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Has the definition of fully managed changed over the last few years in the hosting industry?
I’ve been with my current provider for maybe 7-8 years. I would assume I’d be getting what I signed up for... which back then explicitly included security patches, basic configuration and optimization, making sure your core software was up to date and you weren’t running an obsolete version of PHP...
I guess I’ve been asleep for ten years, because today it looks like fully managed means if you have a specific request and need help updating something basic like php, sure, give us a call...
I don’t really want help upgrading basic software I can do myself upon request or automatic upgrading of CentOS that requires zero of their time/resources.
What I want is a hosting provider who upgrades essential components when they’ve reached their EOL, who will patch known vulnerabilities automatically, and who won’t let me continue to lease slow, obsolete hardware they no longer even offer at the same price I could get twice the horse power...
Sorry for the rant.
1. Fully managed, in today’s market, means OS Upgrades and automated processes, support upon request only.
2. Are there providers who will handle things like know vulnerabilities and PHP/Apache EOL updates without request?
3. In today’s complex environment, particularly with the growing frequency of vulnerabilities and exploits, how does a non-sys admin stay up-to-date on patches, let alone find the time?
My host announces vulnerabilities and provides instructions to patch major vulnerabilities in their blog. Who checks their web host’s blog every day? Sometimes they post bulletins for critical updates to their infrastructure, but they expect customers paying for their highest level management plan to keep up with and update patches themselves.
Yes, I’m aware they’d probably do it if you ask them each and every time. But that’s not the point.
/End Rant.
What I’d really like to get out of this thread: how do you stay up-to-date with every major known vulnerability and necessary server updates as a tech-interested but non-sys admin user, on a managed hosting plan.
Do I really have to spend 20-30% of my project time on these issues?
I’ve been with my current provider for maybe 7-8 years. I would assume I’d be getting what I signed up for... which back then explicitly included security patches, basic configuration and optimization, making sure your core software was up to date and you weren’t running an obsolete version of PHP...
I guess I’ve been asleep for ten years, because today it looks like fully managed means if you have a specific request and need help updating something basic like php, sure, give us a call...
I don’t really want help upgrading basic software I can do myself upon request or automatic upgrading of CentOS that requires zero of their time/resources.
What I want is a hosting provider who upgrades essential components when they’ve reached their EOL, who will patch known vulnerabilities automatically, and who won’t let me continue to lease slow, obsolete hardware they no longer even offer at the same price I could get twice the horse power...
Sorry for the rant.
1. Fully managed, in today’s market, means OS Upgrades and automated processes, support upon request only.
2. Are there providers who will handle things like know vulnerabilities and PHP/Apache EOL updates without request?
3. In today’s complex environment, particularly with the growing frequency of vulnerabilities and exploits, how does a non-sys admin stay up-to-date on patches, let alone find the time?
My host announces vulnerabilities and provides instructions to patch major vulnerabilities in their blog. Who checks their web host’s blog every day? Sometimes they post bulletins for critical updates to their infrastructure, but they expect customers paying for their highest level management plan to keep up with and update patches themselves.
Yes, I’m aware they’d probably do it if you ask them each and every time. But that’s not the point.
/End Rant.
What I’d really like to get out of this thread: how do you stay up-to-date with every major known vulnerability and necessary server updates as a tech-interested but non-sys admin user, on a managed hosting plan.
Do I really have to spend 20-30% of my project time on these issues?
Though I am a control freak, so letting other folks do what I can do better myself is a difficult task 
