Web Hosting is undoubtedly a front-runner in the online race. With all the energy and buzz it is easy for anyone to get caught up and transition without considering key factors to enable the right preparation. Technology has altered business in ways that we could not have fathomed.  Companies use to have to invest in and maintain large rooms packed with physical servers and other equipment in order to run programs and applications and most government entities and universities and colleges still do. However, web hosting is about to change all of that. In fact, did you know that the web hosting market is expected to grow by $287.03 billion between now and 2025, at a compound annual growth rate of more than 17%. It is transforming the way businesses and organisations of all shapes and sizes operate and is central to the digital transformation of businesses and organisations that enables them to work today, particularly in an increasingly remote and digital workspace. However, how you choose to incorporate web hosting into your business can make or break it. So, here are 40+ dos and don’ts for business web hosting.

But what is cloud computing?

DomainRooster defines web hosting as the transmission of computer jobs such as servers, storage, databases, networking, software, analytics, and intelligence via the Internet (“the cloud”) in order to provide faster innovation, more flexible resources, and economies of scale. The primary advantages of web hosting are as follows:

1. Accessibility: Access the cloud from anywhere (remotely).
2. You just pay for the cloud jobs/resources that you use.
3. Scalability: As additional resources become available,
4. Affordability: Because the infrastructure can be run more efficiently.

The significance of each of these criteria to a specific firm will vary. For example, a store whose applications experience major seasonal changes in demand may place higher importance on scalability than a company that uses the cloud to host internal, line-of-business apps with generally consistent consumption.

Do’s

Please please please, learn everything you can about cloud technologies

This includes industry trends as well as available jobs, because not all clouds are made equal, and there are major distinctions, such as consumer-oriented versus enterprise-grade.

Keep risk and compliance in mind

Any new technology implementation comes with its own set of risks and difficulties, which you must mitigate while adhering to industry regulations. Before migrating to the cloud, it is vital to completely understand the potential risks and regulatory compliance issues. Staying in compliance with regulations and standards is critical if your firm is in a highly regulated industry, such as healthcare, law, or e-commerce, and handles sensitive consumer information. As a result, study the terms and conditions of your cloud vendor ahead of time. One of our team members witnessed a company-wide implementation of a custom cloud-based project management system that overcomplicated processes while working for one of the world’s largest and most recognized organizations. To summarize,

Use the jobs of seasoned professionals

When you have the advice and assistance of seasoned project management, change management and IT experts, integrating the cloud into your organization can be simple. Although the cloud eliminates the need for hardware installations or physical infrastructure, having specialists on your side will undoubtedly benefit you more and save you money in the end

Create a job management strategy

You must plan for multi-cloud and hybrid cloud administration since the hybrid cloud comprises of many distinct jobs in many different deployment patterns. You must begin to consider all of your public cloud jobs, platform jobs, SaaS apps, private clouds, and data centre jobs and applications as part of a unified computing environment. You must think about and plan for many different levels of management. Decide what you can do immediately and what you’ll do later as technology advances.

Evaluate your current capability

This will allow you to uncover both short-term and long-term prospects. You need to understand your application landscape, as well as identify and prioritize environments.

Obtain honest feedback from staff members

When migrating to the cloud, a common mistake is failing to discuss potential organizational changes with employees (or implementing any organizational transformation). They are the only ones who can advise you on which applications MUST be transferred to the cloud and which may be difficult or impossible. Just because your firm is paying for something does not guarantee that your employees will use it fully. Some applications are unlikely to be used at all, and your team will know which ones these are and why.

Get Ready to go, cloud-native

As your cloud strategy grows, consider designing jobs using a cloud-native architecture. One of the benefits of cloud-native is that you are developing jobs that are specifically designed to run in the cloud. Because they are constructed with microjobs and packed in containers, cloud-native jobs have the advantage of being modular.

Plan for the future

Many businesses that use IaaS or SaaS fail to plan for the future, especially what would happen if their SaaS vendor goes out of business or becomes too expensive. Another thing to think about in the future is what you’ll do if you find an alternative SaaS vendor who is better suited to your demands.

Speak with a professional consultant

A major mistake made when undertaking a company-wide transition to the cloud is failing to discuss prospective organizational changes with personnel. They are the people on the ground. Essentially, the only people who can tell you the truth and detail which programs MUST be moved to the cloud and which may be difficult or impossible. Just because your company is paying for something does not mean that your staff will use it to its maximum potential. Some applications are unlikely to be used at all, and your staff will understand why.

Think about containers

Containers can componentize applications, allowing them to be portable, easily managed, and orchestrated. It is made easier by integrating containers with cloud strategy and DevOps. Container-based apps may be easily and regularly deployed without the hassles of memory, CPU, and storage, making them a superior solution than traditional virtualization and physical application hosting. When selecting a cloud platform, ensure that containers are used for security, governance, and cluster administration. However, whether containers are the ideal way to design and deploy programs must also be considered. It may not always be the case, but it is critical to examine this type of application architectural approach and the enabling technologies involved.

