Web Hosting Geeks' Blog » root access http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog Web Hosting Industry News, Latest Trends, and Analyses. Thu, 24 May 2012 11:11:11 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Dedicated Server Options: Which Are Worth Consideringhttp://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/dedicated-server-options-worth-considering/ http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/dedicated-server-options-worth-considering/#comments Tue, 27 Mar 2012 00:17:30 +0000 Art http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/?p=2769 No matter what new technologies get incorporated into the hosting world, there will always be a place for the dedicated server hosting account.  It doesn’t necessarily make the host the most money: squeezing a few hundred accounts on a shared server does that.  But it’s a market need that will never go away.

Web hosting companies to this day respond to this demand by loading up their dedicated server plans with as many goodies as they can to lure in more fish.  But which ones should you bite at, and which ones should you swim by?  Here is a list of some common dedicated server options, and how much they actually give you.

Bandwidth

A lot of at-home users have been hit with throttling or bandwidth usage charges for playing their World of Warcraft or downloading just a few too many Transformers movies.  The reason your ISP doesn’t let you slide on this is that they are just as crunched on costs for it as you are.  Bandwidth costs are one of the most inelastic of all services that any host can offer.

So if one host is giving you a much better deal on it than another, and you think there’s a good chance that you might actually need that much, you can strongly consider going with them on the basis of that alone.  The chances that a host will let you “slide” for going over are slim, no matter how good your reputation with them is.

Advertising credits

The important thing to remember with advertising credits that come with a hosting account is that the dollar values that you receive aren’t “real” values in any way.  They are just the cost of a certain type of advertising block on that site.  If, say FaceBook, were to double all their ad rates tomorrow, many hosting companies would likely follow suit by doubling, or at least increasing their offerings.  You would still be getting about the same advertising placement…mostly.

Saying this does neglect the fact that if FaceBook did do this, less people would be able to afford it, and you’d wind up with a higher listing by attrition.  That does highlight the ambiguity with this service, though.  Major web sites seldom release the algorithms they use for how someone gets a higher page rank or ad frequency rate.  Worse, these algorithms can often change without notice.  Your $50 might get you page 1 with Google today, and page 42 tomorrow.

This should not imply that advertising credits are worthless.  A lot of webmasters plan on advertising on these sites anyway: for them, these credits can’t hurt.  How much it will help, though, is the great unknown.  If you do want one good rule of thumb, it’s better to have your advertising credits spread out.

Uptime Guarantees

We’ve covered this one before but it bears repeating: this is all shine.  It’s not that most hosts won’t actually achieve this, assuming that they haven’t set the bar ludicrously high with a parade of 9′s.  It’s that life is simply too chaotic.  As the old proverb goes, “If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.”

No host would survive long if your site went down much as it is.  Customers don’t need a calculator in front of them to know that their host is reliable.  On the other hand if a comet struck a web host, few would blame them for taking just a second to get your site back up while they looked for a broom.

Backup recovery

This, on the other hand, is one that you want to place a high value upon.  If you would believe it, there are still plenty of hosts that take the view that your backups are your responsibility.  If your machine dies, oh well.

Then there are also hosts who realize the kind of business that the above hosts are losing and want to claim them for their own.  There are a wide variety of ways that hosts will guarantee this.  They are all good.  Look especially for speed of recovery, redundant data centers, and manual recovery options as things that are worth the extra buck.

24/7 support

This one is only worthless because no host at this stage would be without it.  True, there won’t be someone staring at a process chart for your server all night, and you may not be able to necessarily get a hold of a tech support worker for basic questions.

But what goes on with your machine could be going on with the rest of the network.  Furthermore, even if they are not guaranteeing support, if they see your server down, your host knows full well that taking 30 seconds to walk over and hit the reboot switch because they “just happened to see it was down” is a great way to keep your loyalty.

Root access

We’ll close our list with one that you will not see often.  If you do, take it, but with a grain of salt.

Root access is great for you.  You don’t need to be told the functionality that this gives you.  If you find out about a serious software bug or need some kernel recompiled fast, you don’t have to wait for a tech worker, and you don’t have to hope that they do it right.  The back and forth that you get from this kind of a problem as you quote error messages to each other can be a true pain and time waster.

However, if your host does offer it, step back and take a look at them.  Do they look like a fly-by-night host, or are they around for the long term?  When a company allows this they are opening themselves up to danger if the customer doesn’t know what they are doing.  If they look like they are established enough and organized enough to handle it when a customer does something that makes the network hiccup, then this is a good thing.  If they look like someone who will be chasing their tail trying to find the problem, this means that this service could negatively affect you even if it’s not you who used it recklessly.  Not being affected by other users was the whole point of getting a dedicated server in the first place.

