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  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2004
    Location
    Midwest, USA
    Posts
    47

    Hshere vs Web Host Manager

    What is the difference between Hshere and Web Host Manager?

    Most hosts offer CPanel for clients and one of the above to manage your resell account. This is at least what I have gathered.

    From your experience which one should I consider and why? What are the differences negitive and positive. And is another I should be considering?

    I hope this is not to loaded of a question.

    Thanks for replying.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Nova Scotia, Canada
    Posts
    4,128

    Re: Hshere vs Web Host Manager

    An unfair comparison, to be perfectly honest.

    WHM, is for managing your clients, who are using the CPanel system, and has no automation, or inbuilt customer management whatsoever.

    To be fair to it, it's a good platform, and runs good on unix (no win version), but it requires a lot of plug-ins to make it 'signup ready', such as Billing, support, et al.

    H-Sphere is a complete, cross platform hosting automation behemoth, on the other hand. Support, and billing, along with a host of other essentials are already integrated, as is the ability to run it on both windows and unix, from a central control panel system.

    As I said, CPanel is a good control panel, but H-Sphere is a complete tool, with an awesome CP that powers the entire process.

    You should consider both.

    Both have their advantages. But, to be honest, if you're looking at progressing as a host, you really should be on the H-Sphere system. The support for h-sphere is also unmatched in the CP development world.

    Simon

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2002
    Location
    Waco, TX
    Posts
    5,623
    If they would just get their act together on getting a few fresh install 2.4 issues fixed instead of denying the issues exist Hspehre would be even better.

    I still say go hsphere and agree with Simon, but they have some work to do on the 2.4 "final" still.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Aug 2002
    Location
    Atlanta, GA
    Posts
    1,114
    We offer both Cpanel and H-Sphere hosting. They are very different products and have very different type of clients in our experience.

    Cpanel is pretty easy to use and allows a reseller to select add on products that they prefer such as ModernBill or Perldesk and other products. The host usually want's something that is pretty easy to use. Also, Cpanel is usually one of the first control panels people use because of its easy setup.

    H-Sphere has quite a steep learning curve for most people, but it is a "turnkey" package that offers a all-in-one solution for the host. No need to add anything but you could if you wished. We have one client who still uses modernbill for all his stuff even though H-Sphere has the system built in. Most host that use H-Sphere seem to have more years of experience in hosting and they like the "all-in-one" packaging.

    The two other fundimental differences are with H-Sphere you can host clients that do reselling straight from thier domain. Also, you can have multiple servers doing different functions. In our case, we have a control panel server, several web hosting servers, database servers, email and nameservers all in one system, all using the same software and management system. If we need more ability we just add a new server that performs the required job.
    Last edited by mgphoto; 05-05-2004 at 02:22 AM.
    SiteSouth
    Atlanta, GA and Las Vegas, NV. Colocation

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Nova Scotia, Canada
    Posts
    4,128
    Originally posted by amd_duron
    If they would just get their act together on getting a few fresh install 2.4 issues fixed instead of denying the issues exist Hspehre would be even better.

    I still say go hsphere and agree with Simon, but they have some work to do on the 2.4 "final" still.
    Precisely the reason we made the decision to hold off until patch 1.

    I saw the comment by Igor, and was somewhat surprised, he seemed to sweep it under the carpet, a touch


    Simon
    EIRCA Ltd, home of The Genius Network™.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2002
    Location
    Waco, TX
    Posts
    5,623
    I am glad to report now that they have listened to the customers, I was very disappointed when I saw that post and I took out some anger here. I am glad to wake up and see the problem has been fixed.

