1&1 vs TP.

Galactic Zero · Tue Aug 14, 2007 1:33 pm

Ok, I need an honest assessment here please. I'm currently with TP but seeing how they are pricing themselves differently than when they were EV1 / Rackshack it seems we're being offered less for our buck. I don't know if that is just my perception or not. I've been with EV1 since 1999 and have been happy with the server etc.. I'm still running an old P4 system with 1g etc and it is working fine, have about 40 domains on it but am looking to ramp up marketing and such to increase my hosting business so was looking at a new server from TP or moving to someplace else. Downside of 1&1 is that they only offer a 100 domain Plesk license and no helpdesk which I currently have unlimited domains and helpdesk...

I'll entertain other hosting companies also.

So, looking for some insight.
Thanks.

Highland · Unread post by **Highland** » Wed Aug 15, 2007 9:32 am

Haven't used TP but I do have two 1and1 servers. My thoughts...

1. Their support leaves something to be desired. Unless you need hardware replaced don't expect too much. Like most companies, their main support numbers go to India. Once you get back to US support it's better but still has its quirks. My old RS1 had a lockup problem they couldn't diagnose so I was left with a worthless server for 8 months of my contract. Good news is you probably won't need that much support and they are quick on most hardware issues (assuming you're in the US. Euro servers seem to be less well supported).

2. Ditch the default image. Seriously. It comes with FC4 by default with a partition scheme only a mother could love. Use Scott's AOOI script to get CentOS. You'll have to reinstall Plesk but that's not terribly difficult (just remember to install Plesk immediately after you load CentOS and do NOT run yum until after installing).

3. Quirky network. All new servers reside in their KS datacenter. This one seems to act weird, though (sometimes I can't reach the ART yum repos but I can from my older server in PA). I've heard of downtime from network as well but I haven't experienced it yet.

4. Cost. I've compared 1and1 and TP and 1and1 does have a slight edge in cost. You can get a more powerful/featured server for less money in most cases. I think this is due to TP having you build your own hardware setup but I've not played with all their combos. 1and1 only has 4 hardware combos so they probably have a better bulk hardware deal.

5. Offsite FTP backup. Hands down one of 1and1's best features. When you get a server with X GB you will also get X GB on one of their FTP servers. Get a routine going to back your data up and move it to the FTP server (Plesk has a really good backup/restore system) and you've got a built-in failsafe.

Unread post by **scott** » Wed Aug 15, 2007 9:58 am

I dont rely on any hosting company for support for obvious reasons. For me I want:
* a good rescue system
- which includes being able to power cycle a system remotely,
- boot/reimage from PXE,
- a *SERIAL* console connection. Not a remote KVM. Those things are amazingly slow, rely on something stupid like java, and cannot be automated.

* Good hardware SLA's, I want to know that bad hardware will be replaced quickly. If you've got the good rescue system mentioned above, then youve got an excellent recovery solution

* Decent bandwidth

exi1ed0ne · Unread post by **exi1ed0ne** » Wed Aug 15, 2007 11:49 am

I'd have to agree with Scott 100%. Those things are priceless when you have issues. Especially the serial connection and remote reboot. Those two things have saved my bacon many times.

area51web · Unread post by **area51web** » Sun Aug 19, 2007 5:17 pm

i agree with scott as well but you need to call hostdime.com they are full managed servers they come with plesk plus wich is unlimeted domains applications pack dr.web antivirus, the ticketing system all on a cent os5 server 1GB od DDR2 ram p4ht many configs and totally free telephons tech support i have 4 servers with them and there awsome as well VPSland.com is good as well but you only get 30 domain licence and is on a vps you will pay more for unlimeted domain but there support is good as well as fully managed VPS's

http://www.hostdime.com
http://www.vpsland.com

Ray

laeagle · Unread post by **laeagle** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 7:49 pm

highland can u give me some howto on 1&1 stuff . i need to auto backup the server to the ftp site not sure how cron?. 1&1 is the best and with (asl i spent the $) and glad i did it is working grrrrrrrrrate i would not get 1&1 with out asl!!!. they added new os stuff but not centos 5 yet? and they are useing 8.1 psa not 8.2 thanks scott for your help.

exi1ed0ne · Unread post by **exi1ed0ne** » Tue Aug 21, 2007 8:06 pm

Quick 'n dirty:

Code: Select all

#!/bin/bash

ftp_site="backupXXX.onlinehome-server.com"
ftp_user="username"
ftp_pass="password"
theday=`date +%a`

# plesk backup - Assumes there is a /home/backup directory
nice -18 /usr/local/psa/bin/pleskbackup -s 100M all /home/backup/plesk_backup-$theday

# Drop the files generated to ftp
for k in `ls /home/backup`; do
(echo "open $ftp_site
user $ftp_user $ftp_pass
bin
put /home/backup/$k $k
bye"
) | /usr/kerberos/bin/ftp -nu
rm /home/backup/$k
done

It does a full plesk backup. Run from cron nightly and you'll have 7 days of stored plesk backups, split into 100MB parts. I would recommend tweaking this to include other important configuration files for the server, as well as gpg encrypting the files. That is a much more involved setup though. I'm on CentOS 4.5, so your ftp program may differ in location.

breun · Unread post by **breun** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 7:01 am

If you have the ftp package installed on CentOS 4, there's a /usr/bin/ftp also. lftp is also pretty good, I hear.

But well, I actually never use FTP. I like secure connections better.

exi1ed0ne · Unread post by **exi1ed0ne** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 9:13 am

I don't use /usr/bin/ftp, as it doesn't support the -n option. Why there are two different flavors I'll never know. It drove me crazy for a bit as my script worked fine when I ran it manually, but not for cron.

I actually gpg encrypt the stuff before I ship it off the box, but I agree with you that some flavor of encryption is the way to go. Does sftp even work with 1and1's backup?

breun · Unread post by **breun** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 9:19 am

The /usr/kerberos/bin/ftp binary belongs to the krb5-workstation package. 'which ftp' actually returns /usr/kerberos/bin/ftp, so it's the default when you just use 'ftp'.

laeagle · Unread post by **laeagle** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 8:33 pm

thanks for your help
do i make a file for this or retype each time to run?
i'm new to this lol

exi1ed0ne wrote:Quick 'n dirty:
Code: Select all
#!/bin/bash

ftp_site="backupXXX.onlinehome-server.com"
ftp_user="username"
ftp_pass="password"
theday=`date +%a`

# plesk backup - Assumes there is a /home/backup directory
nice -18 /usr/local/psa/bin/pleskbackup -s 100M all /home/backup/plesk_backup-$theday

# Drop the files generated to ftp
for k in `ls /home/backup`; do
(echo "open $ftp_site
user $ftp_user $ftp_pass
bin
put /home/backup/$k $k
bye"
) | /usr/kerberos/bin/ftp -nu
rm /home/backup/$k
done
It does a full plesk backup. Run from cron nightly and you'll have 7 days of stored plesk backups, split into 100MB parts. I would recommend tweaking this to include other important configuration files for the server, as well as gpg encrypting the files. That is a much more involved setup though. I'm on CentOS 4.5, so your ftp program may differ in location.

make dir /home/backup ?
It does a full plesk backup/// i am trying to backup the server so when/// not if i mess it up i can restore it back
split into 100MB parts drive is 160-too-160
That is a much more involved setup though. I'm on CentOS 4.5, so your ftp program may differ in location // it is the same
thanks
i'm learning