Looking for a server host? READ THIS FIRST!

Discussion in 'Bukkit Discussion' started by Jonchun, Aug 19, 2012.

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  1. Offline

    Jonchun

    I just read a thread on the official minecraft forums with someone asking about how to compare server specs/choose server hosts. I decided to write a response, but the response quickly turned lengthy. I figured I might as well post this for users to read/enjoy/learn.

    Introduction
    So you want to run a server? There are lots of important factors when starting up your minecraft server, so make sure you consider all of them before making your decision on what company to host your server with. Below are some important factors that you should consider while making your decision. There is no guarantee that this will land you with the perfect provider, but it definitely will narrow down your choices, and drastically lower your chances of getting caught with a kiddyhost that will run with your money and close doors in a month.

    Step 1
    View the company's website. Does the company have a decent website? Does it look professional? If it doesn't look clean and professional, it really shows you the way their business is run. Would you eat at a restaurant if they had cockroaches everywhere? Would you hire a plumber if you walked into his office and found that all his toilets and sinks were broken? No. The hosting industry is the same. Because it is an online-business (generally), their storefront is a website. If the website is in bad condition, chances are.. so is their business. If the business does NOT have a website, you should make sure they have a valid reason why. (Only private deals, local business-based, etc etc)

    Step 2
    == Processor ==
    If a company does not publicly give you their processor, they are trying to hide something. However, just because they don't have it announced doesn't mean they won't tell you. Try contacting them on live support or send in a sales ticket in order to get an answer to this question. Make sure you get a specific model as well. Don't fall for the whole "oh we have 4 cores 3.1ghz blah blah." Get the model of their processor and google it. You should be able to inspect the specifications yourself.

    FLAGS:
    If they give you either of the following answers, it's a good sign they may not be the best host:​

    i7-2600
    Xeon i7 W3520

    Those two processors are the most "common" as they are bought from budget providers (Hetzner and OVH). Although it's not a sure sign that you're talking with a "kiddie host", it definitely is a red flag that they are using desktop processors over server-grade hardware. As for the "Xeon i7 W3520", if any host that tells you that, just leave immediately. They are copy/pasting specs from the OVH website without even realizing that Xeon and i7 are different product lines... Do you really want to trust a provider that doesn't know his hardware? Also, ask your provider to give you average server loads. Depending on how many cores the processor has (threads included), you'll want to see server load < # cores. For example, if your provider is using an E3-1230(v2)(one of the most popular processors for the professional hosts), you're going to want them to report numbers less than 8. (The E3 has 4 cores w/ hyperthreading) If your server host doesn't know or can't explain their server load, you can almost be assured that​
    1. They have no clue what they are doing​
    2. They are overselling like crazy and don't want to reveal their server load.​

    Step 3
    == RAM ==
    If your server host passed the processor test, you should look for the RAM allocated to you. When you purchase a plan, most providers give you a set amount of RAM and it is one of the most important contributing factors to hosting your server. If you don't have enough RAM, your plugins/server won't have enough memory to run, thus causing crashes, lag, etc. Upgrading RAM will often solve lag problems that were caused by memory-intensive plugins, too many players, or large worlds. Although some people think RAM is the most important part of MC server hosting, I don't think so. The processor is much more important than just RAM. If you have a slow CPU, 12393423834298GB RAM won't help your server run faster. Don't go for a host that offers lots of RAM, but has a bad processor. You won't be happy.

    FLAGS:
    No RAM allocation : Some hosts like to charge purely by player. You need to be very careful with these types of hosts as you don't know how much RAM they are allocating per player. You could very well be getting a terrible server, but be paying way too much for it.​
    Too much RAM allocation: This means you should carefully consider this host. If their plans are offering way more RAM than other places, chances are.. the host is overselling.​

    Step 4
    == Disk I/O ==
    This is a very important part of minecraft server hosting. If your provider doesn't use SSDs or at a minimum 4 SATA HDDs in RAID 10, you're asking for trouble. Minecraft performs a ton of small read/write operations and the average 7200rpm single HDD will not be able to handle it very well as you will need to wait for chunks to be loaded from the disk.

