Hi,

I was intrested in other peoples opinions about this subject.

What gain does one recieve from a server administration service on a cpanel server if they also have a cpanel support license?

For me, cPanel support has been working perfectly. They have a massive support dep. and the support agents really know what they are doing, especially the level 2 which are basicly magics with cpanel servers on the whole. I've used a couple of server admin services and I really didn't see any real advantage of having them, basicly they are good doing some server hardening but in case of emergency(not the kind of emergency where server goes down) you would probably still need to contact the server admin service via support ticket if the emergency is not such which would be notified by the server admin pingers. This support ticket might actually lead to problem solving later than if you contacted cpanel support immediately.

Greetings:

Note: We do not provide cpanel server administration; so this is from a general experience range rather than cpanel specific.

1. Server hardening's are not one time projects; server security on the Internet has to be a way of life.

I just finished reading "Counter Hack Reloaded" by Ed Skoudis and Tom Liston.

The experiences shared confirmed our own decades of experience in that hackers are getting into systems that are not kept secured on a regular basis.

2. I know we offer phone support including special pager support; chances are high there are one to several cpanel system and security administrator companies who do the same.

If you run a mission critical environment where all parties, including clients know it is mission critical, then most solid security and administrator companies will offer 24x7x365 coverage including strong SLA’ s for responding in 15-minutes or less.

3. Good system and security administrator companies will have good turn around times for responding and fixing problems. It is possible the cpanel team meets your expectations in this area, so that may not be an issue.

Lastly, I’m not sure what it is like to use cpanel support – if you get the same person(s) all of the time, if you can build rapport with them, and if they can do work for you related to cpanel, but maybe a little off tangent.

Typically with a good security and administration company you get to deal with the same people all of the time, build a rapport with them, know they know your systems and your needs, and are typically able to do work that is off tangent.

Thank you.

cPanel support only gets you so far.
They are only responsible to actually cover cPanel.

While - many of their techs go well over and beyond... (at least that has been my experience.)

A good server admin will assist you with much if not all of the following...
These are all something that cPanel techs generally will guide you with - but not perform for you.

Application Configuration & Optimization
Each configuration file, for services such as Apache, is reviewed and optimized for the server such as httpd.conf and more.
Zend Optimizer Installation
Allows PHP pages to load Zend encoded scripts, common for commercial tools.
IonCube Loader Installation*
Allows PHP to load ionCube encoded scripts much like Zend Optimizer.
Recompile Apache/PHP
Compile PHP and Apache to the latest release with most common modules.
PHPsuexec Support*
Compile PHP with PHPsuexec, enhancing security for nobody permissions.
Recompile MySQL
Bring MySQL up to date with the latest release available.
Control Panel Configuration
optimize the control panel for the best set of security and configuration options available.
DNS Configuration
Correctly setting proper TTL values, and other settings such as SOA refresh which cause DNSreport.com errors.


but also with

Kernel Upgrade
Update the system to the latest kernel supplied by vendor.
OS Updates
Operating system updates available by vendor.
Control Panel Updates
Latest stable/current release of control panel will be applied.
Hardened Phishing and Anti-Spam Rules
will make sure your mail server is protected from inbound and outbound phishing attacks.
RBL and Dictionary Attack Security
RBL and Dictionary Attack will be applied to your mail server to help cut down on the volume of spam you receive for known spammers.
HELO/EHLO
Additional mail server security checks.
PHP Security
Disable dangerious PHP functions such as dl and exec.
PHPsuexec
Stops users from being able to write into other users directories, no more 777 files. If you don't have this enabled most will convert the system for you with minimal disruption.

Perl Suexec
Enable Suexec for Perl security to run as user.
Rootkit and Backdoor checks
chkrootkit and rkhunter checks for rootkits, backdoors and other security issues.
Exclusive mod_security installation
mod_security installation including custom mod_security ruleset for maximum protection without service interuptions. (Apache Firewall)
Exclusive mod_security add-on
Blocks the top attackers from DShield with mod_security specialized tool.
Partition Security
ensure /tmp and /dev/shm partitions are secure with noexec,nosuid.
Disable Compilers
Compilers such as gcc would be locked from unauthorized use.
Host.conf and sysctl.conf lockdown
Harden the TCP/IP operations and DNS poisoning .
Firewall Installation
firewall is installed with most common ports configured.
Brute Force Protection
LFD is installed to prevent mass shell login bruteforcing.
LES
Linux Environment Security enforces root permissions on binaries, system paths and immunes important system files.
LSM
Linux Socket Monitor watches for changes in open applications using the network and will provide email reports if unrecognized ones are found.
Exclusive Nobody Check
Detects malicious user processes running with email reports.
Application Security Configuration
They will configure services with security in mind such as limiting the Apache signature.
Close Open DNS Servers
Named.conf would be optimized ensuring BIND will be secure from DNS problems.
Root shell login alerts and login security message
Set it so you will get an email notification when someone logs into your server. Most would also change the default shell message to a security notice.
Logwatch Configuration
Setup Logwatch emails so you get reports of server health daily.
Clean up users
Unneeded users and groups are removed.
Clean up services
Unneeded services are disabled.
Secure System Binaries
System tools commonly used for malicious purposes are disabled for non root users, such as wget, GET, and more.
Basic dDoS Protection
Protect your server from Denial of Service attacks and Apache floods at the software level with basic level dDoS software.