Thursday, February 25, 2010

Join us for Part 1 of the MySQL in the Cloud webinar series with Jimmy Guerrero and Mike Frank of the MySQL group at Sun Microsystems. In this presentation we will explore the benefits and some specifics related to deploying and managing MySQL in a “cloud” environment. We will discus several cloud computing platforms suitable for hosting MySQL, including the Joyent Public Cloud, Amazon EC2 and Windows Azure. Included will be a discussion of cloud enabling technologies like VMWare and Xen. If you are interested in learning how to leverage cloud computing with MySQL, this webinar is for you.

WHO:

• Jimmy Guerrero, Sr Product Marketing Manager – Sun Microsystems
• Mike Frank, Sr Product Marketing Manager – Sun Microsystems

WHAT:

MySQL in the Cloud – Part 1: Introduction to Deploying MySQL in the Cloud web presentation.

WHEN:

Thursday, February 25, 2010: 10:00 Pacific time (America)

The presentation will be approximately 45 minutes long followed by Q&A.

Reseller hosting is a shared server setup, meaning your accounts will be placed on the same server as others from other customers. This is probably the number one thing to watch out for with reseller hosting. Since you have no control over the other customers, or their customers, you have to be able to trust that the provider is setting things up properly, securely and and monitoring/maintaining the server and network properly.  Things could go wrong if not done properly… insecure setups can lead to others getting to your data, a spammer could get onto the server leading to blacklisting, or an account could suck up all the bandwidth or cpu resources. These are just a couple examples of what could go wrong. Since you’re not in control of the server, you need to be able to rely on the provider to watch for it and fix it quickly should it happen.

Leaving the server administration is also one of the biggest advantages as well. This is especially true for new hosts who probably don’t have the experience or manpower to administer servers on their own. It is also considerably cheaper to go the reseller route. A decent reseller account can be had complete with control panel, possibly some billing software to handle collections from your customers, installation script, etc. for $10 to $15 per month.

When looking for a reseller account, be aware of the disk space and traffic (often incorrectly call bandwidth) that are included. Some reseller accounts can get so large in these stats that they rival small VPS accounts. When choosing you want to selection on that meets your needs and provides some growth room. You also want to make sure that the provider will upgrade the account without having to migrate and without penalty.

A nice feature, if you can get it, is a dedicated ip address or two for your accounts. This does a couple things for you. One it limits the impact if a spammer gets onto the server. Blacklists usually are at the single ip level unless it’s so rampant on a network that they block the whole network. It also does something else… The larger hosts probably have multiple physical servers.  By having your accounts to a single ip address, migrating the account, say for load balancing the servers, becomes significantly easier WITHOUT changing ip address. If your account shares ips with other accounts, that option is out the window…

If you’re serious about growing your business, a reseller account is a good way to get started with minimal cost.  But be sure to check with the company that they will support you should you need to move up to a vps or dedicated servers. That dedicated ip address can help there too. Once the vps is up and running they can copy the data over and move the ip to the new server. We’re talking minutes of downtime… a lot easier than if you had to backup the accounts, download the backup, upload to the new server and then change dns, and potentially wait hours for dns cache to die.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment here to ask or email me at rob -at- lagniappeinternet.com

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Join us for an overview of various virtualization technologies and how they work with MySQL. We will examine how to best optimize your infrastructure investment using virtualization and explore best practices. We will cover virtualization platforms like VMWare, Xen, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V, Sun Solaris Containers/Zones, Parallels Virtuozzo and others and how to best leverage their built-in features to make MySQL more efficient, easier to manage and more highly available.

WHO:

• Mike Frank, Sr Product Manager, Sun Microsystems – MySQL Group
• Jimmy Guerrero, Sr Product Manager, Sun Microsystems – MySQL Group

WHAT:

MySQL & Virtualization Webinar Series Part 1: Introduction to Deploying MySQL in Virtualized Environments web presentation.

WHEN:

Wednesday, February 17, 2010: 10:00 Pacific time (America)

The presentation will be approximately 45 minutes long followed by Q&A.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Join us for this informative technical webinar with Connectage.com and a member from the Joomla core team, which will explore the benefits of an open source Content Management stack based on Joomla and MySQL.

This webinar describes how Joomla offers excellent content management and distributed authoring capabilities as well as reliable data security through MySQL. It will detail use case examples of organisations who have adopted Joomla as a highly visible content management platform in publishing and public sector healthcare where data security was a paramount consideration.

Joomla provides a flexible, extendable content management platform and runs on an open source stack and comes embedded MySQL as the default database.