    FLAGS:
    Using single 1TB/2TB HDDs: This will affect your performance. Don't listen to what the provider says. If they are using regular 7200 rpm drives without any type of RAID for redundancy/improved IO, don't even bother hosting with them.​

    Offering too much space on SSDs: SSD hosting is extremely expensive. If you find a host that claims to be using SSDs, but offers large amounts of disk space (25GB+ per server), you might want to be careful as it's not feasible to give out that much disk space on a SSD without severely overselling.​

    Step 5
    == Recommended Slots ==
    Take a good look at the recommended slots. A decent number of recommended slots is calculated by allocating 50MB-75MB RAM per player. This will help ensure lagless and quality gameplay. Below is an example calculation of what a good number of recommended players SHOULD be.
    Your host should be advertising between 13 - 20 recommended players in this scenario. If they advertise more than this, they are using false advertising in order to make your think you can run a lot of players, when in reality you'll start experiencing lag before that. Choosing a host that gives your realistic player slots tells you a lot about their service and business ethics. You probably don't want to go with a host that uses shady tactics to try and sell their servers.

    Step 6
    == PRICE ==
    Look at their price. If you see anything from $5-$10/GB RAM, that's a red flag. It takes an extremely large amount of customers at such a low profit margin in order to keep a business sustainable. It probably requires overselling as well at those prices. If you are purchasing from a provider that gives you prices like this, ensure that they are a registered company/LLC, or make sure that the owner of the business is trustworthy. Otherwise, expect to no longer have a host in a couple months when they go broke. Also, when prices are this low, make sure they're not cutting corners somewhere else. Be sure that they still provide good support, etc. Test their support team before you purchase. Remember, you CAN NOT run a successful minecraft server without a little bit of investment. It just isn't possible. If you're not willing to spend the money to run your own server, perhaps you should go play as a normal player. You're not ready to be running your own server.

    FLAGS:
    Price too low: not a good thing​
    Price too high: Make sure they provide quality if their price is too high​

    Step 7
    == Addons==
    Look at add-on prices. Also, how much disk space/bandwidth are you allocated? Although its normally not that important, it's somewhat nice to know if you're limited or not. What control panel does your provider use? Are you comfortable with their decision? Do they charge ridiculous amounts for a dedicated IP? Does your provider give you free MySQL? Free Mumble? Free webhosting? Discounts? The list goes on and on. These are probably the least important when choosing your provider, but if your provider provides some or all of these little bonuses, it is definitely a good sign that they know what they're doing, and they know what their customers want.

    FLAGS:
    No or little information given about what comes with the server.​
    The only specs you are given is RAM.​
    Provider doesn't offer dedicated IPs. (This is seriously a near-requirement for any serious minecraft server)​
    UPDATE: Minecraft 1.3.1 supports SRV records. This allows you to point your domain at another subdomain while including a port number. While useful, a dedicated IP is still better as it allows you to access ALL the default ports on your IP (useful for many popular plugins if you don't want to change ports, and the less popular ones that don't allow port configuration) On top of this, you should ALWAYS provide your IP without your hostname to your players in case your DNS servers fail or something bad happens. It's nice to be able to provide an IP without a port attached to it. It's also easier to hide the fact that you're on shared minecraft hosting.

    I wrote this all up without actually super-proofreading or any of that, so if there are mistakes, things you disagree with, things you want to add, please reply here. I'll be glad to read them/fix mistakes/add suggestions/modify current ones.

    Regards,
    Jonchun

    Code:
    Changelog:
    v1.2 - Included SRV information
    v1.1 - Inserted Disk I/O into Step 4
    v1.0 - Inital Release
     
  2. Offline

    JOPHESTUS

    I like this.
     
    ChumCHumx likes this.
  3. Offline

    MikeA

    I like, common sense.
     
    Nathan C and Jonchun like this.
  4. Offline

    nala3

    Not any more actually :) SRV records can now route URL's with ports to a URL without a port!
     
  5. Offline

    Jonchun

    Updated the post with justification on wanting/needing a dedicated IP.
     
