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When it comes to hosting a website, many individuals are torn between whether to use collocated servers or dedicated servers. In fact, many individuals do not know the difference between the two. There are several differences to be found between collocated servers and dedicated servers and the different functions of each may make an option more or less attractive to the website developer.

There are many companies that will offer their customers the use of either a dedicated or collocated server and there are several advantages and disadvantages to each type of service. Ultimately, the decision rests with the website developer and their needs for the website.

The main difference between a collocated server and a dedicated server is the ownership of the server. With a dedicated server, the user is provided with exclusive use of a server that is owned by another entity, generally the hosting provider A collocated server is owned by the user and is housed in a rental space along with the servers of many other companies and individuals. In other words, with a dedicated server you rent the server and with a collocated server, you rent the space to house your server. Each option is more cost effective than purchasing and housing the server on your own, but there are major differences in what you can and cannot do with the equipment.

With a dedicated server, the individual has exclusive access to the server and can place any software, content, or applications on the server that they wish. Websites that use dedicated servers also have a higher reliability and can handle a great deal more traffic than sites that are hosted on shared servers. With a dedicated server, any issues that arise with the server are the responsibility of the company that the individual is renting the server from, which could be a good or bad thing. One of the biggest disadvantages to a dedicated server is that the individual only owns the data on the server, not the server itself, so if they are dissatisfied with the service they are being provided, they have little recourse until their contract expires.

One of the biggest advantages of a collocated server is that the individual owns and has full access to the server at any time. The applications can be run from a remote location while the server is housed in a secure facility with an uninterruptible power supply, internet connectivity, and increased security features. Allowing the server to be collocated frees up valuable space in the home or business that would be needed to house the server and allows the individual to split the cost of utilities between all the individuals with servers housed in the area. The biggest disadvantage to collocated servers is that all issues, maintenance, and needed repairs to the server must be handled on your own.

Fusepoint is the leading provider of managed IT solutions for companies throughout North America. Fusepoint services include infrastructure hosting, disaster recovery, and firewall security.

http://www.fusepoint.com/english/html/managed_hosting/colocation.html

There are many questions that may arise when an individual embarks on a new business venture. Whether the individual is starting a new business or revamping an old business, there are certain steps that should be taken to protect the individual’s investment in their company and ensure that business can continue as usual in the event that something adverse happens to affect the business. Many individuals have turned to using a disaster recovery plan to ensure the fast implementation of procedures that will help a business recover and continue to satisfy clients if anything happens to affect the business. So when is a disaster recovery plan needed for a company? Preferably, the company should have it in place before a disaster strikes.

A disaster recovery plan is an outline created by the principals of a company, or those they choose to hire, to detail how a business will deal with any potential disaster that may occur. This may include any adverse events from server failure to an earthquake leveling the building. Because a true disaster is typically unforeseen, it is best for the company to have a plan in place prior to a disaster occurring within the company. The disaster recovery plan will outline the steps that need to be taken to ensure that the customers will be taken care of in a timely manner and return the business to operation as quickly as possible.

A proper disaster recovery plan will need to be formed only after an intense review of business practices has been conducted. Any business procedures that are found to be ineffective or unneeded can be corrected at this time. By focusing on the business methods that bring results and including them in the plan, the business will be focused on completing the steps that will bring the best results if any type of adverse event affects the course of business. The action plan may cover several different types of disasters and the steps that may be needed to recover from each.

There are many types of businesses that could benefit from having this plan, but many business owners either believe that a recovery plan is not necessary or they put off creating, implementing, and testing a plan for so long that a disaster strikes and disrupts their business before they have a plan put into place. This is the catalyst that many business owners need before they decide to create a plan, but unfortunately much damage could be done and much revenue lost because a disaster recovery plan was not in place before the disaster occurred.

Fusepoint http://www.fusepoint.com offers disaster recovery services that will help your organization ensure continuous operations. Fusepoint will assist your business put a formal and effective disaster recovery solution.

Microsoft Exchange Server is software product designed to make emailing faster and more efficient. As email is now a critical function in the business environment and a great deal of business is now conducted by email, many companies are finding that using this software has increased the reliability of their email functions as well as adding a host of other applications that can be utilized to make conducting regular business even easier. So what exactly are the benefits of using Microsoft Exchange Server?

One of the biggest benefits that Microsoft Exchange Server provides to its users in the enhance security features included in the software package. There are many different threats that can compromise the security of a software package today and this software works to neutralize those threats, leaving the users less vulnerable to hackers, viruses, and spam. It also works to ensure that emails remain confidential and are not compromised by outside sources. This enhanced security allows companies to feel confident that their email system is protected at all times and allows employees and customers to utilize the email system to its full potential.

Companies that use this software can allow their employees to access their email from any place in the world. Whether the employee is in the office or on the road, they will be able to access all of their important documents and projects and can respond to any important inquiry at a moments notice. The email platform used is Microsoft Office Outlook which has many different features designed to make email and contact management simple and trouble-free. Some of the features that can be used with Microsoft Office Outlook and Microsoft Exchange Server include calendar features, scheduling features, voice mail storage, and contact management programs.

Microsoft Exchange Server also allows businesses to be more efficient, by making it a great deal easier to find and fix any issues that may arise. It also has improved monitoring capabilities so that any issues that do occur can be detected quickly before it disrupts business by a great amount. Many tasks that are needed to keep it operating properly have been automated, allowing the administrators more time to deal with more pressing issues. There are many benefits of using Microsoft Exchange Server and many businesses are discovering that this is a program that they cannot do without.

Fusepoint http://www.fusepoint.com offers the end-to-end services needed to maintain a high-performance communications infrastructure for your organization based on Microsoft Exchange.