Connectage.com is a specialist Joomla development and integration company with many sites delivered on the Joomla/MySQL platform and a range of essential Joomla extensions for e-commerce, e-learning, taxonomy and search management.

WHO:

• Phil Doyle, Connectage.com
• Wilco Jansen, Joomla

WHAT:

Joomla – Web Based Content Management and Data Security – EMEA web presentation.

WHEN:

Wednesday, January 27, 2010: 10:00 Central European time

The presentation will be approximately 45 minutes long followed by Q&A.

This ‘straight from the horses mouth’ webinar aims to teach attendees how to back up MySQL databases with ZManda Recovery Manager (ZRM)

Thursday, January 28, 2010

MySQL databases are increasingly used by high volume, high transaction applications that support businesses running full throttle 24×7. Backup and recovery operations need to be conducted in such as way that is non-disruptive to users and applications. In this webinar, we will show how Zmanda Recovery Manager(ZRM) backs up the most challenging MySQL installations, including those running on the cloud.

Zmanda supports all storage engines and provides point-in-time recovery for MySQL.

In this webinar, we will demonstrate the latest ZRM enhancements so that you can build a robust, flexible, and easy to use backup and recovery solution.

WHO:

• Chander Kant, CEO, Zmanda, Inc.

WHAT:

Zmanda and MySQL: Backup MySQL Applications, including those running on the Cloud web presentation.

WHEN:

Thursday, January 28, 2010: 10:00 Pacific time (America)

The presentation will be approximately 45 minutes long followed by Q&A.

1) First login to your Plesk control panel.

2) Then select the domain on which you wish to install the SSL certificate.

3) Then select the “certificates” icon.

4) Then select the icon “Add New Certificate”.

5) Give the certificate a name. This is for your reference only.

6) Then generate a certificate request which you will submit to the Certified Authority (CA).

7) Once you are done with it, come back to the previous page.

Then select the certificate 1 which is given below the page.

9) Copy the CSR (Certificate Signing Request) and the Private key. You will need to submit these in your application to the Certified Authority (CA).

10) Once you have done that and submitted the CA your SSL certificate will be installed on the domain you have selected.

If you do not wish to get into all this, your web hosting provider can provide you with the SSL certificate on the domain you wish to. You will have to pay some charges to your web hosting provider for the SSL certificate. It might be possible that your web hosting provider does not provide SSL certicates and if this is the case, then you will have to do it on your own with the above given steps.

Note : You will have to purchase a Dedicated IP for the domain you wish to have the SSL certicate on both Windows as well as Linux Dedicated Servers. You cannot install the SSL certificate on the domain if the domain does not have a Dedicated IP.

Failover process is the process in which the Master server is replaced by the Slave server in case the Master server faces downtime i.e. fails due to some problems. The user and the applications which are requested to the master server are automatically directed to slave server. One more process is involved which is known as the Restroration process.

If the master server fails and the slave server is replaced instead of it, then the slave server will have the data modified after the master server has failed. Restroration process is the process in which the data which has been modified is sent back to the master server which is said to be its original place. Since the data on the master server is already maintained in the slave server the data does not require each and every file to be selected and transferred.

The data on the slave server will be of great benefit if the master server has crashed due to a disk crash which results in the complete data loss on the master server. But as the data is present on the Slave server, it is very easy to get the data back to the master server. The slave server is always up to date due to the RSYNC software and when the master server is ready and can be relied upon, the two server will not have the same information as the slave server has the updated data right from the time master server was failed due to some reason. Restroration is the process of copying the updated data to the master server once the master server is set to come online.

This kind of adjustment is very beneficial for you and it has a lot of advantages. But as there are advantages involved, there are disadvantages involved also. Actually this cannot be called as the disadvantage as the only thing is the cost which is invoved in this process i.e. the mirroring of the servers. As mirroring requires two dedicated servers of the same configuration, you will have to spend double the cost of the dedicated server you select for your websites. If you can afford this cost of having two dedicated servers of the same configuration then you should go for Mirrored servers as they will always help you to keep your websites online. Some of the web hosting providers do not charge for this kind of service apart from the server charges, so you should look for these web hosting providers.

failover dedicated servers, mirroring solutions, what are mirrored servers, working of mirrored servers

In case the power or connectivity is turned off, your servers will become unavailable and unless you have planned for disaster recovery with a secondary backup data center your business will most likely be damaged. It obviously depends on what kind of business you are in and what the servers in colocation are used for, but on the short term clients could be unable to find you and do business with you while in the long term it could damage your reputation due to your site(s) and/or services being unavailable.

