SITE SECURITY??? WHAT, AGAIN???

OH, LOOK. A SCRIPT-KIDDIE RIPPING OFF YOUR DATABASE.

WAVE TO THE NICE HACKER. HE OWNS YOU NOW.

Hacked:

The Basics of Site Security Again

You log on to your site and notice that, from your administrator’s console, things don’t look right. So you search the site access log and discover the worst. You’ve been hacked. You’ve got a bogus IP address listed in the search log and when you try to access the intruder, all you get is a 404 error message – Site Not Found.

Now what do you do? What did the hacker do? Is there a digital ticking time bomb buried in your site’s code? A Trojan horse, perhaps? And what about that sensitive personal data stored on your site’s database? You know that’s been copied, even though a quick check of MySQL reveals the database is still in tact. Even so, that sensitive data has been compromised.

Any site is vulnerable to hackers, crackers, script-kiddies and other black hats regardless of how many layers of security you have in place. Remember, hackers never sleep and they’re always looking for web site vulnerabilities. These guys could have gained entry to your site in lots of different ways. By placing an order or opting in for your newsletter. Once contact is made, security is more easily breached.

You’ve got a problem. So, never let it get this far.

Keeping the Bad Guys at Bay

Once a site has been hacked, getting it scrubbed clean and back online can be an arduous, time-consuming-money-losing proposition. Better to keep those evil-doers out from the start.

Check your host server’s configuration. Ooops, forgot to do that.

Revisit your server configuration. You can buy the best, locked-down-tight site security but if it isn’t properly configured with server side software it may provide a false sense of security, as in you aren’t getting what you paid for.

Synch up for safety.

Keep security software and hardware current.

We all know that the hacker community doesn’t have much else to do except sit around devising new ways to circumvent the latest patches from Microsoft or security software developers like MacAfee. The security software programmers know it all-too-well so 24/7, there’s a battle going on between security programmers and hackers looking for a trophy and web creds from other hackers.

Update in-place security regularly. Log on for patches and fixes.

Keep meticulous records of all software. (Keep the box.)

Maintain a record of all software in use to support your business including edition number, i.e. XYZ 2.0. Also user key codes and other information that’ll come in handy if a hacker does get through. An online security company needs to know as much about your software as the hacker did. Make it easy for that company by providing make, model and serial number.

Review log files.

At least once a day, check your back office logs to make sure no one has dropped by unnoticed.

Good time to bring up permissions. A lot of small companies maintain a network of computers. One in customer service. One in accounting and so on. A network is a must for even small businesses today, small businesses that rely on the office network to access business data and records of activity.

This requires the company owner to develop a permissions log – a directory of which employees have access to what company data. All departments and employees should not have access to all data. Only that information required to do the job.

Limit the number of permissions. Limit access to data. And train employees in safe and secure online practices, i.e., email scans, daily virus scans across the network and so on.

And worth another mention, keep access logs up to date. Close out all ex-employees and others who have no business looking at order tracking data.

Stay current on viral epidemics.

First, always keep site security in mind. Consider it a key part of your job as online business owner. That requires a pro-active approach to security. And that requires a knowledge of the latest in frauds, scams, schemes and viruses.

A new virus, once discovered, is almost instantly identified on webmaster sites, on security software sites and, of course, on the Microsoft download page. That’s good. It prevents a local epidemic from becoming a pandemic. Keep up with the latest in hacker tactics and the cures offered on the web. If you wait, your site is vulnerable to a viral injection.

Bulk up your passwords.

This is a simple step, it doesn’t cost a penny yet many site owners still insist on using their pet’s name as the administrator log on. Anyone who knows the site owner will be able to hack the site in, oh, about 10 minutes.

Limit access and create undefeatable passwords. Dictionary software is easily available on hacker sites. These programs go though millions of letter and number strings a day until they generate the actual password. So, extend your passwords, use letters, numbers and symbols, and change them often.

Change all passwords whenever an employee leaves the company.

Run a check of all content generated by third parties.

You might download a FREE counter and pick up a dose of key-logger software – software that logs every key stroke made by you and other members of the office network.

Evaluate the source of the content. For example, sites that syndicate content via RSS feed should be Googled and checked by you, the web business owner. Any third party content can be booby-trapped so be careful. As mom used to say, “You don’t know where it’s been!”

Check your links. Check their ads.

Links are important to building connectivity within a small market. But a link is also an access point for a black hat so always consider the company you keep. Inbound links can be used to inject malware.