Automated testing should be included

It is critical to evaluate performance issues before deploying the application to the cloud. When the application is in production, most performance issues are overlooked or missed, resulting in a less-than-perfect product. When the consumer begins using it, he will experience difficulties and faults and will report them.

Examine your sore spots.

It is critical to plan ahead of time before diving in. Test the waters and conduct extensive research to see whether going to the cloud is a viable option for you. Make a list of all the problems you are now experiencing and what you intend to achieve by migrating to the cloud. This way, you won’t be caught off guard by unforeseen situations. People and procedures are frequently tough to modify when migrating to the cloud, therefore ensure that they can evolve and adapt. Sometimes you encounter psychological barriers that prevent you from properly examining your migration strategies. Recognize and resolve them before proceeding.

Conduct research on reputable cloud providers

Again, it is critical to underline the importance of using reputable cloud companies and avoiding the others like the plague. Recommendations abound, both online and in person, but take what others say with a grain of salt. After all, you can’t believe them unless you’ve tried and tested it yourself. As you try to acquire a sense for different cloud companies, ask them questions like “How easy is it to receive help from them?” and “Can they handle your pain points?”

Get trained, and train your employees as well

Yes, shifting to the cloud is intended to improve things, but if you are not fully schooled in the cloud, it may confuse matters even further. New trends emerge on a daily basis, so if you aren’t properly trained and your workforce isn’t competent, the cloud solution will be a burden. Everyone on the team should have familiarization lessons, not only for current handling, but also to prepare for future advancements in web hosting. Cloud training allows your employees to learn skills that will help them innovate. It will also be useful if your firm is undergoing complex migrations. Many cloud providers, particularly the larger ones, offer excellent training programs, and hundreds of businesses have benefited from these programs. To fulfill client requests, they have broadened their curriculum. It is feasible to alleviate the fear of the unknown by providing new skills to the team, especially when the cloud adventure is just getting started.

Don’ts

Please don’t test your luck

Several companies provide nearly identical cloud jobs, so what you might say. However, this does not imply that they all provide the same level of job. Instead of going with your gut instinct, thoroughly consider your options, research what jobs they provide, review client comments, and review their job level agreement (SLA). Switching between cloud providers may be difficult and costly in terms of resources and skills.

Don’t think of the cloud as a “cure-all remedy”

There are some environments that cannot – and should not – be transferred at first. Because the cloud is multidimensional, there is life beyond the private cloud. For example, hybrid models, secure, multi-tenant public cloud infrastructures, or enterprise-grade cloud storage platforms are all viable options to be considered. Although some businesses are sophisticated enough to develop their own clouds, choosing a partner to work with on your cloud journey will be extremely beneficial. A strategic alliance can help businesses accelerate their migration and time to results. A partner like DomainRooster can assist by providing:

• Licensing and Cloud Knowledge
• Strategy and Planning for Cloud Migration
• Best Practices in Optimization Mentoring
• And Productivity Training for Team Members

Many business owners who want to save money quickly are tempted to close their in-house data center, move all computing to the public cloud, and minimize IT employees. Although this may sound appealing, it is not a well-considered approach. Finally, you can determine which capabilities to place in the cloud, but you must first do your homework. For example, do you have any compliance concerns about where your data is stored? What is the cost difference between a public, private, hybrid, or traditional data center? You must ensure that all potential consequences have been explored before your team goes into action and begins to reduce the headcount. So go slowly.

Don’t be fooled by smooth pitches

Be wary of the one-size-fits-all pitch, cautioned DomainRooster CEO, Dean Jones. “Seek a mix of prescriptive and flexible techniques tailored to your specific set of circumstances.” We have previously advised businesses not to migrate to the cloud for a variety of reasons. You require someone who will be truthful. And provide you with business-related guidance.

Don’t skimp on details

Moving your business procedures to the cloud is a big step. You must, however, pay special attention to every detail and have a thorough understanding of each one. Increasing one’s knowledge not only aids in the development of better plans and the making of informed decisions, but it also makes the transition process easier and less stressful. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been thrown in the deep end to help rescue and or recover countless projects that should never have entered the delivery phase in the first place for a variety of reasons, such as political pressures, or perhaps the project manager simply does not know how to say no to an overzealous CEO. Or because a team is unable of performing adequate due diligence. There are countless reasons why this happens. Don’t act on one person’s opinion. Especially if that person has to deliver on KPIs and is under pressure. (And it does not matter whether this person is a board member or a part of the help desk team). If you have a large organisation, get external advice and support.

