We need recommendations for a company to host our server ASAP!

I am in the process of working through options for our current server hosting as well. I recently took a tour of a new facility which was able to boast multiple levels of redundancy and support at the level the client needs. This is important for their international clients and smaller mom and pops more closely related to my company size. We have not made the final decision to change, but we will likely choose to work with this company. They are Liberty Center One and their website with all information and ability to take a virtual tour is www.libertycenterone.com.

I was impressed with the information they shared up front versus other companies who gave you basics and waited for you to know what else to ask about.

Best of luck,
Sara

I recently started using Box.net for corporate file hosting and sharing. It is extremely useful. You can set permissions on a file-by-file or folder-by-folder basis and they have a new sync feature which is incredible. It synchronizes your online (box) files with your computer's files in real time whenever you are online. You select the folders you want sync'd and just access and update as you normally would on your hard drive, and Box automatically syncs your changes with your cloud stored files. Then other people you have shared those files with via permissions can also see those files as soon as they are updated (which is instantly if you are online). You set the sync and forget it and your files are always there, backed up or available for others. They have a smart phone app which i have used and it's saved me more than once. It's definitely worth checking out. http://www.box.net/pricing.

You might want to consider cloud storage for your files. I won’t extol all the virtues of cloud storage, but I have used a few cloud solution for files, websites, and servers. Many of them were hosted on Amazon’s S3 service (some on the Rackspace cloud) and I used a simple 3rd party “front-end” application to hide the complexity to our employees and users. You can configure it to be secure (limit users that can see it) and encrypted if desired.
Here is what I tend to use for the “front-end” applications for Amazon S3: Cloudberry (http://cloudberrylab.com/) and S3 Browser (http://s3browser.com/?src=app&version=2-4-5&platform=desktop&fam=x86). I found these very simple to use and useful, especially large files (videos, specs, etc.). Some of these tools allow you to make the storage look like it is just an external hard drive attached to the computer (known as a mounted drive).

For a price, some of these services will also distribute your content to various servers around the country/world (CDN) so that access to the files is very quick since the file is coming from a nearby server.

Cloud storage usually involves three costs: Storage, Bandwidth (Transfer of data), and Access tools. Storage generally runs about $0.15 per GB. Bandwidth usually costs around $0.15 per GB of transferred data (this can vary greatly). The tools (like Cloudberry or S3 Broswer) are priced from free (with basic features) to $8 - $30 per user depending on the number of users. Many of the tools have automatic sync features, auto backup, etc. Management of Cloud storage solutions are usually minimal (IT costs, etc.).

Other solutions are all-in-one solutions, like Box.net (http://www.box.net) and Dropbox (http://www.dropbox.com). These are sometimes more expensive, but these are usually managed (support, restores, etc.). They are becoming more popular, prices are becoming competitive, and integration with PCs are more mature (and many of them are even built on top of cloud servers).

Hillari
I didn't mean to ignore you yesterday. I logged off and have not had a chance to respond to your second question. I have only really heard of Rackspace, but I don't recall anything special about them.

I do think that many of the suggestions that came after mine also offer other options and more questions to consider when making this decision. I am concerned that after all the work we do to make a decision there might be a basic question forgotten which could make a material difference.

Good Luck.
Sara

I run a Financial Planning & Analysis and Corporate Performance Management consulting business and have been using 123 Together for hosted Exchange/Outlook and SharePoint services for 3 years now, and have been very happy.

I pay $10/month for Exchange/Outlook for users without mobile device access and $15/mo for users with a mobile device.

For SharePoint, I pay $15/month for all users combined. However, that rate limits me to 500 MB of storage, so you would pay slightly more. That is the best $15 I spend every month.

It is nice to have Exchange/Outlook/SharePoint all together as they integrate well. E.g., we keep a team calendar on SharePoint that I can view in Outlook along with my personal calendar. I can also automatically download files stored on SharePoint into Outlook, so I can review/work on them on a plane, etc.

I have been very please with the value.

Depends what you mean by hosted. If you want to be hardware-free and just pay a monthly service bill to use Exchange and store/access files, then I really think you should look at Google Enterprise. I know it doesn't sound like a "real" solution, but having seen the pitch, I believe it is. You'd be surprised at the companies that are going to it. If you plan to own hardware and just want to have it stored and managed elsewhere, that's more of Managed Services model - you would talk to local IT vendors for that.

They are a low cost provider that I have found to be significantly cheaper than other hosting companies. They cater to small to medium size companies that are looking for basic services. Good luck!

All very useful advice for us! We ended up at Sherweb.com and so far it has been an easy transition, a good price, and excellent customer service and support. We are a very small shop, in case that is important for any one else reading this thread.

Hillari