Same with paid advertising. Some “company” may be pay you $50 a month to advertise on your site, build a shell site or mirror site and steal your sales. You might not notice it for a couple of days – and by then, your legitimate business could be out $1,000s in sales and you’re facing a boggy mess of customer complaints that are only going to cost more to repair.

Just because an advertiser “sounds nice on the phone” doesn’t mean that she’s running a legitimate business. Know what’s on your pages. Know who’s on your pages. If it looks funny, or your instincts tell you something’s not right, do you really need that extra $50 a month? Take care with those who reach out to touch you. They may be picking your pocket.

When you grow, hire a pro.

When you’re just starting out with a new site, money is always tight, always a consideration. In this case, go with a reputable web host that maintains high levels of server security, including security against cross-server (X-server) attacks. And if this is all gibberish, call the tech support team at your hosting company.

However, at some point, when that online business has grown from a part-time hobby to your sole source of income, congratulations. Now hire a pro.

Site security is no longer a priority. It’s become the priority once you’ve quit your day job and now rely on web traffic to pay the bills. Have a security pro check your system and, if merited, hire a security service that tracks attacks on your site, providing higher levels of safety for your “hand-built” digital business.

Yep, despite the fact that the web has been gussied up in recent years, it’s still a lawless frontier in which you have to protect yourself. The web police don’t exist so forget the 911 call. It won’t help.

The secret to a secure site is constant vigilance and automated convenience. Buy good security ware. Properly configure with server security. Update regularly and keep track of who comes and goes, whether an employee, a link-in or a paid advertiser.

Keep security front and center. It will keep what’s yours – yours!

Site security is serious business. If you're serious about your web-based biz, drop me line. You can bet that some hacker, cracker or script-kiddie is working on ways to do you wrong.

Webwordslinger.com

Time To Move Up To a Dedictaed Sever? It Is If You Want To Grow Your E-biz.

If you're still using shared hosting, there's as many as 2,000 websites on your shared host's gear.

You're competing for CPU access, bandwidth and your site is at greater risk of cross-side server attacks.

Maybe it's time to move on up to a dedicated server.

Dedicated Hosting Services:

Not Just For The Big Guys Anymore

Chances are, if you’re like most website owners, you started with a shared hosting program with a web host. In this case, you rent a given amount of disk space and share use of resources, like bandwidth and CPU access, with other shared hosting account holders. In the case of shared hosting, a web host can cram over 1,000 sites on a single box (server). If some of your neighbors are bandwidth hogs, it could mean longer download times and slower response times from your site when interacting with customers.

And customers aren’t a patient bunch. In this day of DSL and cable modems, web users want speed. They expect it, and if you aren’t delivering content fast, some site visitors are going to grow tired of watching that blue line slowly crawl to the right. They’ll click off and go somewhere else to purchase products or services.

Dedicated Servers

Just as the name states. Dedicated service consists of one box, one business. This provides unlimited access to all the server’s assets. No competition for CPU access. When you subscribe to a dedicated hosting program you rent the whole server.

In addition, the host provides an operating system (usually Linux, Windows or some variant), ecommerce software bundles that include site building software, a secure checkout, a database and other site enhancement tools, like blog modules that you can plug in with a couple of clicks on the administrator’s console and, if the host is good, you’ll also get access to 24/7 tech support on a toll-free line. Lesser-quality hosts (that still may charge high monthly hosting fees) provide email-only access to tech support. You, the webmaster, prepare a trouble ticket that’s emailed to tech support (somewhere on this planet, but that’s an assumption) and wait for a response and a fix. When your server is down, your business is down. How long can you afford to be offline?

Who Needs Dedicated Hosting?

Not everyone. That’s why shared hosting is the best option for start-ups. The hosting costs are low, usually less than $7.00 a month, and until your business concept and execution have been proven, don’t spend extra for dedicated hosting services. It’s like driving a thumbtack with a sledgehammer. Overkill.

However, if your site has been up for a while, it’s no doubt changed with the times, with a menu of new features and increased interactivity with visitors. For example, a blog takes up disk space and bandwidth as you and your site community interact. RSS feeds, a fully-customizable content management system and other front store and behind-the curtain features all take up disk space.

And, if you’ve enjoyed retail success online, chances are your product offerings have expanded over time. You’ve added pages to your site, pushing your shared hosting space to the max. Well, a good host will sell you disk space a la carte (by the gigabyte). That’s one way to expand. Or you can take the plunge and sign on for a dedicated server.

