Having started at the commercial outset of the internet revolution, way back in 1995, Aplus.net survived the crash with its customer base intact, and now hosts over 4,000 dedicated servers. This makes Aplus.net one of the larger dedicated server providers in the USA.
Aplus.net offers a wider variety of dedicated server bundles
than you'll probably ever see anywhere else, with combinations
of servers, CPUs, processors, hard drives, RAM, data transfer,
and other services and features for every imaginable need
and budget. In fact, besides their standard offerings,
they also offer Value Plans using excess inventory with
less capacity and at a lower cost. Dedicated hosting has
never before been so accessible for smaller scale outfits
. Plainly put, if you can't find the right dedicated server
package for you here, then it may not exist.
Unique Benefits
• Free server test drive - a very unique offering by Aplus.net lets you "test drive" the server prior to signing up as a paying customer.
• Same day delivery - guaranteeing new servers will be up and running within 24 hours. Most dedicated server companies take 2-5 business days to setup your server.
• Visa compliant data center: their data center has been certified by VISA
• Discounted "Value Servers" - deals on excess inventory starting as low as $49 per month (first-come, first-serve basis)
• "Smart" add-ons galore (Smart Monitor, Smart FTP Backup, Smart Stats, Smart Networking etc.) allow you to pick-and-choose your extended service options
Key Features
• Only the best equipment: IBM storage, Cisco network, and Intel and Sun Microsystems based servers
• Unix, Linux, and Windows servers - full spectrum of choice
• Intel and AMD processors - single, dual and quad based processors
• Load Balancing (at extra cost)
• Smart Monitor for keeping tabs on server availability, load, and performance around the clock ($24.95 setup fee + $9.95-$14.90/month)
• Premium set up options, including: initial Control Panel configuration; DNS skeleton configuration; install, upgrade, patch, and add IP addresses; make minor changes to your Firewall, and add YUM systems
Editors' Comments
Aplus.net is one of the premier dedicated hosting companies on the market. Their own data center is located in beautiful San Diego, California - where else would you want your servers! The company provides an array of server and managed support options ideal for those companies with limited IT staff that are looking for assistance when required. Key thing to keep in mind is to map out what support services you think that you are going to utilize in your specific situation to get a full handle on the extended support costs. You can also take advantage of their extended software, monitoring and back-up options to take full potential of your dedicated server. Good news about their extended service packages is that you've got some excellent support engineers available at your fingertips when you require help - and you don't have to put them on your payroll!
Uptime Guarantee
Besides a 99.99% uptime guarantee, they also offer a
100% network uptime guarantee. More, they guarantee
that their HVAC systems will be functioning running
and functioning properly except for regularly scheduled
maintenance. For every hour of downtime resulting from
an HVAC failure, they'll give you a 5% discount on your
bill that month for each extra hour taken, all the way
down to 100%. Finally, they have the add-ons Smart
Monitor and Smart Console (at extra cost)
to help you minimize downtime and maintain optimum efficiency
where you are basically in control and can visualize
what is happening in their network operation.
Basics - What you
need to know
DataCenter
Aplus owns their own data center on the campus of San
Diego Tech in San Diego, California where 10 major carriers
meet, including Level3, MCI, Time Warner, SBC, and AT&T.
You'll enjoy the smooth, fast, and consistent connectivity
of multi-honed redundant Gig-E and OC-3 backbone connections
to them all. They guarantee to replace, within 1 hour,
any hardware that fails, or give you a 5% discount on
your bill that month for each extra hour taken, all
the way down to 100%.
Power Management
Your dedicated server(s) will benefit from a military
power grid with 2 layers of redundant power systems.
They use overhead data cable runways with power cables
under the floor plates.
Physical Security
Physical security of the datacenter is maintained by
fire and flood protection, a diesel backup generator,
access cards, fingerprint identification, and closed
circuit vid
eo surveillance.
