Hello all. Here is what I want to accomplish and my time frame is 12 to 24 months to prefect. I want build a Linux server(s) with a massive amount of hard drive space and RAM so that I can provide VPS to clients to run their own virtual servers-resell accounts. I need to know the best hardware i.e. server (dell(s) maybe?) and technology to use. My scope on this project is to first build this on a small scale and then take it up a notch. Small meaning on a dsl line. I would also need to know best practice for backups and high availability. thanks, happz
Regarding the hardware, all recent double- or quad-core processors with enough RAM (6 or (GB) should be fine. Regarding the backups: I think I'd use rsync for files and this tutorial for MySQL: http://www.howtoforge.com/back_up_mysql_dbs_without_interruptions Regarding High-Availability: Take a look at the heartbeat/keepalived/Wackamole tutorials in the High-Availability category.
I'd look at how linode.com does things - they have a customized UML set up (you could do the same with xen, virtualbox, etc as well) and they sell virtual machines. Once you have a vm, you install whatever distro and packages you want - you have full control. I'd look at doing something like this, and having an image set up that basically serves up ISPConfig...
