Site outage June 2, 2003

[Handruin]

Site was down again last night due to high loads on the server. I submitted a ticket and they had to get the datacenter involved to fix the issue. Not sure what caused the issues, but the server seems like it is back to normal. I asked for more information and will let people know. Doesn't seem like a big deal, but annoying none-the-less.

[Buck]

I would be concerned that our forum has not been apportioned the amount of resources that you are paying for.

[Handruin]

The single largest problem is not the resources, but our unknown neighbors on the server. All the major issues comes from someone who doesn't test a script before running it on the server. The last time I fought about the performance was due to someone with a script problem. I think they ended up suspending the account and we have been fine until yesterday. (not counting the datacenter fire)

The alternative (which I'm trying to work out) is a dedicated server. My goal is to find select people to host on a dedicated machine which will reduce the amount of varients in performance.

[Buck]

My goal is to find select people to host on a dedicated machine which will reduce the amount of varients in performance.

Would you care to elaborate? Does this include other webhosting data centers, or more of a private involvement on the part of other individuals or yourself?

[Mercutio]

Hosting/colo is usually about $100 a month. That's a serious "ouch", I think.
I'd put in if that's something you'd need.

[Howell]

My goal is to find select people to host on a dedicated machine which will reduce the amount of varients in performance.

Would you care to elaborate? Does this include other webhosting data centers, or more of a private involvement on the part of other individuals or yourself?

I think he is trying to resell sever space to people he knows (online or offline) and host the resold space on the same server as SF. That way when a script goes crazy, he can track down the problem and "yell" at the offender. The current offenders are anonymous to Handy.

[Handruin]

All of what has been said is what I'm trying to figure out. I have a few private parties interested in helping me fund a dedicated server and what they get out of it is ample bandwidth and space. Howell hit the nail on the head in regards to what I was trying to say. (thanks for the help) :)

The server I was looking at prices at $109 per month, so I would have to find enough people to cover the majority of the cost. I'm not looking to make this a profit venture, I'm looking to keep the site running and keep us happy. All I want to do is break even. (which I'm doing right now)

There are a few downsides to running an unmanaged server as some may know. First down side for me is that I don't have enough knowledge about Linux to feel confident in running an unmanaged site. I would have to know how to track down a script that is consuming too many resources along with kernel upgrades and security fixes. All of these things I know I can learn, but at a cost of $109 per month is a bit steap. Plus, I don't want to be learning on a server that is supposed to host sites such as SF, nevermind the people who will be funding the site.

That's my delema. I know this site will never get smaller, so I'm trying to figure out a way to keep us running for some time to come. (and to make it as fast as possible for dial-up users.) :) Slow sites are frustrating.