Multiple Sites

For many site owners, once they get “the bug” and see that there’s money to be made on the W3, building additional websites takes on greater appeal. If the site owner is clearing $500 a month with one site, 10 sites should deliver a $5,000 return each month. At least in theory.

If you manage multiple sites, all of which are deep in features (you manage 12 blogs, for instance), it’s time to move to a dedicated server. You can run a number of different domains from one server, expanding your web presence. In fact, if you plan on building more than one website (and why not, it doesn’t cost any more each month), a dedicated server is a must. A simple administrator console will quickly provide access to site data and activity from many different sites.

Site Functionality

Some sites contain 20 or 30 pages of static text and a simple opt-in form. However, for enterprise-grade businesses and web retailers, a dedicated server is a must-have. Many business sites contain hundreds of pages and are employed for a variety of purposes such as email and other inter-department communications.

Remember, you can customize your dedicated server any way you want to best suit your business needs. So, you’ll get much more functionality from a dedicated server – especially important when you’re running a virtual office with employees spread out across the globe, or a company with several brick-and-mortar outlets all delivering data simultaneously.

Data Security

If your database is loaded with sensitive, personal information like customers’ names, addresses and credit card numbers, you’ve taken on the responsibility of keeping that data secure from hackers.

Using a dedicated server, you can install your own security software and hardware – multiple layers of security on top of the security the web host provides as part of its service to you.

Managed or Unmanaged Hosting?

Dedicated hosting is offered in two formats: managed and unmanaged.

With unmanaged, dedicated hosting you’re responsible for the whole shebang. So, you and your team are responsible for everything – from the installation of your customized database to the creation of customer service responders. You do it all.

The advantage of unmanaged dedicated hosting is cost savings. Since the web host doesn’t do any hand holding (except for routine trouble-shooting) you’ll pay less for an unmanaged, dedicated server. However, either you’ll have to study up on site construction and connectivity to an ever-growing web, or pay some design guru to build the site to meet your company’s needs.

Also, with unmanaged hosting you’re responsible for your server security. It’s your anti-virus software, your hard-wired firewall, your everything.

Managed dedicated hosting puts you in partnership with the web host. You work with the host techs to come up with business solutions. If you’re employing your dedicated server in a variety of ways, services have to be synced up. Storage space has to be configured and managed so inter-office emails remain secure in transit. Hackers love dedicated servers because they know that these online businesses house hacker gold – personal information and lots of it.

Managed dedicated hosting also delivers managed database services for the most popular database platforms, i.e. Oracle, MySQL, Microsoft, etc. With managed services, you’ll also receive customized, configured security that syncs up with the box’s server-side software.

Managed dedicated hosting is also necessary to create multiple, “virtual servers” for different business functions that may or may not include interaction with clients and customers. Working in tandem with the host’s on-site team of networking professionals, you’ll create the superstructure of your online business – communications, data collection and collation, accounts management, inventory management and all of the other functions of a busy and growing company.

Shopping for a Dedicated Web Host

If you opt for unmanaged dedicated hosting, you will save money. However, you should compare disk space allotted, CPU speed and other apples-to-apples comparisons to get the most for your hosting costs. It’s a simple calculation of: features + cost = value.

However, if you envision an expanding business that relies more and more on the web and the Internet ( they’re two different things) to conduct daily operations, you will pay more for managed service but the price you pay for that extra attention will deliver a site that functions as you envision.

Before you sign an agreement with any web host, contact the business solutions professionals on staff. Discuss your current needs and needs going forward and get a feel for how the team adapts to your thinking.

As in any business, including the web hosting business, the client or customer is always right. So look for input from professionals and follow good advice when you get it, but make sure the managed services team at a prospective host is prepared to solve your online business needs – from site migration to multi-purpose server apps – to your specifications.

Once you find the right team, with the right attitude and the understanding that their success is dependent on your site’s ability to meet all of your business objectives, you’re not just getting a dedicated server, you’re getting experience and peace of mind that your site will be right, right out of the gate.

Looking for the right webhost for your proposed venture into the world of ecommerce. Come on it's fun. Drop me a line and build a web-based business together.

Webwordslinger.com

Still Using Shared Hosting? Time To Move Up To A Dedicated Server?