Security should not be ignored

Whether you move your entire business activities to the cloud or just a portion of them, security should always be your first priority. Automated testing prior to cloud migration will assist in identifying and reporting performance issues. Because security is a crucial component of automated testing, it is critical to apply it to DevOps tools and organizations as well. What steps does the cloud job provider take to address your security concerns? Do they provide assurances about the security of authentication and authorization? Before moving, make sure to thoroughly discuss all security and compliance concerns with them.

Don’t ignore the need for infrastructure management

One of the reasons businesses like the cloud is that they don’t have to worry about managing software and infrastructure….Right? Don’t be deceived! Even if you just use a few public cloud jobs, you must monitor the performance of these vendors. Who is to blame if your customer relationship management SaaS platform goes down for a couple of days? The sales and marketing staff will almost certainly blame the IT department, not the vendor. IT will increasingly be responsible for cloud job performance, governance, and security so factor that in from the get-go.

Do not compel every application to use the cloud

Companies frequently intend to migrate all of their existing applications to the cloud at once, but this is a horrible idea! For security reasons, a few programs and files may still need to be housed in traditional data centres, but why? Some apps, on the other hand, may be based on older technology and may require considerable alterations before merging with the cloud. As a result, it is critical to examine such applications in order to determine how much time and effort will be required to make the necessary changes. Prioritize the applications depending on the business value gained from cloud migration. Seeking the counsel of a top technology specialist is a sensible move.

Don’t count on a single vendor

It’s tempting to locate a cloud vendor you like and then abandon the search. That, though, can be a mistake. Plan to cooperate with more than one cloud vendor so that you are not stranded if something goes wrong. Anything is possible, right? A vendor may experience a catastrophic breakdown and be out of job for several hours or days, although very very rare indeed. For example, if you’re developing and delivering a critical application, you might wish to replicate it across multiple regions or clouds. If you plan to work with one vendor for economies of scales, ensure that have a job level agreement in place like DomainRooster.

Don’t move too many applications to the cloud.

Companies may have hundreds of programs, data, and documents to transfer to the cloud at times. It could be tempting to transfer them all at once, but it would be a bad idea. Certain programs require considerable adjustments, and making all of them prior to migration would be prohibitively expensive.

Again, please do not overlook security.

Moving to the cloud requires a high level of security. Don’t expect the cloud vendor to handle everything. Check to see if the cloud providers’ security tools will protect your data. Security is an essential component of automated testing and should be included into the CI and CD processes. Security should be extended to DevOps tools as well as companies.

Don’t underestimate the importance of Governance Infrastructure

Organizations frequently ignore the significance of developing a governance infrastructure. However, the absence of a governance model or strategy may result in project delays, regulatory penalties, budget overruns, and other issues. Governance is defined by Forrester as “the ability to provide strategic direction, track performance, allocate resources, and make modifications to ensure that organizational objectives are reached without exceeding risk tolerance or compliance commitments.” Furthermore, having an efficient governance model aids in tracking, securing, and managing an organization’s jobs and resources.

Don’t be too picky.

There is nothing wrong with using both private and public clouds simultaneously. However, conduct a thorough examination of the cloud security vulnerabilities that typically accompany the territory. That doesn’t mean you have to be excessively picky! While security is critical while moving apps, it is equally critical to remember to create several backups to ensure that no data is lost. However, while pricing cloud storage and hosting alternatives, you must be selective.

Don’t put everything in the cloud.

It’s great to have a new functioning database, but it doesn’t mean you have to move all of your files to the cloud. Certain files must be kept for a variety of reasons, including security and efficiency. You may rely on your chief technology officer to advise you on what to move and what not to migrate.

Do not disregard the Job Level Agreement (SLA)

As previously mentioned all public cloud vendors, including IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS providers, will issue some type of job level agreement outlining the vendor’s obligations and the risks you must bear.

Don’t begin the project with preconceived notions about the conclusion

While it is acceptable to fail at first, do not allow it to slow or prevent distribution. You still have an application to try out, test, and ship. The experiment cannot be underperformed. Even if this is the case, it is critical that you measure its success in order to maintain the application’s quality.

Remember that change management is important.

A cloud strategy is more than just updating the ‘internal plumbing,'”. “A multi-layer approach is required for removing infrastructure layers and allowing metered self-job elastic growth.

Don’t believe that it is too late to get it right

Many businesses began embracing the cloud naturally, by implementing popular apps or solutions in their industry that provided evident benefits. Many IT managers and business leaders who work in firms that are already using the cloud believe it is too late to develop cloud plans and instead try to do things as they go.

Don’t put it off.

DomainRooster believes that now is the moment to start thinking about the cloud. Waiting has a cost, therefore pursue your cloud plan with prudence, but take modest measures.

Final Word