Best Hosting Site?

[Scotland]

Hi all. I'm about to start setting up my first forum and I've been told xenForo is the way to go.
While fairly tech literate (in SQL and Python) I have never set up and maintained a website or forum.

I haven't arranged anywhere to host the site yet, so I'm happy to take advice on the best place to go for this?
I expect that I will have around 500 members if I'm lucky, with no more than about 50 online at any one time.

Also, am I setting myself up for a very time consuming and costly hobby here?

 

[DarkGizmo]

I'd start small if it's not guaranteed to take off, shared hosting isn't bad. I recommend taking a look at Hawkhost, they have affordable prices on shared hosting as well as VPS setups.

As for it being a costly hobby, yes it can be. The price for XF isn't cheap but worth it, plus most add-ons and themes are paid for, the really good ones anyway.

 

[IFireflyl]

The one I hear thrown around a lot here is knownhost. If you're looking to pay for hosting you might wait a bit because hosting providers may end up having their own Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals.

It's only as time-consuming and costly as you make it. The actual setup of Xenforo isn't hard/time-consuming. As far as the cost, the only cost that you will definitely have is the hosting and Xenforo purchase. With only 500 members you don't need a super-expensive hosting plan. Having said that, it can get more costly if you want to purchase additional add-ons and styles.

Also, if you think you have a hosting provider that you want to use I would ask people what they think on these forums prior to purchasing it. It's possible that people will have had experience with said provider that could be beneficial to your decision on who to go with.

 

[Jay™]

xenForo is great software and real easy to set up, as for hosting talk to @JonathanW over at knownhost they have great servers and support 24/7

BTW there are many great people here on this site that will give you guidance as well.

 

[ŽivaAkcija]

Recomended KnownHost https://www.knownhost.com/

 

[Scotland]

Thanks guys. I’ll be getting it all set up soon then I’ll come to you for advice!

Any thoughts on how best to get started?

 

[IFireflyl]

1. Find a web host.
   • With your estimated visitors you can stick with the standard shared hosting. There's no need to go for a VPS or dedicated server as you'll just be throwing your money away. If you get to a point where you are getting a lot of traffic you can always upgrade later.
   • Whichever hosting provider you go with should have a MySQL "wait_timeout" value of at least 300. Check on that setting before you make a decision. I ran into issues with an add-on I was trying to install where the "wait_timeout" value was only 20, and they wouldn't increase the value. It caused the add-on to get partially installed, but not installed enough that I could uninstall it. That was a pain to resolve, and I ended up moving to a new shared host.
2. Get your domain and hosting set up and configured.
3. Get an FTP program such as FileZilla or WinSCP.
4. Purchase and download Xenforo.
5. Upload this to your server via the FTP program.
6. Go through the installation steps.
7. Manage your new forum.

 

[JonathanW]

Thanks for all the recommendations guys! I've been out of the office so I missed this thread until just now @Scotland let us know if we can be of any service!

 

[Radiola]

If you think there is any remote possibility that someone might try to shut you down by filing invalid (and false) DMCA claims the only host I'd recommend is Maple Host https://www.maple-hosting.com/. When it comes to the US, every host I have run across or had the misfortune to use (save one) is incapable of reading, interpreting and applying the the DMCA law. In addition, while some write their own little wikis on the DMCA, they also can't read, interpret or apply their own guidelines. Maple Host says that you won't even be contacted by them unless there is a serious issue, i.e. a valid (and truthful) DMCA complaint.

Your choice for forum software is XenForo, XenForo, or XenForo.

 

[Scotland]

Thanks for the recommendations guys. As KnownHost gets the most pushes and I don't expect to run into any DMCA complaints (at least not initially lol) then I'm happy to go with them. @JonathanW I'll be in touch.

 

[JonathanW]

Thanks for the recommendations guys. As KnownHost gets the most pushes and I don't expect to run into any DMCA complaints (at least not initially lol) then I'm happy to go with them. @JonathanW I'll be in touch.

For what it's worth we're logical about DMCA. Our Abuse manager is intelligent and makes sure they're valid before passing them on, then we just follow what's required by law. If they're not valid you'll never even hear about them

 

[Rusty Snippets]

I’ve also been very happy with Knownhost. I just piddle around really, but their service has been good. And the couple times I needed help, their support was fast.

 

[Radiola]

For what it's worth we're logical about DMCA. Our Abuse manager is intelligent

Thanks JonathanW. I will keep that in mind if our present gig doesn't pan out.

 

[Radiola]

There weren't many statistics I could find about this in 2015-16 but the ones I found came from Google. According to them, 55% of their DMCA complaints were company B trying to take down the website of company A. In addition 37% of the complaints were invalid, and invalid in this case means that the complaint does not follow the prescribed form of the complaint as listed in the law set out mainly in 17 U.S.C. § 512 (but also other sections). 512 is the main one.

 

[Evan.Ferroli]

https://contabo.com I'm using this hoster since 5 years, very good

 

[shimspedy]

been using Bluehost for 3 years now ..and i upgraded to pro two weeks ago and got 6months free and SEO tools

 

[Radiola]

https://www.knownhost.com/?ref=xenforo is now our home.

 

[KatieC]

I'm a newbie. Some friends of mine and I set up a forum in late December. We went with Dreamhost because one of the founding members already had an account with them.

Having no other web hosting experience I don't have any way to say if it is good or bad relative to other hosting sites. However, I doubt that it's terrible since they seem to be somewhat reputable.

We use a cheap shared hosting plan. We have about 100 members and get about 3500 page views per day (we get a fair amount of guests viewing the page). So far, the site is lightning fast. I have no idea what the traffic limit is, but we're not taxing it at all.

We usually don't have more than 20 viewers at any given time, but we have seen over 100 before between members and guests. The site didn't seem to slow down at all.

We are not a media or image intensive site, so that might be helping us.

 

[DigNap15]

Don't go for the cheapest webhost. (if they are cheap they won't be able to give you support)
Check lots of reviews and recommendations if you have time.
I was under time pressure.
My webhost is technically good, but their pr is terrible.
Try to get one with email and phone and chat and ticket support.
Do they have Cpanel?

 

[Radiola]

The problem though is that WHM/Cpanel seem to have changed their pricing structure. Our previous host was moving everyone to Dedicated but it was also going to cost $48-49 a month for cPanel and that's what it used to cost for a year or so.

But DigNap15's point is well taken: cheapness is fine if you are starting out but in the long run you won't be happy with it especially if you have a rapidly expanding site. Also, a lot of these hosts are flaky and they may not be around in a couple of years or they'll be bought out by someone else and you might like their service even less.