Dedicated Hosting Services:

Maybe It's Time

Chances are, if you’re like most website owners, you started with a shared hosting program with a web host. In this case, you rent a given amount of disk space and share use of resources, like bandwidth and CPU access, with other shared hosting account holders. In the case of shared hosting, a web host can cram over 1,000 sites on a single box (server). If some of your neighbors are bandwidth hogs, it could mean longer download times and slower response times from your site when interacting with customers.

And customers aren’t a patient bunch. In this day of DSL and cable modems, web users want speed. They expect it, and if you aren’t delivering content fast, some site visitors are going to grow tired of watching that blue line slowly crawl to the right. They’ll click off and go somewhere else to purchase products or services.

Dedicated Servers

Just as the name states. Dedicated service consists of one box, one business. This provides unlimited access to all the server’s assets. No competition for CPU access. When you subscribe to a dedicated hosting program you rent the whole server.

In addition, the host provides an operating system (usually Linux, Windows or some variant), ecommerce software bundles that include site building software, a secure checkout, a database and other site enhancement tools, like blog modules that you can plug in with a couple of clicks on the administrator’s console and, if the host is good, you’ll also get access to 24/7 tech support on a toll-free line. Lesser-quality hosts (that still may charge high monthly hosting fees) provide email-only access to tech support. You, the webmaster, prepare a trouble ticket that’s emailed to tech support (somewhere on this planet, but that’s an assumption) and wait for a response and a fix. When your server is down, your business is down. How long can you afford to be offline?

Who Needs Dedicated Hosting?

Not everyone. That’s why shared hosting is the best option for start-ups. The hosting costs are low, usually less than $7.00 a month, and until your business concept and execution have been proven, don’t spend extra for dedicated hosting services. It’s like driving a thumbtack with a sledgehammer. Overkill.

However, if your site has been up for a while, it’s no doubt changed with the times, with a menu of new features and increased interactivity with visitors. For example, a blog takes up disk space and bandwidth as you and your site community interact. RSS feeds, a fully-customizable content management system and other front store and behind-the curtain features all take up disk space.

And, if you’ve enjoyed retail success online, chances are your product offerings have expanded over time. You’ve added pages to your site, pushing your shared hosting space to the max. Well, a good host will sell you disk space a la carte (by the gigabyte). That’s one way to expand. Or you can take the plunge and sign on for a dedicated server.

Multiple Sites

For many site owners, once they get “the bug” and see that there’s money to be made on the W3, building additional websites takes on greater appeal. If the site owner is clearing $500 a month with one site, 10 sites should deliver a $5,000 return each month. At least in theory.

If you manage multiple sites, all of which are deep in features (you manage 12 blogs, for instance), it’s time to move to a dedicated server. You can run a number of different domains from one server, expanding your web presence. In fact, if you plan on building more than one website (and why not, it doesn’t cost any more each month), a dedicated server is a must. A simple administrator console will quickly provide access to site data and activity from many different sites.

Site Functionality

Some sites contain 20 or 30 pages of static text and a simple opt-in form. However, for enterprise-grade businesses and web retailers, a dedicated server is a must-have. Many business sites contain hundreds of pages and are employed for a variety of purposes such as email and other inter-department communications.

Remember, you can customize your dedicated server any way you want to best suit your business needs. So, you’ll get much more functionality from a dedicated server – especially important when you’re running a virtual office with employees spread out across the globe, or a company with several brick-and-mortar outlets all delivering data simultaneously.

Data Security

If your database is loaded with sensitive, personal information like customers’ names, addresses and credit card numbers, you’ve taken on the responsibility of keeping that data secure from hackers.

Using a dedicated server, you can install your own security software and hardware – multiple layers of security on top of the security the web host provides as part of its service to you.

Managed or Unmanaged Hosting?

Dedicated hosting is offered in two formats: managed and unmanaged.

With unmanaged, dedicated hosting you’re responsible for the whole shebang. So, you and your team are responsible for everything – from the installation of your customized database to the creation of customer service responders. You do it all.

The advantage of unmanaged dedicated hosting is cost savings. Since the web host doesn’t do any hand holding (except for routine trouble-shooting) you’ll pay less for an unmanaged, dedicated server. However, either you’ll have to study up on site construction and connectivity to an ever-growing web, or pay some design guru to build the site to meet your company’s needs.

Also, with unmanaged hosting you’re responsible for your server security. It’s your anti-virus software, your hard-wired firewall, your everything.

