So we have now relocated our servers. After a lot of searching we decided that we would give a cloud solution a go.Rackspace Cloud Logo

We eventually plumped for using the rackspace cloud service.

We found that the Server package was ideal for what we needed. An on demand service that allows you to spin up a server in minutes.

Essentially its a mico hypervisor for you to create your own servers at will.

So far it has been excellent.

The servers holding the cloud up appears to be US based but the response times have been so good you would thing you are working on a box in the next room.

The choice of OS for the Servers is very good and covers quite a few of the big distros.

There was one hiccup in the whole thing in that they require manual verification for account activation. This is fair enough but it took 2 days and 2 contacts made by myself to get them to activate for me. I suspect that this is due to my being in the UK and a lower priority rather than the feeble “Oh we are a bit short staffed at the moment” I got of one of the chat support staff.

That said everyone I have spoken to has been very polite and professional. The ability to test the chat support has been good and shows that ther are very responsive.

The admin panel is a little raw. But its clean and to the point. Also from the look of it they are continually working on it to keep up with the requirements of the customer

The only let down I can see is that there is regular maintenance happening to the cloud wich can cause downtime. So if your after stability I would stick with a traditional set up.

However If your looking for flexibility the you definatly want to consider the cloud.

There is also a wide variety of tools available for you to integrate your own platforms/solutions with the cloud.

The options and possibilities are immense.

So for your enjoyment I am going to attach some marketing bumph for you to enjoy

Cloud Servers

Cloud Files

Cloud Overview