What are the main criteria to consider when choosing a web host?

With the increasingly common use of cloud services, businesses are regularly faced with choosing a reliable and efficient web host. However, the procedure is complex, there are many factors to consider to ensure that the needs of the business will be met. In this article, we will list some criteria that can guide you in your choice.

With the increasingly common use of cloud services, businesses are regularly faced with choosing a reliable and efficient web host. However, the procedure is complex, there are many factors to consider to ensure that the needs of the business will be met. In this article, we will list some criteria that can guide you in your choice.

The first thing to check is its location. Where will the data be stored?
Choosing a web hosting company can be decisive to be able to respect your legal obligations in terms of data protection. To ensure that your data is processed in compliance with the RGPD, only hosting on European territory by a structure under European law owned by a company under European law can perfectly guarantee this.

The first thing to check is its location. Where will the data be stored?
Choosing a web hosting company can be decisive to be able to respect your legal obligations in terms of data protection. To ensure that your data is processed in compliance with the RGPD, only hosting on European territory by a structure under European law owned by a company under European law can perfectly guarantee this.

Often it is not possible to conduct an audit to control the quality of the service offered. Consulting the list of certifications that the hosting company can claim is an acceptable alternative. This will ensure that the services offered have been subjected to independent audits and have meet strict requirements, in terms of security, compliance and performance.

There are various certifications relevant to web hosting providers, each specific to a particular domain or use:

Often it is not possible to conduct an audit to control the quality of the service offered. Consulting the list of certifications that the hosting company can claim is an acceptable alternative. This will ensure that the services offered have been subjected to independent audits and have meet strict requirements, in terms of security, compliance and performance.

There are various certifications relevant to web hosting providers, each specific to a particular domain or use:

To check if the availability is adapted to your needs you can refer to the TIER standard (Uptime Institute's Tier Classification System). There are 4 progressive levels ranging from 1 (IT infrastructure offering a basic level of redundancy) to 4 (fully fault tolerant infrastructure). We recommend that you have your data hosted in a Tier III or Tier IV data center, which are the only levels that guarantee that at least regular maintenance can be performed without having to interrupt the service**.

To check if the availability is adapted to your needs you can refer to the TIER standard (Uptime Institute's Tier Classification System). There are 4 progressive levels ranging from 1 (IT infrastructure offering a basic level of redundancy) to 4 (fully fault tolerant infrastructure). We recommend that you have your data hosted in a Tier III or Tier IV data center, which are the only levels that guarantee that at least regular maintenance can be performed without having to interrupt the service**.

Flexibility and scalability allow users to modify their infrastructures according to their needs, without having to suffer unnecessary downtime. This can be done by increasing or decreasing the resources of a machine (memory, storage, performance ...).

Flexibility and scalability allow users to modify their infrastructures according to their needs, without having to suffer unnecessary downtime. This can be done by increasing or decreasing the resources of a machine (memory, storage, performance ...).

For example, doubling the RAM allocated to a web VM with redundancy can be done in less than a minute, with no downtime. In fact, a hosting provider offering fully redundant infrastructures can change the resources allocated to platform components much more quickly than if all elements are hosted on a single machine.

For example, doubling the RAM allocated to a web VM with redundancy can be done in less than a minute, with no downtime. In fact, a hosting provider offering fully redundant infrastructures can change the resources allocated to platform components much more quickly than if all elements are hosted on a single machine.

Make sure the support department is responsive with available assistance and on-call service (night/weekend) backed by qualified experts. Also ask about the time to support and resolution.
The added value of a supplier lies in its capacity of accompaniment and advice at each change of your infrastructures.

We advise you to use a web hosting company that offers :

Make sure the support department is responsive with available assistance and on-call service (night/weekend) backed by qualified experts. Also ask about the time to support and resolution.
The added value of a supplier lies in its capacity of accompaniment and advice at each change of your infrastructures.

We advise you to use a web hosting company that offers :

To measure the reliability of a web host you can check its service level guarantees announced in the SLA (Service Level Agreement) document, for example :

To measure the reliability of a web host you can check its service level guarantees announced in the SLA (Service Level Agreement) document, for example :

This contract between the supplier and the customer makes it possible to determine the commitments made by the supplier in terms of availability, performance, security, support and responsibilities. It also defines the guarantees in case of non-compliance with these commitments.