Managed dedicated hosting puts you in partnership with the web host. You work with the host techs to come up with business solutions. If you’re employing your dedicated server in a variety of ways, services have to be synced up. Storage space has to be configured and managed so inter-office emails remain secure in transit. Hackers love dedicated servers because they know that these online businesses house hacker gold – personal information and lots of it.

Managed dedicated hosting also delivers managed database services for the most popular database platforms, i.e. Oracle, MySQL, Microsoft, etc. With managed services, you’ll also receive customized, configured security that syncs up with the box’s server-side software.

Managed dedicated hosting is also necessary to create multiple, “virtual servers” for different business functions that may or may not include interaction with clients and customers. Working in tandem with the host’s on-site team of networking professionals, you’ll create the superstructure of your online business – communications, data collection and collation, accounts management, inventory management and all of the other functions of a busy and growing company.

Shopping for a Dedicated Web Host

If you opt for unmanaged dedicated hosting, you will save money. However, you should compare disk space allotted, CPU speed and other apples-to-apples comparisons to get the most for your hosting costs. It’s a simple calculation of: features + cost = value.

However, if you envision an expanding business that relies more and more on the web and the Internet ( they’re two different things) to conduct daily operations, you will pay more for managed service but the price you pay for that extra attention will deliver a site that functions as you envision.

Before you sign an agreement with any web host, contact the business solutions professionals on staff. Discuss your current needs and needs going forward and get a feel for how the team adapts to your thinking.

As in any business, including the web hosting business, the client or customer is always right. So look for input from professionals and follow good advice when you get it, but make sure the managed services team at a prospective host is prepared to solve your online business needs – from site migration to multi-purpose server apps – to your specifications.

Once you find the right team, with the right attitude and the understanding that their success is dependent on your site’s ability to meet all of your business objectives, you’re not just getting a dedicated server, you’re getting experience and peace of mind that your site will be right, right out of the gate.

Time to mirgarte your growing e-biz to a dedicated server? Drop me an e-mail and let's link up. It just may be time to take that next big step as you grow your e-business to greater and greater profitability.

The Disappearing Web Biz: Presto! Your Site Disappears Overnight.

ALL THAT HARD WORK GONE

WHEN YOUR WEB HOST PULLS THE PLUG

How’s this for a nightmare scenario:

You take the plunge, register a domain and begin your on-line business. You work hard and you’re finally starting to see a profit. Then one day, you log on and your site has disappeared! What happened? What happened to all of your hard work? It could be as simple as a clerical error or technical glitch, or it could be that you’ve registered your domain with a low-ball registrar. Think it can’t happen to you? One of the leading web hosts and domain registrars recently removed a client website for an on-line security agency from one of its server. Gone. The website (and the business) had been deleted.

And if it happens to you what have you lost? Much more than just your website. You also lose access to your site’s databases – databases filled with invaluable customer information. You also lose inbound links, critical to higher page rank. Even worse, you disappear from search engines altogether. You can see how this nightmare can go on to the point where you’ve lost it all – and who knows where your web host is. Maybe he graduated from high school.

There are lots of horror stories about deleted domains – websites that have been zapped simply because the owners forgot to pay the annual domain registration fee, for instance. If you’re the forgetful type, you don’t want to work with a host that deletes your livelihood over a $4.95 charge – but it’s happened.

What are the domain registrar’s responsibilities?

There is some law and order on the W3. A consortium called ICANN oversees the relationships between web hosts and site owners. You can access the agency’s rules and regs on-line to see what your “legal” options are when you encounter a problem with your web host. Any reliable hosting company is going to adhere to ICANN guidelines. Look for some kind of sign that a potential web host is ICANN-savvy.

Next, before you sign up for an expensive, long-term subscription for hosting services, read the TOS – the Terms of Service. And not just the big text, either. Before you sign up with any web host, read the entire TOS – even the finest of fine print. Know how a given host deals with deleted accounts and what steps the hosting company takes to provide access to databases and other critical information if your domain is deleted, and what steps it takes to rectify the problem if technically feasible. All of this will be laid out in the TOS. Read it very, very carefully.

However, if you’re reaching for a copy of your host’s TOS, chances are you already have a problem and you’re looking for the host’s contractually-binding responsibilities. So, even if you’ve been zapped contrary to ICANN guidelines or even the TOS of your web host, there’s not much you can do about it. It would cost much more to litigate and even then, getting payment is going to be difficult if not impossible. (And don’t think the unscrupulous web hosts don’t know this. They count on it!)