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]]> http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/dedicated-server-options-worth-considering/feed/ 2 Understanding The Root User And How to Obtain Ithttp://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/understanding-the-root-user/ http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/understanding-the-root-user/#comments Wed, 05 Oct 2011 17:17:16 +0000 Dmitry http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/?p=2613 If you’re new to the realm of dedicated web hosting, you may suddenly be inundated with a bunch of terms with which you’re unfamiliar. Believe it or not, there’s a lot more to web hosting than just disc space, bandwidth, and hardware: The Linux operating system underneath comes with a heap of terminology you’ll have to become acquainted with, as well as many different quirks and methods that must be learned about.

Don’t sweat it, though, Grasshopper. We understand what you’re going through, and to help you out, we’ve got a guide to one of Linux’ most important aspects ready to go: If you’re confused about what the root user does, keep reading. All is revealed in full detail just after the break.

So What is Root?

Just as a plant has foliage and flowers at the top, so does it have roots that anchor it beneath the surface. Linux operates in the same way, allowing users to perform surface level modifications to the system at the top, while a deeper administrative user (this is the “root”) sits just below, managing all the vital organs of the operating system. Most of everything you do will be done outside the root user, but when you need to do some heavy duty file management, or install a new script, you’ll want to dip below the surface and tap into the core of things.

Why Should I Care About The Root? Do I Need It?

The root is important, because the alternative is somewhat frightening: Imagine letting all the tenants of your dedicated server have total administrative access all the time. It’s a scary though, no? Who knows what an absentminded user could accidentally do. With that in mind, root is built into your system to ensure you only mess with the foundation when you want to. It also ensures only certain people have root access, and even then, only when they need it.

How Do I Go Rooting?

Simple! In most Linux systems (Red Hat, SUSE, CentOS, etc.) simply SSH to your server shell, and type the following command:

su

It’s that easy! Other distros, like Ubuntu Server, allow access to the superuser in slightly different ways. For example, with these, there is no permanent root access, but rather a single command to type before performing a root action. This command is:

sudo

Basic SSH Commands

Here is a list of some of the more common SSH commands.

<command> -h                 # The -h flag provides help on a command
ls                           # List the contents of the current directory
cd <directory or full path>  # Change to that directory or path
cp <source> <destination>    # Copy the source file to the destination
cp -r <source> <destination> # Copy the source directory to the destination directory
mv <source> <destination>    # Move the source file to the destination
mkdir <directory name>       # Create a new directory
pico <file>                  # Edit file in a friendly, easy to use file editor
grep <text> <file>           # Search for text within a file
wget <URI>                   # Download the file at the given URI to the current path
tar -xz -f <file>            # Un-gzip and un-tar the given *.tgz or *.tar.gz file
rm <file>                    # Delete the file
rm -r <directory>            # Delete the directory and all contents
killall <program name>       # Kill all running processes of the program
ps                           # Show running processes
top                          # Show running processes in a graphical frontend
netstat                      # Show all current network connections
du                           # Show disk usage

Need more commands? I recommend David Coe‘s http://www.sshcommands.co.uk/, an easy to understand list of SSH Commands (with examples).

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]]> http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/understanding-the-root-user/feed/ 0 Keep Your Site Safe – Learn What Not to Dohttp://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/learn-keep-your-site-safe/ http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/learn-keep-your-site-safe/#comments Fri, 23 Sep 2011 13:09:52 +0000 Art http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/?p=2464 Let’s face it: The Internet isn’t the golden playground it once was, where all could go and have their swing in peace. In fact, it’s now so overrun with bullies and miscreants that it’s a wonder we haven’t decided to swap school districts yet! That was a joke, but the idea remains the same. It’s a wild, wild world out there, and if you aren’t careful, your site may be a ripe melon just waiting to be cracked open.

However, there are steps you can take to safeguard your source of livelihood. First of all, simply admitting that you need to keep your server locked down is a good place to start. From there, it’s worth taking a look at the way you manage your site. If you’re doing any number of things wrong, you may be leaving your site exposed. With that in mind, take a look at the following common mistakes, any of which can drastically reduce the security of your site:

Is Your Password Strong?

Seriously, though, this is one we just can’t seem to convince people to consider. No matter how unique or quirky you may think your password is, if it’s a common phrase or word, it just ain’t strong enough to be your main horse. Most hackers use password guessing software to get at your goods, but a lot of the time they don’t even have to go that far. Be sure your password is long, has a few capital letters, and at least one number. There are too many permutations for even a computer to guess, and if you take advantage of this, you’re already close to home, as far as server security goes.

Keep To Your Roots!

There’s no reason at all that you should constantly be logging in as the root user. No matter how powerful it may make you feel, you just shouldn’t be doing it, because leaving your account access open like that is like tacking a sign to your site that says, “Hack me, please!” Likewise, if your SSH accounts offer direct root access, you’ll want to change that immediately. Having that level of control just laying around is in no way healthy, and will very quickly compromise your site.

