Fully-Managed Windows Cloud Servers

We like to choose datacentres located in the UK, the US and Western Europe because they are usually cheaper, operate with high standards and the time zone and language make them easier to deal with.
Many other locations around the world are also available.

Both are available but virtual servers are usually cheaper. Each type has its advantages and disadvantages. In the majority of cases a virtual server is better as you can make a backup image of the entire operating system and can easily add additional memory and hard disk space.

No, each server is only for the exclusive use of one customer and gets a public IP address that only it uses.

It is the perfect place to locate a server:-
* Secure location. Only staff allowed in the server rooms
* Skilled humans in attendance 24/7
* Constant temperature and humidity. Filtered air (no dust)
* Electricity supply backed up by batteries and generators
* Multiple fast connections to the Internet backbone

The datacentres we use have great physical security. They have reliable Internet connections and electricity supply and use high quality server hardware. We configure firewalls to allow only the minimum access that is required to perform its functions and also keep operating systems updated. However if your server contains any important data, not stored anywhere else, it’s never safe. The purpose of having a server is usually so that your staff can do their job and it is they who are most likely to fall for a scammer’s trick to reveal their password or upload a virus.
Unique data therefore needs to be regularly backed up to a separate location away from the datacentre where access to it is limited. Perhaps to one of the many cloud storage services or downloaded overnight to a cheap NAS drive in your home or office.

Short answer: Usually no but you can if you insist.

Administrative access means you have the ability to make changes to the operating system, the security settings and the backup process and might screw thing up, so you can see why we are reluctant to allow this for people outside of our company.
It also means having remote access to the server desktop. Windows’ built-in RDP is the standard method to access remote servers and we have a range of static IP addresses that only our company uses and we set the firewall to limit RDP access to only those IP addresses. If your company has it’s own IP addresses we can add then to the firewall but we don’t want to open up RDP access to the whole of the Internet as it’s no exaggeration that any device with RDP access enabled is quickly found by hackers who then constantly try to guess a username and password. If you don’t have a fixed IP address to connect from we can install a remote access system which operates in a similar way to TeamViewer and uses certificates and two-factor authentication to control access.
We do of course enable all forms of access to the server that are required for you and your staff to use it for the purpose it’s designed for.
We do understand that if your server is providing business-critical services, you want to be in ultimate control of it and not be dependent on any 3rd party and so you can have the degree of access you need.
In an extreme case, you would have the contract with the datacentre, have your own remote access and only tell us the current administrator password when you needed us to do something.

If a physical server, located in your office, fails to boot you have multiple options to repair it or recover any data but if it’s 5000 miles away, belongs to someone else or only exists in software it gets trickier.
Typically the options offered in a Datacentre control panel are: reboot, power cycle or re-format the hard drive and re-install the operating system from scratch. They don’t offer the ability to change the administrator password if it is lost. Some virtual server providers have the option to take regular snapshots of the server which can then be restored but this is an additional charge.
We like to choose providers of physical and virtual servers that offer KVM-Over-IP or Console Access which means a separate device, plugged into the server’s keyboard, mouse and video ports can be accessed remotely so it’s just like you are sitting in front of your own server and can watch the boot process. You can also have the ability to boot the server from your own DVD image.
In any case, you should be prepared for the worst to happen by regularly backing up off-site any unique data. If you can’t tolerate any downtime because of a failed server then get multiple servers, all capable of independently providing the services you need. For our Email Smarthost service we have 6 servers in datacentres in London, Maidenhead, Antwerp, Seattle and New Jersey with 2 on standby in Dallas and Chicago and we’ve had 10 years of uninterrupted service.