It all comes down to the way web hosts treat their clients and fulfill the legal requirements of a client subscription. Some web hosts operate out of a spare bedroom (or even a closet) and just don’t have the time to oversee simple, administrative chores like automatic domain renewal for their clients. If you’re working with an unreliable or uninvolved hosting company, you may get deleted, along with an auto-responder in your inbox.

On the other hand, working with an engaged web host – one that provides the tools you need to build a site to success – eliminates a lot of uncertainty and sleepless nights. It’s all about the quality of the hosting services you receive.

The quality of hosting

How do you know your site won’t be vaporized overnight without so much as a heads up from your hosting company? Fly-by-night web hosts disappear all of the time, taking with them their subscribers’ money and all of that hard work. It’s a fact, not all web hosts provide the same level of service, or the range of services, that better web hosts do. That’s why it pays to shop around.

As you’re comparison shopping look for signs of reliability. Does the host’s site look good? Is the text professionally written or is it just some kid working out of his dorm room hosting a few hundred clients on a shared server? It doesn’t take much to call yourself a web host. A small investment in server hardware, administration software and the ability to take credit card payments are about all you need to call yourself a web host company.

However, it takes much more to call yourself a good web host. Think of your web host as a silent but critical partner in your on-line endeavor because, in fact, that’s just what a web host is. Why? Because if you lose access to the world wide web, you lose access to your customers or clients and you aren’t making any sales during downtime. So you want reliability – even if it costs a few bucks more each year.

What are the “signs” of quality web hosting?

Does the host offer an automatic renewal service? If it does, it’s a sign that the host is involved in the success of its clients.

Does the site display any logos – the ICANN logo, the on-line Better Business Bureau or some other affiliation that instills confidence? Look. Ask.

Are the TOS clear, simple and straight up? It’s in the best interests of a quality hosting company that clients not have any misunderstandings before buying hosting services.

Does the host offer 24/7, US-based tech support? If your site has suddenly disappeared you want to talk to someone who can fix the problem – now!

You also want to look for a host that’s been around for a while. Now, this is no guarantee that your site won’t be deleted for some infraction (or for no reason at all). The nightmare scenario described above involved a huge domain registrar with a long-time, web presence.

Is the web host involved in the success of its clients? The good ones are because it’s easier to keep a client than find a new one so quality web hosts build their client bases by delivering quality services, near-perfect uptime, tools and applications required to build and launch a website and grow it to profitability. The more freebies a web host offers the better. That’s a great measurement of how the web host sees its responsibility in your partnership.

So, scour the blogs, read the reviews and visit each potential web host’s site for a thorough evaluation. Read the TOS agreement from top to bottom so you understand just what you’re getting and for how long. Finally, look for a web host that wants to partner with you for mutual success.

Websites will still disappear and the horror stories will continue to make the rounds on the web. But if you go with a hosting company that delivers, has a track record and a commitment to your site’s success, the likelihood that your site will be deleted are greatly diminished.

Need some help finding the right web host for your new e-biz. Piece of cake. Call or click webwordslinger.com and let's get started in the fastest growing marketplace in the history of marketplaces.

Later,

Webwordslinger.com

Is Your Web Host Ready For Anything? Than Neither Is Your Web Biz!

Is Your Web Host Ready For Anything?

Just How Safe Is Your E-Business?

We’ve got drought in the midlands. We’ve got flash floods, mudslides, earthquakes and raging infernos throughout California (why don’t you people just move?). In the Northeast, there are blizzards and cold snaps that make grown men weep. Yep, you never know what to expect – but you can expect natural disasters and unnatural disasters to strike and when they do, are you out of your online business?

Web Servers – a Primer

A short lesson for those just joining the online community. Your website is delivered to the world wide web through a server owned by your web host. Now, if you have a shared hosting program (entry-level and low cost – good) you share a server with a couple of hundred other web sites.

That server, which connects your business to your customers, isn’t an abstract concept. It’s a piece of hardware. You can buy a network server from Dell for less than $1,000. No mystery. A server is just a big box with massive storage capacity that’s plugged into the web matrix so your site is visible from Singapore to Sandusky.

Small hosting companies have a few servers all chugging away. The big web hosting companies have dozens and dozens of black boxes (servers) all spewing forth the stuff we see on the W3.

