Hello, this is my first post here, so I hope that people don't mind me asking for help before I've contributed.
I am looking to rent a dedicated server to host a few Shoutcast servers. I have quite a small budget but think that it is just about possible to get what I need. I will be hosting my own Shoutcast streams on there (legal) and hopefully offer Shoutcast hosting myself to make some money back.
Because Shoutcast uses very little in the way of memory and processor, the spec isn't really that important. I also don't need much hard drive space either as I am not going to host websites or files on the server.
I do need PHP/MySQL database to run a script that sets up the Shoutcast servers more easily.
The main thing is bandwidth - lots of it. I have been looking around and think that a shared 100bmit will be best, maybe 50mbit but no lower. For now, it will rarely go above about 10mbit/s but I want some room for growth. Preferably un-metered or something above about 3000GB per month would be ideal.
I have seen a few options out there already, so if anyone has any recommendations that would be great.
Here are some that I am considering, hopefully it's ok to post links in here.
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1&1.co.uk: Business Server 1
http://order.1and1.co.uk/xml/order/ServerRoot
I have heard bad things about 1&1 but that always seems to be from US customers, any UK customers had any experience with them? I have seen decent reviews for their dedicated servers, and one person that uses them has recommended that I try them.
They offer un-metered transfer, but once you reach 1000GB the connection is capped at 10mbit/s - but you can apparently go in to the control panel and override this as many times as you need.
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Hosting IE: Dedic Raptor Pro Lin 581
http://www.hosting-ie.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=15&Itemid=48
They also offer unlimited 100mbit connection (shared I suppose) so I emailed them to ask how much monthly transfer they would consider acceptable - I'm a bit wary of people that offer unlimited anything. Got an email back written in Pigeon English saying that they couldn't really answer the question, but the package used to come with 5TB limits before they changed it to unlimited. Despite the bad English, they seemed quite helpful and even pointed me towards a cheaper option than I had enquired about.
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Eclipse 2000 Hosting: Server S1
http://www.eclipse2000hosting.co.uk/dedicated.htm (watch out for the annoying noise)
I have used these in the past for web hosting and Shoutcast and they were very good. I emailed them asking about the un-metered transfer and whether it would be suitable for my needs. They said that the Shoutcast service that they offer is on the same network as their dedicated servers and is reliable and I could push 5000-9000GB a month if needed (should be more than enough).
I did a whois on the IP of their Shoutcast servers and it looks like they are resellers for FDC Servers, which brings me on to the next one I've seen.
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FDC Servers: UNMETERED Dedicated - Special #6
http://www.fdcservers.net/dedicated.html
Haven't been in touch with these, anyone recommend them or otherwise?
============================
Does anyone have any recommendations as to which one, if any, I should go for? Or recommend another company or make an offer? You can get a rough idea of my budget from the links above, although they offer more drive space than I need (probably don’t get much less than 80GB these days anyway).
Thanks for your help, and I just realised how big this post is! Sorry about being so long. :beer:
Oh yeah, and I would prefer Linux based server.
I am looking to rent a dedicated server to host a few Shoutcast servers. I have quite a small budget but think that it is just about possible to get what I need. I will be hosting my own Shoutcast streams on there (legal) and hopefully offer Shoutcast hosting myself to make some money back.
Because Shoutcast uses very little in the way of memory and processor, the spec isn't really that important. I also don't need much hard drive space either as I am not going to host websites or files on the server.
I do need PHP/MySQL database to run a script that sets up the Shoutcast servers more easily.
The main thing is bandwidth - lots of it. I have been looking around and think that a shared 100bmit will be best, maybe 50mbit but no lower. For now, it will rarely go above about 10mbit/s but I want some room for growth. Preferably un-metered or something above about 3000GB per month would be ideal.
I have seen a few options out there already, so if anyone has any recommendations that would be great.
Here are some that I am considering, hopefully it's ok to post links in here.
============================
1&1.co.uk: Business Server 1
http://order.1and1.co.uk/xml/order/ServerRoot
I have heard bad things about 1&1 but that always seems to be from US customers, any UK customers had any experience with them? I have seen decent reviews for their dedicated servers, and one person that uses them has recommended that I try them.
They offer un-metered transfer, but once you reach 1000GB the connection is capped at 10mbit/s - but you can apparently go in to the control panel and override this as many times as you need.
============================
============================
Hosting IE: Dedic Raptor Pro Lin 581
http://www.hosting-ie.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=15&Itemid=48
They also offer unlimited 100mbit connection (shared I suppose) so I emailed them to ask how much monthly transfer they would consider acceptable - I'm a bit wary of people that offer unlimited anything. Got an email back written in Pigeon English saying that they couldn't really answer the question, but the package used to come with 5TB limits before they changed it to unlimited. Despite the bad English, they seemed quite helpful and even pointed me towards a cheaper option than I had enquired about.
============================
============================
Eclipse 2000 Hosting: Server S1
http://www.eclipse2000hosting.co.uk/dedicated.htm (watch out for the annoying noise)
I have used these in the past for web hosting and Shoutcast and they were very good. I emailed them asking about the un-metered transfer and whether it would be suitable for my needs. They said that the Shoutcast service that they offer is on the same network as their dedicated servers and is reliable and I could push 5000-9000GB a month if needed (should be more than enough).
I did a whois on the IP of their Shoutcast servers and it looks like they are resellers for FDC Servers, which brings me on to the next one I've seen.
============================
============================
FDC Servers: UNMETERED Dedicated - Special #6
http://www.fdcservers.net/dedicated.html
Haven't been in touch with these, anyone recommend them or otherwise?
============================
Does anyone have any recommendations as to which one, if any, I should go for? Or recommend another company or make an offer? You can get a rough idea of my budget from the links above, although they offer more drive space than I need (probably don’t get much less than 80GB these days anyway).
Thanks for your help, and I just realised how big this post is! Sorry about being so long. :beer:
Oh yeah, and I would prefer Linux based server.