  6. Offline

    Milkywayz

    Pretty good, I read the entire thing and it was very informational. About the website, I think if theres generic pictures for like customer support and generic pictures of server racks on the page, then its pretty tacky and unprofessional.
     
  7. Offline

    Jonchun

    Generic pictures for customer support and stuff can be tacky, but sometimes when played right, it can work out.

    Edit: Good example is http://www.beastnode.com/

    Look at the 6 "features" with the icons. That's hyper-generic and found on nearly every webhost page in some form or another. They're using the most common form and their icons aren't even changed.. it's just pretty much recolored. It still looks professional though.
     
  8. Offline

    Fishfish0001

    I like it as well. I might add that a host using SATA3 HDDs isn't necessarily bad. I used those for awhile when I was hosting my server, and while not as fast as SSD, they are still not terrible, especially if it is inaVPS type environment. Basically look for either SSDs (not desktop grade), or SATA3 Drives, both will work fine. If it is a smaller server SATA3 is not going to be any different than SSD.

    Overall though, awesome guide, sad thing is that a lot of "newbies" won't read the entire thing :(
     
  9. Offline

    Jonchun

    SATA 3 drives can easily handle multiple smaller-tier servers and medium sized servers. However, when you're hosting up to 30 servers or so on a single box (32 gig RAM, assume everyone orders 1GB RAM servers), SATA 3 drives won't cut it.
     
  10. Offline

    greatman

    The i7-2600 have quite a punch even if it's from Hetzner. Never had a client complain about lag.
     
  11. Offline

    Jonchun

    Hetzner actually has decent-quality hardware/network. The reason they're so cheap is lack of support. However, the reason I warn against Hetzner/OVH is although the two are pretty much the only European providers that don't overcharge like crazy, it also means they are pretty much the only place kiddies will buy from. Their hardware/network is fine. The only problem is that desktop processors are nowhere near as reliable as server-grade hardware, and on top of that, you're sharing your network with one of the biggest homes to seeders all over the world (although I've heard they're really starting to smack down on this). I don't have anything against either company. In fact, when Chunex expands, I plan to order from OVH considering no other provider in EU can give me a half-decent price. However, that doesn't warrant enough for me to remove the clear warning against staying away or being careful when you see a provider that's advertising Hetzner/OVH specs.
     
  12. Offline

    np98765

    Wondering about your processor recommendation..

    What about any AMD processors? :p I've seen the FX-4100 as a processor on multiple sites. How does that compare to the E3-1230v2?
     
  13. Offline

    ohtwo

    Very informative. Don't wanna shut the kiddie's dreams down, but if they don't even try to make their site look halfway decent, it's just as bad as buying from your friendly neighborhood alley.
     
    Fishfish0001 likes this.
  14. Offline

    Jonchun

    For minecraft hosting, intel processors are definitely the way to go. The AMDs are usually budget dedis rented from providers as they are generally much cheaper than the intel lines (while advertising the same clock speeds and cores). You get much more performance out of the E3 lines vs the AMDs. You can probably google the differences and you'll find that at least for minecraft hosting, the intels are much, much better.

    You did in 2 sentences what took me a whole tutorial to say :(
     
    madmac and np98765 like this.
  15. Offline

    madmac

    After reading this informative post, I fee that much confrontable with the deal I have been given from
    xlhost.com.
     
  16. Offline

    zipfe

    You should add a few lines about managed and unmanaged servers as well. Big surprise for noobs when they order unmanaged and the hosting company's support doesn't care about your e-mails unless there's a hardware issue.
     
  17. Offline

    Crast

    How does one set up an SRV record for minecraft 1.3.1? It'd be neat to not have to give out the port number.

    note: I understand DNS, and how to put an SRV record in at my DNS provider, I just am not sure how to format it; the SRV format looks like

    _service._proto.name TTL class SRV priority weight port target

    What's the service/proto descriptor for minecraft?

    edit it's _minecraft._tcp for the service/proto.
     
