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Thread: FreeBSD VPS

  1. #1

    FreeBSD VPS

    Hi,

    I am searching for a new low-cost VPS provider which supports FreeBSD. Currently I am with RapidXen, but have experienced several problems during the time I have been using the service (over a year). Support has been good, however my VPS isn't as reliable as I would like.

    Currently I am on the old $5 RapidXen plan, which from memory offered 5GB disk, and 64MB RAM. The most important selling point was the unmetered network connection, as I want to ensure there are no unexpected bills.

    I wish to keep the price in the $US5-8 per month range, with unmetered network usage, while ideally add more disk space and a second IP address. Can anyone recommend any low-cost providers who can offer this service?

    Thanks.

  2. #2
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    Hi,

    Try the FIND A HOST option here and see how that goes.

    Good luck
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  3. #3
    Unfortunately my search hasn't been successful. I've been monitoring these forums for a while, looking at the VPS hosting deals, but all the low-cost Xen providers I've e-mailed have come back saying they don't support FreeBSD.

    I'm asking in the hope that someone has experience with other providers who are not promoting their services here, or who know that specific providers do support FreeBSD.

  4. #4
    Since FreeBSD 8.0 has support for Xen as a DomU, you may be able to ask a VPS provider if you can run an image that you create. To find VPS providers in your price range, try checking http://lowendbox.com.

    Also, you may want to check with prgmr.com. They don't have FreeBSD listed, but I know they do support NetBSD under Xen. However, their plans don't have unmetered bandwidth, which is going to make your search harder.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by nicedream View Post

    Also, you may want to check with prgmr.com. They don't have FreeBSD listed, but I know they do support NetBSD under Xen. However, their plans don't have unmetered bandwidth, which is going to make your search harder.
    on their website

    We are out of space again.
    if you want to get on the waiting list, email preorder@prgmr.com and we will notify you when there is room.
    I am still on their waiting list, no space their yet.

  6. #6
    Oh dear

    It turns out RapidXen has shut down my VPS permanently as they claim FreeBSD is causing the host to crash. From memory they were using an older version of Xen (3.1), so hopefully another provider will be able to offer this on a more stable platform.

    I'm running several FreeBSD virtual environments on the latest Citrix XenServer here, and have had no stability issues. I don't really stress them much though.

  7. #7
    Try to find out companies offering VPS servers with Vmware Technology, which is stable enviornment.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by ihsystemihsystem View Post
    Try to find out companies offering VPS servers with Vmware Technology, which is stable enviornment.
    VMWare providers are far fewer due to the cumbersome licensing.
    From memory, their licensing forbids the hosting of VPS unless you are an authorized partner of sorts.

  9. #9
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    FreeBSD 7 and 8 are running fine on Xenserver here, have had no complaints. If you can find a host using Xenserver, they should be able to offer you this.
    YISP - High Bandwidth dedicated servers and colocation in YISP-AS(Amsterdam)!

    Website: http://www.yisp.nl
    Contact: info "(AT)" yisp.nl

  10. #10
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    Prgmr does not support FreeBSD.

    I went with e-Sensibility.com (Xenserver). They helped me benchmark FreeBSD 8 amd64 GENERIC kernel, FreeBSD 8 amd64 XENHVM kernel, and FreeBSD 8 i386 GENERIC with unixbench and sysbench for MySQL.

    The funny thing is that FreeBSD 8 i386 XEN kernel should have worked the best out of all the options. However, after building and installing the XEN kernel, the VPS wouldn't boot. I tried re-configuring the kernel, building and installing again but it still failed to boot.

    The benchmarks showed a noticeable decline in I/O performance on amd64 XENHVM. The i386 GENERIC and amd64 GENERIC were very close, with amd64 having a slight advantage. I ended up going with amd64 GENERIC.

    If you decide on FreeBSD, make sure to add:

    kern.hz=100

    in /boot/loader.conf

    Overall the experience with e-Sensibility has been very good. Support is quick, and their FreeBSD knowledge is excellent. I've had 0 downtime so far, and the prices are fair.

    Hope this helps.
    Last edited by raouldlv; 02-03-2010 at 07:55 AM. Reason: Grammar

  11. #11
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    Hi, let me get something straight. Can you verify if the following Xen mode are true? I am a little confused about your post.

