> Hello all,
> Just trying to update my knowledge about
> website hosting services.
> Can anyone recommend hosting companies
> that have a good track record of hosting mod_perl
> applications?
I haven't found much that is secure in a shared server environment,
so I run my own servers that all run mod_perl2. The web site hosting
services I provide for clients are strictly for static HTML web sites
(due to security reasons in that the server-side code has too much
access to the system), so the additional hosting options are more
expensive as a result -- an isolated server (or servers), or a
virtualized server (nearly all my clients chose the former option).
The big concern will be security. If server-side code isn't
restricted or isolated properly (on many hosting systems I've seen it
isn't), then another user on the system could modify your sites, or
cause other problems (either intentionally or unintentionally).
Another problem I've encountered is that updates sometimes break
things, and especially in shared environments that can be more common
since there is often a need for a wider diversity of libraries,
modules, etc. Ideally the updates should be run in test environments
first, but I only know of a few people who practice this diligently.
I mention these points to give you some ideas about what to consider
(e.g., isolation) when selecting such a service.
> The sites we build are not high-volume sites,
> they are school websites, municipalities, small
> non-profits and small business.
Volume usually isn't the problem, but transport speed can be if it's
very slow and you need to serve large documents (e.g., PDFs that are
hundreds of megabites in size).
An important factor is whether the system can work consistently, and
it should be tested under heavy load to ensure consistency in the
event that high volume comes unexpectedly (e.g., the web site is
featured in the news, or someone redirects traffic from a busy web
site to yours, etc.).
> Any recommendations would be greatly
> appreciated.
> Thank you all,
> Joe N
Randolf Richardson - randolf@inter-corporate.com
Inter-Corporate Computer & Network Services, Inc.
Beautiful British Columbia, Canada
http://www.inter-corporate.com/