Know Your Traffic

Lastly, don’t be oblivious to your traffic, and learn to watch your site’s flow. Know who and where your traffic usually comes from, and be aware of any sudden changes in this pattern. If you see a new user from a suspicious location, be on your toes. The best defense is to keep your eyes open!

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]]> http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/learn-keep-your-site-safe/feed/ 0 Secure Shell Security Tipshttp://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/secure-shell-security-tips/ http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/secure-shell-security-tips/#comments Thu, 04 Aug 2011 18:26:56 +0000 Art http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/?p=1774 Secure Shell or SSH is a security measure that was designed to protect websites from external threats. In the past, users would connect to their servers using Telnet. Now that servers a no longer just down the hall, SSH adds an extra layer of encryption to the transmission ensuring you will be able to connect to your equipment with little risk. SSH is much more secure than Internet protocols but there are ways to improve the security.

Install Brute Force Software

Web attackers utilize Brute Force Detection software to reveal your password and create havoc for those on the server. At the same time, the software can be used to neutralize attempts as soon as they begin.

Establish the Timeout Interval

Another important method is to set the timeout interval in the SSH configuration file. This will allow you to establish the amount of time users remain logged in. After that time the user will automatically be kicked out, even if they forget to logout. This keeps the server clean and prevents cyber criminals from sneaking into user accounts that are always logged in.

Restrict Root Logins

To further increase security, never allow root logins to your server. The system administrator should be the only individual with access to the root. There is never a reason to risk your root account by directly exposing it to the Internet. When these logins are restricted, hackers will have a difficult time gaining access even if they uncover the password.

Require Secure Passwords

As the system administrator, you have the ability to set the required password strength. Therefore, requiring a mixture of capital and lowercase letters with numbers is critical to protecting the accounts on your server. Furthermore, it is vital to demand the periodic change of passwords.

Quarantine Users in Chroot Directories

The final tip to a more secure server is to utilize chroot which restricts users to their own home directories. Linux server does have configurable permissions in place to thwart a regular user from deleting all files or some other crazy action. However, these users will still be able to see the files. Therefore, chroot completely restricts the viewing of files on the server.

Secure Shell security is an excellent layer to add to any server. At the same time, the aforementioned tips will make your server much more secure resulting in difficulty for attackers to access and take command of the equipment.

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]]> http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/secure-shell-security-tips/feed/ 0 The Benefits of VPS Hostinghttp://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/the-benefits-of-vps-hosting/ http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/the-benefits-of-vps-hosting/#comments Tue, 30 Dec 2008 16:00:05 +0000 Art http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/?p=135 Seemingly out of nowhere, VPS has become the preferred hosting solution for small to medium sized businesses.  VPS stands for Virtual Private Server, a solution that effectively bridges the gap between the limitations of shared hosting and the flexibility of dedicated server hosting.  A VPS is created by virtualization software which partitions a single physical server to form multiple servers within it.  Each virtual server is completely independent of its neighbors and functions like an actual networked server.  What makes VPS hosting so popular is that it provides control at a level similar to a dedicated server at a price not to far removed from affordable shared hosting .

Here are some of the benefits that come along with VPS hosting:

Stability: Unlike shared hosting, the traffic and activities of other VPS customers will not adversely affect your operation.

Performance - Having your own allotment of resources allows you and your visitors to enjoy faster load times.

Dedicated Resources - VPS hosting provides you with more disk space, CPU and RAM.

Flexibility - You have the freedom to choose the operating system and software you want to install on the server.

VPS Features

The features and services of VPS hosting vary depending on the provider.  Although the ones you will need all depends on personal requirements, here are a few you may want to look out for:

Root Access: Root access will grant you with complete control over your VPS account from configurations to software installations.  All of the actions can be handled from the interface of your control panel application.

Management and Support: Similar to a dedicated hosting account, VPS hosting calls for you to manage your own server .  However, there are many companies that provide support and management services to assist with administrative tasks.  This feature is invaluable if you lack technical savvy.

Server Monitoring: A good VPS provider will actively monitor its network and hardware your account relies on.  This ensures the physical security of the server and also helps defend against virtual threats such as hackers, malicious software and DDoS attacks.

Multiple Domain Hosting: Although shared hosts offer multiple domain hosting, most of them do not provide enough resources for you to do so and still enjoy a smooth performance.   Many VPS providers offer plans that allow you to host multiple websites without suffering performance issues.  In most cases, you can set up separate email accounts and allocate specific resources for each individual site.

Managed Data Backups: As with any hosting solution, a VPS plan should offer a way to backup your data.  Because anything could occur within the provider’s network, it is recommended that you choose a service that allows you to manually backup your own data to assure that it can be restored at any time.

VPS hosting offers an inexpensive way to get many of the features, resources, control and flexibility of a more costly and complex dedicated server.  With the technology increasing in popular, prices are dropping rapidly, assuring that you can find a reliable VPS solution that meets your hosting needs.

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