Being unable to get a virtual machine running reliably with QEMU on my Linode (see previous thread) [*], I've started looking for other options.

That's how I found a german provider offering dedicated servers with the following features:

• Intel® Core™ i7-920 Quadcore
• 8 GB DDR3 RAM
• 2 x 750 GB SATA-II HDD (Software-RAID 1)
• 100 GB backup space
• 2 TB/month traffic (100 MBit/s bandwidth)
• 4 dedicated IP addresses

They're offering that service for € 49/month.

So, if you needed to run two different operating systems at the same time, what would you choose? Two Linode 720 ($ 79,90/month) or a dedicated server like the one I've mentioned (< $75/month)?

Since the offer seems to good to be true, I'd really like to get some feedback on this issue before making a decision.

Sorry for not linking to the dedicated server provider, but I'm new here and I'm not sure if that is against the forum rules or etiquette.

Thanks,
Alex

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[*] In case your wondering, yes, I've contacted Linode's tech support about this problem. Unfortunately, the answer I got wasn't very useful (something like "We have no clue. It never happened before. Try the forums").

Two linodes on two different base machines would provide some additional security.

I have found that bargain servers are bargain servers. If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. In general, it is older equipment that is still on the line, less reliable, slower, and has fewer resources than a newer system.

Linode is pretty hard to beat under pressure. They just proved their value with a recent downtime event.

You may not get front line support with a low priced server.

Just my 2 cents worth. YMMV

Jeff

Agreed. A bargain server like that probably wouldn't come with all the nice extras Linode offers, such as out of band console access and profile/image management. I'm in the process of moving a big webapp from a dedicated server at iWeb to a few Linodes.

Linode is a way better value, and at iWeb if I had had to reinstall the OS or do any kind of system recovery they would have charged an extra fee each time. What's more, I would be waiting on their techs instead of doing it myself. Also, support here is far superior. And it didn't help when I found out iWeb is a sponsor of uceprotect.

Sorry for the rant.

I find that offering questionable due to the specs being offered at that pricepoint... At that point, I'd think that the Linodes were a safer bet.

Do you really need two 720s? What are you doing that needs that much RAM?

Interesting. I found them as well - cheap, but bare bones. The basic package doesn't offer remote console, only web-driven hard reset. Once you add the Flexi-pack and the KVM-over-IP option, it's €83 per month - and there's a €149 set-up fee for the server and again for the KVM. Over a one-year contract, that's €108 per month.

_________________
/ Peter

I'm curious, what is it that you need to do that requires FreeBSD that won't work on Linux?

Just curious, that's all.

In addition to all the missing features and added fees mentioned earlier in the thread, that's almost certainly cheap commodity hardware. Certainly not something I'd want to run a mission critical app on (unless I had a few hundred of them in some sort of HA setup).

~JW

I think the extra for the Linode's is worth it when you consider catastrophic hardware failure:
Linode: your VM's are moved to a new host machine and up and running where you left off give or take.
Dedicated: Hope you backup is good, wait for the hosting provider to provision new hardware, rebuild the host system, restore your VM backups and hope it all works the same.

I'm very, very certain that a discount provider could get that done within 30 days - maybe in as short a time frame as two weeks with some FedEx parts shipping and extra fees.

Surely your customers would understand the delay.

James

No customer is going to "understand" a 2-4 week delay. Customer implies that they're paying something. 2-4 weeks of downtime is probably enough to kill your business, since most of your customers would probably leave.

For example, could you imagine your telephone not working for an entire month? Or your internet connection? Or your cell phone?

I believe zunzun's tongue was firmly in his cheek.

Perhaps, but I *can* imagine my internet connection not working for 2-4 weeks, because Bell has broken mine for 4+ weeks at times

Gross.

Hi, I'd like to thank all of you for all the feedback that you've provided on this topic. I've found some really good points that are helping me in making this decision.

Now I'm a bit curious about the hardware part. Someone mentioned that the given spec is "cheap commodity hardware".

All the information I have about my Linode instance is what's shown on linode.com front page (ammount of RAM and storage), and what I can see by issuing some commands (for example, that my Linode is on a quad-core Xeon running at 2.27 GHz).

How do I know that Linode is using first class server equipement instead of white boxes? I mean, is there an official server spec that shows that their servers aren't cheap hardware? I apologize for this question if it's already documented somewhere or if it has been discussed before.


Thanks again,
Alex

Unless they've changed their policy fairly recently, Linode uses SuperMicro servers. I don't think it's documented anywhere other than a very old entry in the Wiki. Sometimes, they sell off the old servers to make way for new kit.

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/ Peter