LuxSci has long offered Basic and Premium dedicated servers for customers with requirements that are not ideal for our shared server offerings.  I.e. large numbers of users, large amounts of disk space, enhanced security and privacy, relaxed usage limits, and custom configurations.

The major differences between the Basic and Premium dedicated server offerings relate to:

• The quality of the data center and network infrastructure
• The security inherent in the infrastructure
• The SLA and privacy policies
• Dedicated HIPAA-compliant hosting is only available on Premium

So, while from a cost perspective, Basic dedicated servers offer a lot of capacity for a low cost entry point, customers who require a higher level of reliability and security really only have one option: Premium dedicated servers.

Enter “Private Cloud Servers”

LuxSci’s Private Cloud Servers are dedicated virtual servers running on VMWare ESX hosts in LuxSci’s dedicated Rackspace infrastructure.  These provide all of the advantages of a Premium Dedicated Server at a fraction of the price — if you only need a fraction of a server based on your requirements.

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We are often asked questions about Cloud Servers and Virtual Private Servers (VPS) and which is better and in what circumstances.  We also find that many customers are using these terms without a good understanding of what they mean and the differences between them.

Virtual Servers

Virtual servers are very common these days.  Anyone can have one on his/her own desktop computer using software like VirtualBox (FREE for Windows, Mac, and Linux) or Parallels (Paid, for Mac). Essentially, these software products allow you to run one or more other “computers” in windows on your desktop.

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The deliverability of email messages sent from public cloud servers is a real problem. Public cloud servers are generally on black lists and grey lists and there is not much that can be done to prevent that …. it’s the nature of the public cloud.

If you need to send outbound email from a public cloud server, you can sidestep blacklisting  and improve deliverability by using an outbound email service and smarthosting your messages though “clean” non-cloud servers.  In short:

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There is a lot of hype about Cloud Storage, Cloud Computing, Cloud Servers, and related things that can be accomplished in the pervasive land of distributed, abstracted computers.  LuxSci now also offers the option of running on dedicated servers in the cloud, in addition to the more common options of running on shared server(s) and on real dedicated servers.  However, this all begs the questions:  “What exactly is a cloud server?”, “How powerful is it?”, “How reliable is it?”, and “When is a Cloud Server a better solution than a Basic or Premium Dedicated Server?”

Here we answer those questions for you, at least in the context of the Cloud Servers within the Rackspace Cloud — which are the servers  offered by LuxSci. 

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