This contract between the supplier and the customer makes it possible to determine the commitments made by the supplier in terms of availability, performance, security, support and responsibilities. It also defines the guarantees in case of non-compliance with these commitments.

The hosting company must have means of control to ensure that the services provided to its customers are working properly. It must also be able to provide you with performance reports.
The host must be able to provide at least the following indicators:

The hosting company must have means of control to ensure that the services provided to its customers are working properly. It must also be able to provide you with performance reports.
The host must be able to provide at least the following indicators:

Choosing a web host is potentially committing to a long-term relationship. We advise you to check:

Choosing a web host is potentially committing to a long-term relationship. We advise you to check:

Aqua Ray strives to build its strategy around 5 fundamental pillars:

Aqua Ray strives to build its strategy around 5 fundamental pillars:

Our Tier IV certified Aurora data center offers the highest level of assurance with an average uptime of 99.995% for data centers of its kind, or 0.8 hours of downtime per year (on average). The data center is failure tolerant with redundancy of every piece of equipment (power, cooling and network).
We constantly monitor our clients' services through performance indicators. Aqua Ray also has a management service available 24/7** with a maximum processing time of 6 hours for incoming requests.

Our Tier IV certified Aurora data center offers the highest level of assurance with an average uptime of 99.995% for data centers of its kind, or 0.8 hours of downtime per year (on average). The data center is failure tolerant with redundancy of every piece of equipment (power, cooling and network).
We constantly monitor our clients' services through performance indicators. Aqua Ray also has a management service available 24/7** with a maximum processing time of 6 hours for incoming requests.

Aqua Ray controls its entire production chain and minimizes the use of subcontractors. It owns and operates its own data centers in Val-de-Marne and its fiber network in the Paris region. Aqua Ray's Cloud is built with open source software and maintained in-house.

Aqua Ray controls its entire production chain and minimizes the use of subcontractors. It owns and operates its own data centers in Val-de-Marne and its fiber network in the Paris region. Aqua Ray's Cloud is built with open source software and maintained in-house.

Aqua Ray is a 100% French structure and its activity is based in Europe. Our suppliers are selected within the Euclidia alliance, for the guarantee of a service without dependence on foreign proprietary technology**.

Aqua Ray is a 100% French structure and its activity is based in Europe. Our suppliers are selected within the Euclidia alliance, for the guarantee of a service without dependence on foreign proprietary technology**.

Aqua Ray is an RGPD compliant company. In order to meet the needs of our customers and confirm our desire to maximize the security of their data, we have been certified as compliant with the requirements of ISO27001 and HDS. Our compliance with the ANSSI's SecNumCloud standard is a priority for our teams.
Aqua Ray maintains and updates systems and middleware on a quarterly basis. Our clients can count on annual backups and backup restoration tests as well as a consistent monitoring of potential risks (CVE type) of the machines.

Aqua Ray is an RGPD compliant company. In order to meet the needs of our customers and confirm our desire to maximize the security of their data, we have been certified as compliant with the requirements of ISO27001 and HDS. Our compliance with the ANSSI's SecNumCloud standard is a priority for our teams.
Aqua Ray maintains and updates systems and middleware on a quarterly basis. Our clients can count on annual backups and backup restoration tests as well as a consistent monitoring of potential risks (CVE type) of the machines.

Green is an important part of our future. Nous prévoyons de rénover les systèmes de refroidissement de notre centre de données Aurora afin de réduire notre impact environnemental et répondre aux objectifs zéro carbone de l’Europe pour 2030. Our data center has an operational PUE < 1.39 in 2022 which is better than the European average of 1.55 announced by the Uptime Institute.
Aqua Ray plans to build a new green data center concept designed with sustainable materials, benefiting from a geothermal air cooling system and recycling its waste heat.

Green is an important part of our future. Nous prévoyons de rénover les systèmes de refroidissement de notre centre de données Aurora afin de réduire notre impact environnemental et répondre aux objectifs zéro carbone de l’Europe pour 2030. Our data center has an operational PUE < 1.39 in 2022 which is better than the European average of 1.55 announced by the Uptime Institute.
Aqua Ray plans to build a new green data center concept designed with sustainable materials, benefiting from a geothermal air cooling system and recycling its waste heat.

Any question ? A doubt ? A particular request ? Do not hesitate to contact us by clicking on this button below, we will answer you as quickly as possible.

Any question ? A doubt ? A particular request ? Do not hesitate to contact us by clicking on this button below, we will answer you as quickly as possible.