YOUR OWN SERVER

Installing Sophio software on your own server is the best thing you can do to assure speed, reliability, and security of your data.

Sophio has been through several Internet Service Providers and web hosting companies since the early days of the Internet.  We have owned our own equipment as well as leased it from the large computer manufacturers such as DELL, IBM, and HP.  We have come to the conclusion that the best method in managing one or many websites is to work with a 'managed hosting company'.  A managed hosting company is one who purchases or builds the hardware on your behalf, and then plugs it into the Internet.  You have a single source for connectivity, hardware, and basic operating system support.  When you want to increase your memory or storage, you send an email to your account rep. and it is handled for you while you sleep.  If it is a holiday and your site goes down, the managed host is available 24 hours a day by phone or email to fix problems or perform upgrades.

After an exhaustive search and many painful experiences Sophio Software exclusively recommends Rackspace.com.  You will need to tell them that you are using Sophio to insure our ability to install and or move your site to your server.

Rackspace offers packages starting at $500 per month.  Sophio charges by the hour to move and or install your site at a rate of $50 per hour (estimated cost of $250-$500).   If you want Sophio to manage the server, the cost is an extra $100 per month from Sophio.  If Sophio manages the server, we will do daily and weekly maintenance, perform operating system and Sophio software patches, as well as install necessary updates from suppliers (parts suppliers, credit card companies, shipping companies, etc).  If you do not have Sophio manage the server, then you will be emailed notifications when critical actions have to be taken.  If you or someone on your staff is familiar with FTP and the basic management of a Windows Web Server you do not need us to manage the server.  

While this may seem expensive, it is worth its weight in gold.  At a cost of $16.66 a day your site is GUARANTEED to be up.  If you are EVER down, Rackspace will refund you money for each minute of verifiable downtime.    Suffice to say, the uptime is the 'connection' to the Internet as well as the reliability of the hardware, which in our experience has been flawless.  Please note there will be occasional software issues and or security related patches that require your server to be taken off line for short periods of time each month (maybe a total of 15 minutes).

Roughly eighty percent of Sophio's customers are hosted on a Sophio shared server.  This is a sound strategy if your website gets relatively low amounts of traffic, and is not your primary source of revenue.  If however, your website IS your business, you owe it to yourself and your business to have your own server for all of the above reasons.

On a final note, Rackspace will have your new server on line within 48 hours of receiving your order.  It will take Sophio a minimum of three business days to get your site installed or moved over.  If you require the use of a secure site certificate (https) then you will need to purchase one from a signing authority such as GeoTrust.com.  The cost for your own SSL certificate is $250 per year.

For Rackspace contact information please email rackspace@sophiosoft.com . 

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