Budget server solution, production+development+

hpl123

Hi all,
This is a general question about a custom server / Aware IM server solution I am thinking about setting up.

The solution is to setup/use 1 server that functions as my Aware IM production server but also at the same time functions as my main Aware IM development server. Also i would use the server for various small other tasks / applications (but have enough memory on the server so this should not be a problem). The reasons for thinking about setting it up this way are 2. 1 for financial reasons to handle a tight budget when it comes to development and 2 for practical reasons (i am a old citrix fanatic and have used citrix desktop/rdp for many years and absolutely love the portability/practicality etc. of that solution). I know i could get an extra Aware IM license and work of my laptop and i might do that as well but i am interested in setting up 1 solution for it all and just wondering if this is possible at all or just a dream.

I know the best thing/setup is to have a production server solely used for a Aware IM active application (s). This is the ideal BUT have any of you used or are using a similar setup to the one i write about above and if so: Does this work fairly troublefree? (or what is your experience?) If i sit on my production server and do development in Aware IM there are risks this could affect the Aware IM server and thereby affecting running applications (and that would be a bad thing).

Thanks

hpl123

hpl123 wrote
Hi all,
I know the best thing/setup is to have a production server solely used for a Aware IM active application (s). This is the ideal

Forgot to mention that this solution (the one described in the quote) is also the solution i will use when i have developed a application that "works" in a market i.e. a application i am interested in having up and running / live longterm. My 1 for all server is the first step and where i develop applications and also have a couple of applications up and running on a "trial" basis if you will. I first develop a application on my 1 for all server and launch it. After a while and after seeing if the application "works" i will move a working application to it´s own server for maximum performance.

Thanks

hpl123

At closer consideration, this is probably just a dream. To many risks for some convenience and to save a few bucks 🙂.

kklosson

I don't know...
It seems to me that AwareIM was designed to work just like that. I don't - I have two licenses but I think you could depending on how much user activity you have and how much processing power. No question that your development work would impact general user performance but it's worth a try. Budget is your real problem. On a low budget, you will always be scrambling for resources, but I think it's possible to resource a machine sufficiently to work in the Dev\Production model.

I can recommend Amazon Web Services which is where I host production. Start with the most meager machine and then scale up as needed.

I use two licenses as you describe; one for development and one for production. I use the Professional version in production and the Developer version in development. It seems that the Professional license supports whatever you give it, but if you want to develop with developer features, then you need it at least for development.

hpl123

That was my though as well, that this could be done and i think it can and probably fairly troublefree. There are risks however and even though slim, the cost is very large if it would actually happen.
I am currently rethinking my strategy and don´t know yet what to do.

Kklosson, when it comes to the Amazon Web Services (AWS). I had only heard about these services and didn´t really know what it was so i googled it and looked through the AWS website and i´m wondering, do you have a server (VPS?/Cloud?/Dedicated? or Amazon EC2?) or a cloudDB only? (is that possible?). AWS provides A LOT of services and trying to make sense of it all.

kklosson

AWS does provide a lot of services so it's daunting at first. I'm using EC2 (Elastic Cloud). It is a VPS. Note that the AwareIM license is tied to your computer's MAC address and in order to have a persistent MAC you have to establish a Virtual Private Network which complicates things a bit with regard to IP addressing and such. Frankly, I have a consultant who does all of that but I think I could figure it out if I had to.

I'm running with MySQL but no reason you could not run Derby. Performance and stability have both been excellent since I moved there about two weeks ago.

hpl123

Ok, yes they have a lot of services and is interesting i think for several reasons. I understand many developers use their services for applications, storage etc. and are satisfied with performance, cost etc. How are their prices compared to other providers of a similar solution? Also, this solution is fairly new to you? How come you switched?

When it comes to my Aware IM setup i am using MySQL and this is my DB of choice and the VPN setup etc, you mention. I have limited experience with VPN´s but can learn so that´s no problem. I will look into AWS some more i think.

GaryBartlett

So Henk, which option did you go for? Did you go with EC2 or something else? I'm looking to do something similar.

Thanks very much.

Gary

hpl123

I´m still considering my options. The EC2 option is interesting but i have had my eye on a dedicated server from Eukhost (eukhost.com). I have used them in the past and have been very satisfied with uptime, support (24/7 chat) etc. Also their prices are fairly good, you can e.g. get a Dell PowerEdge 3.30Ghz (2 core), 8GB DDR, 500GB HD for 150USD per month. On top of that, they just "won" a award for best dedicated server provider (seemed legit, can´t remember where i read it).

Powerm

FYI, we use Arvixe.com. They have a real 24/7/365 online chat, I'm happy since 5 years and can say it's the first host I can recommend further.