Furthermore if the colocation provider is filing for bankruptcy and all the assets are being held back in the bankruptcy estate, you might be unable to get your servers and more importantly data until the attorney handling the case has an overview of the colocation business. He obviously needs to validate that the servers are actually owned by you and not an asset owned by the bankruptcy estate, usable for improving the financial situation for the creditors. In such a situation you could risk having to purchase new equipment and set up from a backup at a new colocation data center if the process takes too long.

Therefore make sure to raise the topic of financial stability with the colocation data center before signing a contract, to see how they respond to it and how they feel about their own financial situation and if they have taken any measures to ensure that things keep on running and that you can get your servers and data in case problems should occur.

Going with a large provider with a good reputation and perhaps even several data centers is therefore often worth considering. Checking for business and data center certifications is also a smart thing to do, as it often is a good signal if the data center is SAS 70 audited, tier 4 certified, PCI compliant or has taken other measures of that kind. Make sure to google the provider and check industry forums and blogs to see if there are any bad reviews, outages or other negative things about the company you are considering using.

Colocation providers can easily be found via tools such as Data Center Map, where you can search for colocation data centers.

A Colocation Centre works by providing rack space for clients to rent. The clients’ server will then be placed into this rack space which they have rented from the Colocation Centre. It is the rack space that is hired, not the server itself. The server and other equipment is owned by the client. It is in their control and they perform maintenance and other tasks and are responsible for the server’s up-keep.

One of the main benefits of storing a server at a Colocation Centre is that it is cost effective when compared to renting you own server. As the Colocation Centre has several clients they are able to drive the cost down. Another advantage is that certain other things (such as the environment the server is kept in and security) are taken care of so the client doesn’t have to worry about it. The client knows that the server is being kept in a safe place and they to not need to be concerned with providing security themselves.

Measures are put in place to make the servers as secure as possible. Protection against natural disasters and fire is provided, with the server areas being secure and fire proof. Close circuit television (CCTV) is usually provided and there are normally security guards on duty meaning the areas is protected against intruders. If clients were hosting their own server they would need to provide this themselves and this would involve extra costs.

All the necessary power that is required is provided by the Colocation Centre. It may be priced at a set amount per month for power and bandwidth usage up to a certain point. If a client requires extra in a particular month it will usually be provided automatically and they will be billed at the end of the month. This means downtime is less likely to be an issue. Using less that the expected amount of power or bandwidth will mean a reduced bill. There is normally power backup as well. There are generators that can be used in case there is a power failure or a similar problem.

The Colocation Centre’s environment is designed and managed to be the optimum for web hosting. Air conditioning is used to keep the air at the right temperature – usually between 20 and 25C.

At some Colocation Centre’s assistance is available, while at others it is not. This can be an advantage as the Colocation Centre’s employees will have high expertise, something that is especially useful if the client does not have advanced knowledge themselves. This may be part of the package with assistance included in the original price, or it may be an optional extra that can be purchased when required.

Colocation is for those who want control and their server but do not want to host it themselves. It has the advantages of the right environment and protection that hosting it at the clients premises would not provide, while still meaning they can maintain control, something they would not be able to do if it was being completely managed by the hosting company.

Andrew Marshall ©

Colocation

Google Apps is a great example of cloud computing as companies to no longer require the need for installed word processing software, in house email servers, multiple IT personnel and many more cost saving advantages. Google Apps allows companies to access all services including email, website hosting, calendar, document editing/creation and much more directly through a web browser. The advantage to using Google Apps is increased productivity, security, lower IT costs and data backup. Microsoft has also entered the cloud computing realm by integrating its current software such as Word and outlook with online storage and easy accessibility.

Many hosting companies and even a few internet retailers are beginning to offer cloud hosting services. Rackspace, an internet hosting company, has begun to offer cloud hosting for clients who wish to have personal cloud applications in an environment controlled by them. Amazon.com is also offering cloud hosting services due to its large infrastructure and internet bandwidth capabilities. Most cloud hosting companies offer easy setup and creation of private cloud hosting with simple user interfaces. Most cloud hosting companies have per usage pricing instead of flat rate pricing. Users simply pay for the amount of processing, bandwidth and storage that they use. This pricing method benefits both cloud hosting companies and end users.

