Linode specializes in unmanaged cloud hosting plans for developers who want to utilize state of the art equipment with as little or as much assistance as you’re comfortable with.
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Linode continues to stay relevant in a competitive industry.
Here is how they’ve trended over the years:
Features
Linode offers a number of features that separate them from their competition.
Here are a few of them:
1) Great Backup Options: While everyone understands that backups are necessary, many hosting providers don’t take it as seriously as they should. There are options to improve the redundancy of saving your vital data, but they can be difficult to maintain. Linode has created a backup system that is effective and easy to use. The site promises to let you “set it and forget it”. The service is a managed service offered by Linode that only takes one click from the user to implement.
Three slots are available to fill with the data including a 2 to 7 day, 8-14 day, and a third slot that is for on-demand backups. Users can configure and change the times of backups anytime. The backup system begins immediately and is saved separately from your server stack. Data that is complete will never be replaced by incomplete or corrupted data, so when you access files, they will be ready. The service is an added fee started at $2.50/mo all the way up to $20/mo depending on the size of your files.
2) NodeBalancer: Developers know that traffic can be unpredictable at times. If you receive a lot of unexpected visitors to your application that you aren’t prepared for your data can be slow or even crash. Load balancers help this process by transferring visitors evenly across servers. Linode has created a load balancing system they call “NodeBalancers.” This system balances incoming requests to keep the site running fast no matter the traffic level. In addition to this basic service, NodeBalancer also monitors backend health to route requests properly.
This load balancing isn’t just useful for traffic spikes but helps simple blogs, large enterprise sites, and complex applications all function to their best ability. Instant monitoring of the balancing process can help you identify issues quickly and make adjustments to the program itself. Customization options help you create the best load balancing system to suit your site.
3) Longview: Being able to see all of the metrics your site offers can help you make your site run better, improve your user experience, and increase revenue for a business. Third party monitoring software is a booming business supported by webmasters who want to use this data. Linode has created a system level tracking software, called Longview, to help developers troubleshoot issues and prevent future problems.
With this software, you will see up to the minute data straight from the system itself. This information will be shown by graphs and charts and allow you to see and correct issues like resource bottlenecks and other issues. You’ll also be able to view all of your servers at once and get all of the information in an easy to read and understand format. This will help you keep your data usage in check and running smoothly to keep your visitors happy.
Customer Support
This particular company specializes in unmanaged hosting plans, so customer support isn’t their main focus.
That being said, Linode offers a 24/7 customer support team that is available via live chat, telephone, email, or through their support ticketing system, something you don’t see in every hosting company (see: Digital Ocean, WestHost, or Pair Networks).
Reviews
All over the internet people are talking about Linode. One of the most popular features is their technical support. Here are a few of the positive things they had to say:
“Linode is one of the best vps hosting providers i have used. because, pretty much all hosting providers revolve around the same feature set as ssh access, 99.99% uptime guarantee, various server locations. but what makes a difference is their support.”
Another customer agrees saying: “i have been with linode for 6 months now. and their support team astonishes me. other than their support they have amazing features like internal network access where you can join multibe linodes together. and a system usage statistical app called longview which is amazing for runtime usage analysis.”
There were a few negative reviews however. One customer wasn’t impressed with tech support:
“It’s famous for its great ticket system,however,I think it doesn’t work well.Once I ask a question about IPv6,the Technical Support doesn’t tell me how to solve it, they just let me test again and again. It’s a big problem.”
Another customer seemed to love the company except for their pricing: “Linode is one of the best vps in the world,its uptime is the best one in my all vps,and it provides great hardware and control panel. I love it,although it’s a little expensive for me.”
Pros
1) Uptime Guarantee: Linode offers a basic 99.9% uptime guarantee that will replace time lost.
2) Fast Setup: Developers can quickly setup new projects in virtual enviroments in just a few seconds.
3) High Tech Hardware: Liquid Web uses solid state drives, and Intel E5 processors to speed up the Cloud hosting even more.
4) Site Migration: Linode offers a professional site migration service for your current projects that are on other hosts.
5) Control Panel Installs: There are also professionals who can help you install any control panel, including cPanel.
6) Guides and Tutorials: Linode has a very organized informative library of resources.
Cons
1) Linux Only: Linode only seems to offer Linux servers at the moment.
2) Limited Support: Since the company specializes in unmanaged options, support can seem limited.
3) No Control Panel Software: Linode doesn’t offer a control panel software with their hosting accounts.
Summary
Linode is a host that is geared toward professional web developers and companies with large robust websites and applications that need dedicated servers. With few other options available they have made their preferred customer known, which is good if you fall into one of those categories.
However, if you are looking for reasonably priced shared hosting for one or multiple small websites you will find better providers.