). After the US, if you want regional searches, google will look at the IP ownership. So, if you search for Canadian results only, the only things google considers as Canadian content (apparently) is .ca`s and domains hosted on Canadian IP`s (now, those physical IPs could be hosted in the US or wherever)...

The evidence which supports that is very flimsley

On yahoo I tend to agree, it does appear to look at where the IP address is.

But I'd say the domain name has more impact than the IP when it comes to UK search results, but despite saying that my primary domain is a .com and it comes up second despite that and stiff competition for page position