NYCPHP Meetup

[Mark Simko]

> >>
> >> Ok, next question...
> >> I just got off the phone with my clients hosting company. ?They told me
> >> that their site is on a shared server.

On a low volume site, shared hosting is usually acceptable. If the
website gets high volume, the latency will inconvenience visitors, and
may adversely affect the goal of the website. If you need very fast page
loading, dedicated servers, virtual servers, or shared servers with very
few 'tenants' are the way to go.

Other things to consider:
Shared hosting can be very inexpensive, and for low volume websites,
this may be more sensible for your client.
Some shared hosts are easier to work with than others. I've found some
that are impossible - waiting hours or days for changes to take effect.
Some hosts may be a bit more difficult to get Joomla running on. For
instance, the host I generally use needs tweaks to the configuration in
order to get SEF working properly. Fortunately, there is documentation
that makes this fairly simple.

> >> I'm not sure if this server is the best for joomla.
> >>

That depends on the ease of working with the host, what they have in
documentation, and what they have running.

I will only run on a linux host. I have not tried running on a Windows
host.
You need:
PHP5 & MySQL

You also need a web server, and Apache is well documented, although you
heard at the meeting that lighttpd is favored by some.

What is best depends on what you are comfortable working with, what
performs adequately for the situation, and that the cost is reasonable
for the task.

> >> Wondering if you all give tell me what hosting company you recommend for
> >> your clients.

There's an invitation for a brawl!

I am using 1&1 for some of my small clients, but others will scoff at
this. I've moved one off of GoDaddy because it was too hard for me to
work with that host, and from what I could see by other people's posts,
there were going to be bigger problems ahead.

So here's a practical suggestions: If you are considering a host, go to
the Joomla forums (at Joomla.org) and do a search on that host. You'll
see some of the issues that people have had. You'll get an idea if it is
workable, and how to deal with configuration and other 'problems'.

> >> I'd rather not dealing with the hosting on my end.

I know that feeling. But ...

It is far worse to have to deal with a host that just stinks. In my
experience, it is easier to move the client over to a host that is
better.

A lot better.

I'd never do it the other way again.

Ever!

Make of that what you will.

>  ?I would rather be able
> >> to guide my client to the right hosting company.

Well, it ain't all kittens and rainbows! ;)

You'll probably find it is quicker and easier to do it for them.

> >> What do I need to look for in a host that will best support joomla and cms
> >> in general?

For Joomla, I covered that above. In general, I don't know.


Mark

> >>
> >> Thanks,
> >> Kam