Server Access by Customer Physical Access: No physical access
to the server Root Access: Root access to the server
Service Offerings
General Managed Services
Basic support is free of charge and available 24/7 via
phone, e-mail and a comprehensive library of documentation,
known as the Knowledge Base. Higher level technicians
are there from 6 am-11 pm for more complicated inquiries.
Aplus.net also offer advanced technical support services
for particularly complex operations at $150/hr. Such
work includes (but is not limited to):
- Advanced configuration of server
- Installation of software that does not come as standard
with the server package
- Scripting
- Custom backup scripts
- Mail server configuration
Service Bundles
The sheer variety of bundles is what makes Aplus worthy
of its name, with an A+ assortment of packages geared
to your needs and preferences. With their standard plans,
choose between Intel and AMD processors, Unix, Linux,
and Windows servers, 1-2 GB RAM, 160-250 GB hard drive,
1000-3000 GB monthly transfer. And that's just their
standard offerings. Their Value Plans provide lower
cost alternatives for small scale operations. Beyond
that, Aplus.net boosts the performance of all of their
server bundles by offering a slew of add-ons that will
make server administrator's life inordinately easier.
Tools like Smart Stats, for keeping close track of your
bandwidth usage, and Smart Networking, for networking
two of more servers together.
Security and Updates
The only web host with VISA CISP compliance, a process
for validating credit card transactions that ensures
ultimate security. They have 24x7 NOC monitoring and
24x7 technical support. The add-on Smart Console
also provides SSH v2 digital encryption security.
Firewall
For a setup fee of $99 and a monthly fee of $149, you
can have firewall protection for up to 10 IPs, protecting
your servers from attacks as well as from being utilized
(at the expense of your site's optimal functioning)
to wage battle against such attacks. What's more, this
firewall will be running all the time at the same time
as all you applications by being run on a separate piece
of hardware. Stay at 100% efficiency all the time, get
personal assistance making the necessary server configuration
changes, and enjoy 24/7 support should you ever need
additional assistance with your firewall.
Backup Services
For a $25 setup fee and $10 per month, you can get Smart
FTP Backup, which allows you to schedule backups
as you see fit. The backup data is held for you on a
separate and secure server in the same data center.
They also offer a $50 Reinstall, to return
your server to its default condition, a $150 Reinstall
+ Data Recovery which also temporarily mounts the
old drive so that clients can perform manual data recovery.
Then there's a SmartRecover for $50 which boots
your server from a recovery disk and restores system
defaults.
Sample Server Plans
Value Server (their lowest priced offering):
Celeron CPU 1.7 or higher, 512 MB RAM, IDE HDD 60 GB
or higher, 500 GB monthly transfer, no setup fee for
$49/month
Standard Server (their best seller):
Intel CeleronD 2.8 GHz CPU, 1 GB RAM, 160 GB SATA Hard
Drive, 100 GB bandwidth for $99/month
Premium Server (rated Most Popular
by cNet): Dual Intel XeonE 2.8 GHz CPU, 1 GB DDR2-400
ECC RAM, 250 GB SATA Hard Drive, 1500 GB bandwidth for
$209/month
Customer Profiles
• Data Storage & Storage
• Extended IT Operations
• Mission Critical applications
• Application Service Providers
• Gaming Servers
Customer Testimonials
"Aplus.Net has provided me with an excellent service
and product. No longer do I have to stay up long nights
worrying about a site going down, or being a victim
to an unfaithful company - those who promise features
and services that cannot fullfill or supply them. I've
been with many, and I mean hundreds of web hosting companies
in the past, and the service and product, along with
the uptime you've provided and given me is by the far
the best I have ever experienced during my six years
of being a webmaster.
"Your pricing also played a great factor to me
becoming a very satisfied customer of your company.
I am able to get such a great dedicated server with
all the features and uptime I need at, for once, a price
I can afford." - Justice McCay, Webmaster Corner Forum
