Server Management
All dedicated server packages come with our hands-on, proactive management with all server administration tasks handled by us on an ongoing basis. There is no need to have any knowledge of server management and clients are welcome to use a dedicated server package as though it were a large shared hosting account leaving everything else to us. Our server management covers many areas with some features detailed below.
For more detailed information about our server management please see our management datasheet.
Initial setup and configuration
New managed servers are far from a bare operating system install with control panel software! In addition to installing all of the software we configure everything as part of our setup procedure so that it can be put to use straight away after our setup is complete.
Our setup procedure consists of a great many things which we will be happy to provide more details on should this be required. In summary the server is provided totally secured with unused services disabled and firewall configured and with all software settings optimised for total stability.
Monitoring & Reaction
Our monitoring system (affectionally referred to as our “watchtower”) constantly checks a huge amount of services and functions on all servers. In order to provide the most accurate perception of state we have this machine housed at a third party location so in the event of more large scale problems affecting the network, this does not go unnoticed (which would happen if housed in the same building).
Should a problem be detected or pre-empted by our monitoring we will be notified so we can investigate without delay. If a problem is found it will be worked on and fixed without any request or intervention from you which allows you to sleep easy knowing that any server problems, day or night, will be handled swiftly by us.
Redundant DNS Cluster
Your server will be configured to use our redundant DNS cluster instead of handling DNS on the same machine. Due to our DNS cluster machines being completely separate and in geographically diverse facilities your hosted domain names will be available for DNS lookups 100% of the time. This is essential should any part of a domain name be hosted elsewhere (eg a subdomain on a different server or email handled by a third party) as this will remain fully active in the rare event of your server being unavailable.
MailGuard Email Protection
We have a cluster of servers which handle all incoming email for our clients. This system is responsible for accepting email, scanning it for spam and viruses then passing onto the inbox should it be deemed ‘clean’. In the event of an email being detected as spam or infected the system will quarantine it for further inspection.
Along with the highly accurate and feature packed spam/virus detection, this system also has the advantage of taking the resource intensive task of email scanning away from your dedicated server which saves significant amounts of ongoing RAM and CPU usage.
Monthly Audit
Once per month our sys admin team will perform an audit on your server to ensure that it continues to run at its best in a stable and secure way. Our audit checklist comprising of 55+ points is carried out with any problems fixed on the spot. In addition, audit reports will be available to all clients via their client area.