    Paravirtualized - FreeBSD 8 amd64 GENERIC kernel
    Paravirtualized - FreeBSD 8 i386 GENERIC
    HVM (full virtualization) - FreeBSD 8 amd64 XENHVM kernel

    The mod "kern.hz=100" is added to which guests? Thanks.



    Quote Originally Posted by raouldlv View Post
    Prgmr does not support FreeBSD.

    I went with e-Sensibility.com (Xenserver). They helped me benchmark FreeBSD 8 amd64 GENERIC kernel, FreeBSD 8 amd64 XENHVM kernel, and FreeBSD 8 i386 GENERIC with unixbench and sysbench for MySQL.

    The funny thing is that FreeBSD 8 i386 XEN kernel should have worked the best out of all the options. However, after building and installing the XEN kernel, the VPS wouldn't boot. I tried re-configuring the kernel, building and installing again but it still failed to boot.

    The benchmarks showed a noticeable decline in I/O performance on amd64 XENHVM. The i386 GENERIC and amd64 GENERIC were very close, with amd64 having a slight advantage. I ended up going with amd64 GENERIC.

    If you decide on FreeBSD, make sure to add:

    kern.hz=100

    in /boot/loader.conf

    Overall the experience with e-Sensibility has been very good. Support is quick, and their FreeBSD knowledge is excellent. I've had 0 downtime so far, and the prices are fair.

    Hope this helps.
    SysAdmin.xyz
    Having severs with customer data on it without proper monitoring is like having one night stand without using protections - eventually, there will be an 'oh s**t!' moment.

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by quad3datwork View Post
    Hi, let me get something straight. Can you verify if the following Xen mode are true? I am a little confused about your post.

    Paravirtualized - FreeBSD 8 amd64 GENERIC kernel
    Paravirtualized - FreeBSD 8 i386 GENERIC
    HVM (full virtualization) - FreeBSD 8 amd64 XENHVM kernel

    The mod "kern.hz=100" is added to which guests? Thanks.
    The generic kernels for both the amd64 and i386 branches are not paravirtualized -- they will only run under HVM. As for the XenHVM kernel for the amd64 branch, I believe it just provides some optimizations for virtual environments -- it doesn't constitute paravirtulization, though.

    The kern.hz modification is to avoid the overhead associated with excessive context switching.

    @raouldlv -- thanks for the kind words
    Last edited by e-Sensibility; 02-03-2010 at 02:32 PM.
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  13. #13
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    @e-Sensibility
    Thanks!
    SysAdmin.xyz
    Having severs with customer data on it without proper monitoring is like having one night stand without using protections - eventually, there will be an 'oh s**t!' moment.

  14. #14
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    What specifications do you need? Does Location matter? That's a pretty low budget, but perhaps with more information you can find what you're looking for.
    rootbsd.net :: BSD based hosting for smart people
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  15. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hoggle View Post
    Oh dear

    It turns out RapidXen has shut down my VPS permanently as they claim FreeBSD is causing the host to crash. From memory they were using an older version of Xen (3.1), so hopefully another provider will be able to offer this on a more stable platform.

    I'm running several FreeBSD virtual environments on the latest Citrix XenServer here, and have had no stability issues. I don't really stress them much though.
    We run Xen 3.4. The problem is that HVM in open source Xen uses QEMU, which causes a desync in the eventchannels for the running VM. An eventchannel desync causes subtle state corruption which can result in the dom0 crashing when there is a high enough VM density on the server (say 20 or so VMs). There are also many race conditions in the HVM support code (hvmloader), which can cause the failure of the dom0. And we're running on SVM-based CPUs (AMD-V), not VMX (Intel VT) CPUs, so we have the better HVM implementation available to us.

    My understanding is that Citrix XenServer uses a different device emulation method, which is more resilient.

    Please update your ticket requesting your images and a prorated refund if this is the option (switching to a BSD-capable host) you are pursuing. We recommend KVM-based hosts such as ARP networks, as KVM does not suffer from the design flaws which make running HVM on Xen a less stable than desired experience.

  16. #16
    Quote Originally Posted by rootBSD View Post
    What specifications do you need? Does Location matter? That's a pretty low budget, but perhaps with more information you can find what you're looking for.
    My requirements are minimal. The VPS is primarily used for hosting a small Web site, backup MX, and some SSH port forwarding.