    OK, I can now without reserve recommend hspehre all the way!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Nov 2003
    Posts
    149
    I like Hsphere overall. It takes an investment of time to get a good grasp of it. This control panel covers most aspects of running a web server pretty well. It clusters Linux and windows servers so you can manage them both pretty easily. It has signup, billing, helpdesk, domain registration for existing customers and tons of other features. I think that it is a good solution for entering hosting. Having said that, I think Psoft did an average job because they tried to do too much with it. It seems they didn't focus on any one aspect of the product in order to include the kitchen sink. I would give them top marks on the administration of the domains and individual accounts. It features a great shell admin tool. The value added services like sign-ups, billing, helpdesk and the like I would say are average at best. The mailing list is unusable for business purposes. Hsphere does not allow you or your customers to run backups from the control panel. You can customize the cp look and feel to a limited extent, but you cannot pick and choose which elements you want to use or discard. You have more control over some of these things if you have root administration of the server and the control panel. If you are a reseller you are stuck with its limitations. Some minor updates and improvements have been made with the new release. Psoft seemed to ignore the things that most of their customers have been asking for. If you look at their forums and test drive the latest version, you would think they have never visited their own forums. It looks like adding an aqua theme was their biggest priority. I will probably be using hsphere for a while but I will be testing other products for future expansions.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Nova Scotia, Canada
    Posts
    4,128
    Originally posted by Zoren
    Hsphere does not allow you or your customers to run backups from the control panel.
    In the end-user CP:

    "INFO" -> "QUICK ACCESS" -> "WEBSHELL" -> "ARCHIVE" -> DONE.

    Restore? no problem.

    "INFO" -> " QUICK ACCESS" -> "WEBSHELL" -> UPLOAD BACKUP FILE -> CLICK ON BACKUP FILENAME -> UNCOMPRESS -> DONE.



    Some minor updates and improvements have been made with the new release
    Minor?
    Are you talking about the same version update that included over 100 upgrades? Including new inbuilt anti-virus, and spam filters, upgrades to mail in general, IIS 6.0 native mode support, shift to tomcat engine, new billing enhancements, and a boat-load of others.

    You can customize the cp look and feel to a limited extent, but you cannot pick and choose which elements you want to use or discard
    So, you're looking for an open-source CP then?
    You cannot honestly expect a development company to let you destroy their code, and STILL support the product.

    If you're looking for more customization, I'd suggest Jeffery at HSphereTemplates.com would be someone you'd be interested in. He makes some very good products.

    Simon
    Last edited by IHSL; 05-06-2004 at 03:26 AM.
    EIRCA Ltd, home of The Genius Network™.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Nov 2003
    Posts
    149
    IHSL -

    Thanks for the info on the backups. That eliminates my biggest complaint.

    The improvements you mention sound great. I hope they are noticeable when I start using 2.4 in a live environment.

    So, you're looking for an open-source CP then?
    Not at all. It is simply my opinion that it would be nice if I could choose not to use certain components of the control panel. Some of the features I would like to leave out are the main reasons someone might want to use hsphere. I just happen to find the billing and help desk to be sub par. I guess I just chose the wrong cp.

    Regarding customization - I think you could customize the layout quite a bit if you have root or a host that would allow such modifications. The few hosts I have spoken with about this do not allow resellers to have the ability to do this however. I could make the changes myself if I had the ability.

  10. #10
    Greetings:

    H-Sphere provides complete hosting automation.

    This automation (list is not all inclusive) involves everything from automated account provisioning (with anti-fraud controls) to automated billing to an on-line ticket system, and more.

    H-Sphere 2.4 (just released this week) includes per user spam and virus scanning. Connections with payment systems are available with so many choices as to payment providers supported.

    H-Sphere provides this automation to the hosting provider and the resellers of the provider.

    Customers of such providers get an easy-to-use control panel.

    Just to be clear -- Cpanel, Ensim, Plesk are just control panels.

    H-Sphere includes a control panel, but also has completely integrated hosting automation.

    You can connect servers of various operating systems operating out of different data centers to the system with ease.

    To me, H-Sphere is well worth the investment. It is an investment, because it has paid us back time and time again over the past 18 months with savings galore.

    Thank you.
    ---
    Peter M. Abraham
    LinkedIn Profile

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