Best low-cost web hosting - ideally NZ based?

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Benek

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#207782 13-Jan-2017 13:30

Hello.

I've had a MediaTemple account for years and host a few sites on it. I like that is has an easy to use control panel and that you can host multiple sites on a single account.

I don't like that customer service is slow and hard to reach since it's US based, and I've had issues with MySQL performance and email reliability.

So I'm looking to change hosts.

I like Craft CMS and generally build simple sites with normal PHP and MySQL requirements.

Important:

* speed

* reliability

* good control panel

* support

* ability to host multiple sites on one account

* low cost

Not important:

* one-click WordPress installs

* easy website builders and other gimmicky stuff like that

Does anyone have recommendations for the best low-cost shared hosting options in NZ?

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meow
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#1702702 13-Jan-2017 13:47

Shared hosting is a minefield. You've got to consider that all it takes is 1 dodgy person and it slows down everyone else. I personally host quite a few sites from a dedicated server that I own and nobody gets a control panel as their sites each run from a virtual server ensuring their sites run quickly.

There is only one real host I'd recommend in NZ and that is https://sitehost.nz/ otherwise https://www.openhost.co.nz/web-hosting/ can be another good choice for you (I've had experience with them years ago).

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Benek

72 posts

Master Geek

#1702752 13-Jan-2017 15:21

Thanks for the reply. For the time being the few sites I need to host do not warrant the cost of a more serious server so for now I think I'll want to go with a shared hosting environment. I understand the performance implications of this but just cannot justify the higher cost for these projects. I bonus would be if I can find a host that has a cheap shared hosting option with the ability to easily upgrade to something better and easily migrate the websites so if they do grow and I need more resources in the future I have an easy upgrade path.

timmmay

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#1702757 13-Jan-2017 15:36

Support is probably the largest cost in your list. Figure you have to pay a good support person $70K, how many $10 hosting accounts is that? I make it 583. So one person is supporting 583 accounts. So if you really want support, be prepared to pay for it.

I tried a bunch of hosts, support was generally underwhelming, and server performance not always great. I moved to AWS hosting, which provides no support, and I support it myself. It takes more time but it's much more reliable, and all I really do is type "sudo yum update" occasionally and run backups. I pay about US$6/month for a t2.nano and some storage, 10% of a Xeon core (burstable) and 512MB RAM, which is enough to run 6 PHP websites, MySQL, and other bits and pieces. AWS Sydney is 35ms away, so quite close.

Great thing about AWS is heaps of features, heaps of products, easy to scale up or out. Downside is it can be quite complex. I've got three certifications and I'm going for a pro certification soon, so not so hard for me.

Benek

72 posts

Master Geek

#1702780 13-Jan-2017 15:41

Thanks Timmmay,

I don't have the skills or the time to manage a server myself, as much as I'd like to - your solutions seems like a great option.

I need something I can set and forget.

Of the hosts you tried before AWS, do you have any favourites?

timmmay

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#1702794 13-Jan-2017 16:26

I haven't hosted in NZ in years, when I did it was super low cost. I'd go for somewhere that supplies you your own VM, maintains it, and provides support.

zCelicaDude

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#1702834 13-Jan-2017 17:53

Heya,

How many websites do you want to host/scale to?

My company has multiple Servers, SAN's etc in place, and spinning up a VM running Cpanel is no problem.

I host everything in a secure Datacentre in Grafton, Auckland.

PM for websites to test speed/performance :)

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#1702856 13-Jan-2017 18:52

michaelmurfy:

There is only one real host I'd recommend in NZ and that is https://sitehost.nz/ otherwise https://www.openhost.co.nz/web-hosting/ can be another good choice for you (I've had experience with them years ago).

SiteHost are awesome - great suite of services, awesome support and competent, responsive staff.

jnimmo

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#1702919 13-Jan-2017 22:07

Yes SiteHost is the way to go if after NZ hosting

Benek

72 posts

Master Geek

#1703108 14-Jan-2017 12:24

Thanks for the SiteHost recommendations.

Now looking outside of NZ, what would people recommend? Hopefully something a bit cheaper than SiteHost?

I would settle for shared hosting still if it was a really good service. Trying to work out performance/location/speed vs. value.

timmmay

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#1703129 14-Jan-2017 12:37

Not sure you'll do a lot better than the $30 sitehost 1.5GB RAM, 15GB disk. AWS Lightsail is a bit cheaper, NZ$15 - $30 depending on RAM required, but there's basically no support. Given how slim AWS margins are that shows you how little places are charging for support.

What are your minimum / desired specs?

jnimmo

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#1703153 14-Jan-2017 13:04

Would suggest keeping email separate from your web host, move it to Gmail or Zoho Mail (free for 5 users I think) or Outlook or anywhere else..

It sounds like investing a bit of time to setup a VPS might be a better option

I've been quite happy with Vultr Sydney VPS performance (I think you can get $20 credit with my link) - but would likely move to Amazon Lightsail once it is available in other regions (I think currently only US based servers). Especially for $5 USD/month.

But I suspect support would not compare at all to SiteHost

If you install something like EasyEngine on the VPS it is pretty easy to get things up and running, you will get phpmyadmin for MySQL etc with that. Not having a control panel is OK just takes a bit more time to learn the commands but you will likely be able to get much better performance than with a shared host.

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Benek

72 posts

Master Geek

#1703170 14-Jan-2017 13:39

timmmay,

Both the sites I'm thinking of now are or will be built on Craft CMS, so just common PHP & MySQL requirements. One of them will be very image heavy, with potentially hundreds or thousands of large images so there will need to be enough storage space and bandwidth to handle that as the site grows. The 5gb Sitehost offers on their cheapest cloud plan should do for a while but if the site takes off it might need to grow beyond that. Other than that I'm just looking for good general speed and database performance. Both sites are primarily NZ audience but also some international.

michaelmurfy

meow
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#1703219 14-Jan-2017 15:27

If you're looking at international then https://asmallorange.com/ might be a good choice.

A few pointers:
1) Providers that offer "unlimited cheap" hosting are normally rubbish.
2) Don't host email via it - use Zoho Mail which is also free.
3) You get what you pay for.
4) Sitehost is still better.

Benek

72 posts

Master Geek

#1703271 14-Jan-2017 19:44

Do you guys have experience with SiteHosts cloud service or just VPS. I noticed the smallest VPS options is actually cheaper than the smallest Cloud option even thought if offers more. But I've never managed a VPS before and I don't know if I can take on that extra responsibility right now. What kind of setup and ongoing maintenance is required to manage a SiteHost Cloud server vs. SiteHost VPS?

jnimmo

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#1703273 14-Jan-2017 19:55

Certainly could be worth trying the Sitehost cloud hosting.
This is a better service than the VPS in terms of I believe it is clustered or at least automatic host failover unlike the VPS.

VPS you are responsible for all ongoing maintenance including operating system upgrades, patching server apps etc, the cloud hosting takes all that out of the equation leaving just your CMS maintenance.

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