    Currently I have 64MB RAM, 5GB disk space, and unmetered 2Mbs^-1, which is sufficient. I would like to increase the disk space, and obtain a faster unmetered connection for interactive use, and obviously would expect to pay more for the extra services relative to what I'm paying at the moment.

    William (RapidXen) is working on a solution to the HVM problems at the moment. I will leave it to him to provide more details of their plans if he wishes to do so, however assuming that works out, my intent is to continue using their service, and to monitor the forums for any deals which may be more suitable.

    Thanks to all of you who have replied offering suggestions.

  17. #17
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    @e-Sensibility: You're welcome. Nice failed attempt at getting me to switch to Linux.

    Can anyone comment on ARP Networks? Everyone recommends them for FreeBSD VPS, and their pricing is decent.

    I have used rootBSD in the past and they are very good, but a bit out of my price range. They offer Durham, NC and Dallas, TX locations and have a nice control panel with a VNC applet if you mess something up .

    Has anyone gotten FreeBSD working as a Xen DomU Paravirutalized?

    I've chatted with rootBSD's tech guy (who was quite rude, probably thinking I was competitor and exited the chat while I was typing mid-sentence) and he said they currently do not support FreeBSD 8 i386 XEN kernel as they've tested it and found it to be unstable. There are, however, many guides out there that explain how to get it working under Linux/Xen.

    This is one I found most interesing:
    http://www.ita.com.ua/eng/articles.htm?id=34

    Here is another that is reposted all over the internet:
    http://forums.freebsd.org/showthread.php?t=10268

    If I'm hijacking the thread, I apologize.

  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hoggle View Post
    William (RapidXen) is working on a solution to the HVM problems at the moment. I will leave it to him to provide more details of their plans if he wishes to do so, however assuming that works out, my intent is to continue using their service, and to monitor the forums for any deals which may be more suitable.
    The solution is to use KVM instead, which means technically you're not an RX customer anymore, as you're no longer going to be running on a Xen server.

    Since you're betatesting I'm probably going to throw you some extra RAM as a bonus.

  19. #19
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    I've used ARP's beta OpenBSD VPS before. Very solid, not sure about FreeBSD. They are nice people, perhaps a trial from them can be given.
    SysAdmin.xyz
    Having severs with customer data on it without proper monitoring is like having one night stand without using protections - eventually, there will be an 'oh s**t!' moment.

  20. #20
    FreeBSD under KVM is rock solid, I've run it for over a year on numerous servers and hundreds of VMs.

    I publish the specific build I use:

    https://launchpad.net/~gdolley/+archive/ppa

    Garry Dolley @ ARP Networks | gdolley _at_ arpnetworks . com | #arpnetworks on Freenode | @arpnetworks, @bsdvps
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  21. #21
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    Our KVM product left beta and went public this week, if you still wish to have a stable FreeBSD host you can now switch to rapidkvm

  22. #22
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    FreeBSD 8.0 works fine under Xen HVM virtualization. Dom0 is CentOS 5.5.
    » NQhost.com - Flexible Solutions
    » Linux VPS, Windows VPS and Xen VDS
    » USA, Germany and Russia Data-centers

  23. #23
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    The extremely cheap Xen hosts are all using PV, because it is much less resource intensive. HVM takes more power and more resources (only way to get BSD on Xen is via HVM)

    Quote Originally Posted by NQhost View Post
    FreeBSD 8.0 works fine under Xen HVM virtualization. Dom0 is CentOS 5.5.
    Correct. My test lab confirms this

    Quote Originally Posted by garrycc View Post
    FreeBSD under KVM is rock solid, I've run it for over a year on numerous servers and hundreds of VMs.

    I publish the specific build I use:

    https://launchpad.net/~gdolley/+archive/ppa

    Garry's servers and service are superb, I highly recommend him
    AS395558

  24. #24
    Quote Originally Posted by Dougy View Post
    The extremely cheap Xen hosts are all using PV, because it is much less resource intensive. HVM takes more power and more resources (only way to get BSD on Xen is via HVM)
    FreeBSD has supported Para-virtualization since the 8.0 release. And NetBSD has supported it for longer than that.

  25. #25
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    im looking for windows vps unmetered unmanaged but payment option must be deposit in any indian bank

    any config ok as long payment option must be deposit in any indian bank

    Regards
    Raj1402

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