Now, like all electronics gear, web servers aren’t partial to the elements. Leave one out in the rain and watch the sparks fly. Leave a network server outside overnight in International Falls, MN and you’ve turned a perfectly good server into a door stop. Get the picture? These pathways to the web are delicate, and they require protection.

What’s Your Web Host Doing to Protect Against Floods?

What’s the worst that can happen?

The building housing your server floods, cooking your site’s server in the process. Umm. You’ll be down for a while, that’s a fact. But wait, if the water cooked your server, all of the other sites on the server are in trouble. All need fixing fast.

Now, imagine the backwash from a busted water main wipes out 30 servers. Man, you are going to be down well past the holiday shopping season and you know that’s going to hurt.

A responsible web host prepares for the worst contingencies. For example, in the case of flooding, servers should be elevated at least a foot off the ground. If we’re talkin’ a Noah-sized flood, nothing is going to help, but that 12-inch buffer between your server and the raging tide may just keep you online – even during a flood at your server location.

Web Servers and Power Outages

Power outages are a commonplace annoyance but we accept them as we eat a barbequed dinner by candlelight. Tree limbs fall. But hurricanes and tornadoes also hit, uprooting trees and tearing down electrical wires in the process. Hey, if you happen to go for a low-ball web host, your server could be in a hut in Bangladesh for all you know and electricity may NOT be taken for granted.

Ask your web host how it handles power outages. Most will tell you there’s nothing they can do about the loss of power until power is restored. Ahh, but the good host is ready for any contingency. If the host loses power from the local grid, the host’s back-up generators automatically kick in without missing a beat. Online visitors won’t even see a blip.

It’s not always easy to tell where your host server is. Resellers by disk space in bulk from web hosts and sell it in smaller chunks to retail customers like you and me. So the company, our web host, may be red, white and blue and call itself The All-American Web Hosting Company, but for all you know, your host server is just west of Katmandu.

Ask your host for the physical location of your server. If it’s not at least in the U.S. keep looking for a host. Believe it or not, web hosting has become popular in Iran. Yea, that’s a good way to start your online business – with a server in Iran.

Fire! Fire!

What kind of fire suppression system does the web host have in place? Is it designed to protect non-involved servers, i.e. a smart system, or does the server room simply fill with fire-retardant foam, taking your database with it.

Don’t think it’s a problem? Servers use electricity and because they do, they create heat. Lots of it. That’s why server rooms are air conditioned. If they weren’t, there’d be so much heat build up you could cure hams in there.

Be sure to ask your web host what kind of protection they have in place to fight a small electrical fire or a catastrophic fire that melts 50 servers into plastic lumps. Hey, that’s your site on that lump!

Site Sabotage

So, okay, you’ve checked that prospective web host and found that all servers are on the 40^th floor (let it rain) and the company does have back-up generators on site to cover for power outages. So far so good.

But what about the proverbial “disgruntled employee.” The tech head who was just passed over for a promotion, or the new guy who’s just testing his hacker chops at the server level. Who’s working on your server?

It’s not a common problem among well-respected, long-time hosting companies who do background tests, random drug testing and take other proactive measures to ensure all of those who have access to the server room (the Mother Lode) are properly checked and rechecked.

In addition, quality hosting companies limit access to the server room and security is reminiscent of a Level 3 Max security prison. There’s usually a keyboard or some type of biometrics device used to gain access to the server room, and the entire place is under constant video surveillance. It won’t stop the major whack job, but whack jobs are usually detected before they reach the trusted level of server technician.

Beaucop Bucks?

Hardly. You should expect this level of security and protection for pennies a day. Literally. Pennies a day.

You can purchase quality hosting from a web host that has contingency plans for everything from massive flooding (elevate the servers) to hoards of locust (Please shut the door so the locusts don’t get in. Thank you.)

Hosting is competitive. Just Google “web hosts” and you’ll get the idea. The premium web hosts have a long history (at least 10 years), near-perfect uptimes (accept nothing less than 99.9%) and both security and contingency plans in place. The small timers have a single server in Mumbai and during the annual rainy season service is…umm intermittent.

So spend a little to get a lot. A lot of protection. A lot of security. And contingency plans for any event. (Okay, maybe not a UFO attack, but if that happens, you’ll have more important things on your mind.)

When shopping around for a web host or a new web host, go with one willing to spend the time, money and effort to provide multiple layers of protection for your website. You may not need it today, but when those locusts hit, you’ll be glad you spent a little extra to get those locust-proof doors at your server site.

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