Colocating Server In Bkk

[Darvil]

I checked this forum for colocation but not much info.

Looking on the internet I found a few sites but not really any reviews or more info on the quality of the services.

http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=colocation+in+bangkok

I was wondering if anyone have any experiences here on this.

What I generally see is the cost for a 2U rack on these Thai sites are 4500 baht but I need another power plug and network connection and since the server is going to need more then 1 amp, and with a few IPs, it should be closer to 6K baht a month on rent (or a little more). I was wondering what kind of services they might have such as walk in, or have someone there who can do basic things like swap out drives etc. Any experiences?

I'm thinking of one of those 2U supermicro racks with 2 motherboards (for basic HA) and redundant PS. That way I won't have to go down there often.

I know I can get better colocation deals in the US (as low as 100 dollars a month) but from what I can see, for good local speed its better to have the server hosted locally. I'm putting my foot in the doors with my friends in BKK by hosting some of their client sites (They're all Thailand base sites so local speed is important). I'm a sys admin so I can take care of them easily.

On a side note, my friends have had terrible services with some of the VPS companies in Thailand (IE VPS down for DAYS). I'm surprised actually as some of these VPSes can cost more then what you can get for equal in the US.

Anyone here know?

[Tatsujin]

Based on my and friends experiences, having a server locally makes absolutely no real difference in speeds when compared to one hosted in the US for example and you also then have the downside of terrible service and downtimes with one hosted locally here.

[devdrinker]

Tatsujin,

Are you joking? I guessing you've got a business connection or CAT Hinet then, and expect your customers to have too? Hosting locally for Thai based customers is essential. 3BB, TOT and True are volatile at best when it comes to international bandwidth, speeds inter-thailand are usually unaffected even during peak times.

+1 Darvil for taking such considerations.

[Darvil]

I've had my friends RDPed into my private server from thailand before and the speed was just not good enough.

Now when you say server being down locally with outage, how often is that? Personal experience? I would assume it isn't very common as I would think a local datacenter here would have things like generators ready to go. But then again I don't know anything about bkk's datacenters.

Also I'm sure they'll let me go in..

Its unfortunate I can't find any highend computer parts in BKK. Only see stuff like Dell and stuff. I guess Thailand isn't savvy on building your own servers yet. Shipping to BKK will be another problem.

[devdrinker]

I tried a few VPS providers and the connection was extremely stable, even when I couldnt reach sites like the BBC, I had consistent ping times and rock solid SSH for git etc... As for the data center probably best schedule a tour if you want to see their generators, UPSs etc, I wouldnt expect US/UK standards though.

[Darvil]

I don't expect too much but the thing is I'm hoping to bring the server with me (at least some parts) so I wanted to make sure its all ok. I'll definitely do the tour to see how it is. Would like to talk to some techies who works there to see if they're nice and all

Maybe I can just setup the package and not have it shipped initially. After I OK it from bkk, someone can ship it for me from the US (going with the freight, friend says no issues). That kind of case I can't get in BKK (as far as I know) so I hope I don't get tagged with import tax.

devdrinker: What VPS hosting provider are you using? if you don't mind.

[innerspace]

I looked into Thai hosting a few years ago and was completely put off by the information and support (or lack of).In a situation where even 5% of visitors were overseas I would certainly recommend an international server.But since it sounds like you have a local market you certainly do not want any international contention.All I can say is good luck! And post your findings here!Also when you inspect the datacenter check that the generators have gasoline and that the UPS is plugged in...TIT

[muratremix]

If connection is essential in-Thailand for you, you can also consider Singapore dedicated / VPS which could be cheaper.

[Darvil]

Man.. not alot of love here for Thai datacenters lol. Perhaps it is now alot more decent then a few years ago? As far as I know my friends never had networking issue with the local hosting companies. Its only technical issues where they falter. I'm actually seriously thinking about starting a mini hosting company. I was going to host my friends clients first and then see what happens. I know there isn't alot of money in the hosting industry (relatively speaking) but thats my bread and butter so I know how to do it to a tee.

muratremix

Thats actually gave me an interesting idea. I quickly checked the net for singapore colocation and for a 2U its 200 dollars per month. Even found something like this on webhostingtalk. With some extras its probably going to be around 250 which is a bit more then hosting in Thailand. Better international connection and I assume excellent connection to Thailand too. The only problem of course is that it would be harder for me to get things fixed when there is a major problem with hardware although with an HA setup, I won't have to worry about an emergency.

[Crushdepth]

Local providers are not price-competitive at all. But the real problem is reliability and the quality of technical support. Before you sign up to anything take a look at the fine print of their service agreement to find out exactly what level of service they guarantee and whether you can cancel a contract without penalty if they fail to deliver.

Quite often the contracts are ridiculously one-sided, eg. guarantee nothing in practical terms, beyond the requirement for you to pay a hefty exit fee.