  18. Offline

    Lolmewn

    O I see.
    However, I have a server with 4GB RAM for only 21 Eur a month. Runs just fine :)
     
  19. Offline

    deltahat

    First, you need a DNS provider that allows you to add SRV records. Then, follow the guide here http://wiki.multiplay.co.uk/Minecraft/Hostnames
     
  20. Offline

    Jonchun

    Yup. Don't forget that with SRV records, you're relying on DNS servers to stay up as well :)
     
  21. Offline

    Omnitv

    So many people asking this silly question.
     
  22. Offline

    Jonchun

    I know right? It's almost like they don't know that they should be contacting me for all their server hosting needs. [creeper]
     
  23. Offline

    Omnitv

    And there I find over 15+ thread's with the title. [title] .......Server Host....... [/title]
     
    sillyrosster and Jonchun like this.
  24. Offline

    lele0108

    Some of this information is inaccurate.

    For example, just because a host uses a i7-2600, or i7 W3520 doesn't give you ANY justification that they are a bad host. That's comparable to saying that all black people commit crimes, or all Asian people have small eyes. The i7-2600/W3520 are great CPUs for hosting Minecraft Servers.

    Also, just because a host does not use a RAID setup or SSDs doesn't mean the performance is poor. Enterprise, or even desktop drives such as the WD Caviar Black, or WD RE4 will give great results (WD fanboy here, Samsung drives perform great too), even without any RAID (obviously, if they are not oversold).

    And just because a host HAS RAID, doesn't mean your will get great I/O performance from it. RAID1 has no I/O gain, since you're mirroring the file, and RAID0 doubles your harddisk fail rate. So, unless you are saying that all hosts that are not using RAID10 or SSD drives suck, you're point is invalid.
     
  25. Offline

    Jonchun

    You need to reread the post and stop making yourself look retarded in public.
     
    evilmidget38 likes this.
  26. Offline

    evilmidget38

    I think I'm going to have to start quoting this.
     
  27. Offline

    jorisk322

    Thought this was going to be a post like: 'OERMERGGERD, DON"T HOST WITH X-HOST, THEY ARE ***y, ****'s, and THEY!!! DON"T HAVE ANY SUPPORT< AND THEY SHUT DOWN MY DSERVER ONLY BECAOSE I WAS A BIT LATE WITH PAYING (Jsut 3 MONTSH!'

    But it turned out to be a nice guide, thanks for this :)
     
    Jonchun and np98765 like this.
  28. Offline

    lele0108

    Already have read the top, which has more inaccuracies (Also, I highly recommend you editing the top part regarding hard drives, since it's pretty inaccurate):

    OVH and Hetzner do not "lack" support, in fact, if you actually use their systems (can't judge something you haven't used), you rarely need support, since their panel automates a lot of things. Support for broken hardware, etc. is pretty fast. The real reason why OVH/Kimsufi is bad, is because of their network (Which you claim is "fine").

    OVH's network sucks. Gbit? Bullshit. The max your getting is around 3-5MB/s (Gbit is 100MB/s) (This mostly applies to Roubaix, France). Hetzner's network is much better than OVH's, but isn't great either. Using desktop hardware for hosting Minecraft isn't unheard of, and some big providers still do this.
     
  29. Offline

    AK69

    Is it better to have 1gbps connection or 100mbps connection?
     
  30. Offline

    Double0negative

    @Jonchun

    Just wanted to point out a few things here.

    first, Xeon i7 W3520, does not exist.
    Xeon W3520 does however

    EDIT ^ I see that you make a point about that.

    Second, Hetzners network is not bad. I had a server with them and we could download stuff a 40 mbytes per second (even on the 100mbit plan).

    Third, a lot of people think that just because they are desktop cpus, the i7 series means auto bad for server hosting. This is wrong, I know a lot of major servers that use these cpus. for example, meepcraft uses i7 2600k and i7 3770 cpus with over 800 people online

    fourth, SSD's in minecraft are way overrated. MC may make a fair amount of io reads, but im running over 1000 people on a server and maxing at 4mb/s io r/w

    And last for now, It is incredibly possible to sell servers at $5-10 per GB. I ran a hosting company using super high end hardware and our servers were $8 per GB and we were still making a major profit per GB.
     
    -_Husky_- likes this.
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