There are three main variations of cloud computing:

1. IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service): The need for expensive equipment is outsourced. Instead of companies purchasing expensive equipment including servers, hard drives and networking equipment, they would instead be used over the Cloud and hosted by a cloud computing company. The business entity would use the virtual equipment on a cost usage basis.
2. PaaS (Platform as a Service): Applications are run off of cloud servers hosted virtually. A small company selling cloud applications to businesses will use PaaS to “host” the sold cloud applications and have them run off of the cloud servers instead of having them run off of in-house servers. The company selling the applications pays for the services based on a processor/bandwidth basis.
3. SaaS (Software as a Service): Cloud applications are paid for on a per use basis and not sold in bulk licenses. This allows small companies to purchase a la carte licensing for applications they may use infrequently. Instead of purchasing 15 licenses a company can instead only pay when the software is used and removing the limits on how many machines the software can be installed on.

IaaS, Infrastructure as a Service, is currently the most widely used cloud service. IaaS allows small, medium and even large companies to cut costs considerably. Companies can completely remove the need for expensive network equipment, expensive bandwidth to support their network, expensive network storage equipment and much more. A company only pays for what they use from the cloud infrastructure thus eliminating the capital lost due to lack of usage from in house network equipment, bandwidth, etc. As IaaS gains more popularity and more cloud hosting companies emerge, costs can potentially drop even more due to oversupply and increased cloud hosting competition.

PaaS, Platform as a Service, is second to IaaS in terms of popularity and consumer adoption. A small company selling cloud applications and/or cloud services does not have to host the applications but can instead have them hosted elsewhere. Platform as a Service saves the company selling the applications/services as expensive network equipment, bandwidth and the need for additional IT personnel are instead outsourced to a cloud hosting company. This allows cloud application companies and even small developers the ability to enter the cloud application market without the need for considerable startup capital. PaaS has the potential to overtake IaaS in terms of consumer adoption and overall use.

SaaS, Software as a Service, is the least used cloud hosting service. It is a win-win for both consumers and the software companies. Consumers save money as heavily priced software licenses are no longer necessary due to the fact that consumers are only paying when the software is used. The need to purchase software in bulk is removed and every consumers’ software needs are custom suited based on usage. This is also a win for cloud software companies as it will attract more consumers due to the custom pricing model. Consumers who could not afford the high cost of bulk software licenses will now be able to purchase based directly on their software usage needs. SaaS has the potential to completely revolutionize the software industry and may even curb software piracy.

The customized nature of cloud computing is what makes it such a popular and newly adopted internet technology. It will revolutionize the way that networking and everyday computing is run. It is a great win-win situation for both cloud companies and consumers.

Potential Disadvantages

There are also disadvantages to cloud computing, specifically in online storage and client applications. A company which utilizes cloud computing to host its email, document editing, calendars and other applications can be shut down if a cloud hosting company experiences downtime. This specific disadvantage was the case on February 24^th, 2009, when Google Apps as well as Gmail were down for several hours. The downtime also reiterated that if Google can go down so can any other hosting companies. Confidence in cloud computing may have been hindered after this specific downtime although Google has assured it will not happen again. Google Apps services over 1million business around the world and is the leader in cloud computing applications.

Security is also a potential disadvantage to cloud computing. Companies that are willing to adopt the ability to host their services on the cloud may be reluctant to do so until the security of cloud computing has been heavily demonstrated and thoroughly tested. Large companies may consider the additional costs of in-house network hosting outweigh the potential security risks associated with cloud hosting. A security breach involving a companys’ cloud information storage has the potential for disaster. However, hacking and security breaches are rampant for in-house IT hosting such as millions of credit card numbers being stolen as well as detailed customer information. If cloud computing can prove that its security is much better than any in-house hosting this may help it to grow and overtake the percentage of companies that have in-house IT infrastructures.

Cloud computing is still in its infancy and is expected to grow and revolutionize the way of everyday computing. Many theorize that cloud computing will one day take over today’s desktop computing altogether. Until intense applications are developed for use over the cloud, desktop computing will remain the staple of everyday computing. Cloud computing innovation is rapid and as new cloud technologies emerge more people will start to adopt the cloud.

Current browser technologies are not up to date with cloud computing capabilities, especially in the mobile computing world. Cloud applications require several browser technologies including Adobe Flash, JavaScript, Adobe Flex and much more. Until browser technology evolves to fit the capabilities of cloud computing, cloud computing will remain a relatively simple method of computing.

Overall Benefits

The advantages of the cloud heavily outweigh the disadvantages. As better cloud computing technologies are developed and redundancy is fine tuned, the disadvantages will slowly become obsolete. As mentioned, cloud computing is in its infancy and new cloud technologies are growing exponentially. One day we will all use the cloud. In-house IT hosting as well as desktop computing may become a thing of the past.