Codero Introduction

Codero’s web hosting services are aimed squarely at business and corporate users. With a 100% uptime guarantee and SSAE 16 certification, Codero’s price plans skip shared hosting entirely, pushing dedicated, cloud and managed hosting at the forefront of their homepage.

Founded in 1992, Codero now benefit from the leadership of a CEO with extensive experience in the industry. Sayegh previously worked for HP, Dell and Rackspace and has nine patents to his name. He joined the company in early 2012. The entire management team boast impressive qualifications and extensive experience in the IT industry.

The company is based in the US and appears to be privately owned. Codero have two offices, one in Lenexa, KS and the other in Austin, TX.

Codero Hosting Plans

Codero don’t offer shared hosting. They do offer a myriad of high-end hosting plans, with multiple options for each type of hosting in Linux and Windows variants. It would be impossible to cover each one in detail due to the sheer number of options, but I’ll run through some key features.

If you’re looking for dedicated hosting, Coder offer more than 35 options which vary based on on the server hardware, RAM, cache, processor and price. It’s possible to filter and compare the list to get a shorthand overview of the dedicated packages you’re looking at. You can also choose from three data centres (Phoenix, Ashburn or Chicago) to get the best possible response time from your dedicated server. Smart Servers combine features of cloud hosting with the convenience and power of dedicated, although these plans come at a higher cost.

Cloud hosting can be purchased hourly or monthly and comes in three variants: one core plus 1 GB RAM, two cores plus 2 GB RAM or 4 cores plus 4 GB RAM. All offer 50 GB storage.

Clients who want to go for a managed hosting plan have four options: Dedicated with paid support, Basic Managed, Select Managed and Premium Managed. Troubleshooting and backups are included in the most expensive plan only, and on these plans, paid support is also discounted.

Codero Uptime/Downtime

Unlike many shared web hosts, Codero place huge emphasis on uptime - so much so that they offer a 100% uptime guarantee.

The company owns and runs three data centres: one in Ashburn, one in Chicago and one in Phoenix. The company website says Codero will be opening two more data centres in 2013: one in the UK, and one in Amsterdam. Speed testing tools allow clients to determine which data centre is best for them.

All Codero’s facilities are impressively kitted out. Each has 12 inch reinforced concrete walls, rubber insulated ceilings and Tier III specs. Security is provided via 24/7 staffing, CCTV, mantraps, biometric locks and more. In terms of uptime, Codero have diesel backups, redundant power, N+1 UPS modules and 48-hour power backup capabilities.

Codero offers green hosting, and this goes further than some shared hosts who simply purchase credits to offset emissions, although the company do this as well. But in addition, Codero actually allows customers to opt for low-power servers, and it pushes cloud hosting as an eco-friendly alternative to traditional hosting services. Its data centres have been modified to use less electricity, and they also plant trees to offset emissions.

Backups are chargeable, as they are aimed mainly at dedicated hosting customers. All budgets are covered, from FTP backups to full managed backup provision with scheduling.

Codero Support

Codero are one of the few hosting companies that specify the location of their technical support department. All support is provided from US teams, and support is available round the clock, all year. Highly technical datasheets are provided detailing the exact specs of their servers and serviecs.

The tech support department is available via telephone (US numbers only), Skype, live chat (two channels, one for sales and one for support), a sparse but active Twitter feed and a support ticket system. It’s also possible to contact Codero via an email form or search their knowledgebase, which is comprehensive and detailed. The company have a status page which is regularly updated, and customers can also subscribe to status updates very easily via RSS. With white papers, background documentation and glossaries freely available on the site, this is clearly a company which takes support seriously.

Codero in the News

In March 2011, Codero were subject to a massive DDOS attack originating from China. The attack was targeted at one particular Codero-hosted site, although it affected many other web hosts too. Up to 5,000 of its servers were said to be affected in its Phoenix data centre, and its phone and chat services were also disrupted, meaning that worried customers were unable to get through to find out what was wrong. The company did post updates on Twitter.

The company’s CEO at the time, Jonathan Ewart, moved quickly to post a blog on the company website explaining the origins of the attack and how Codero staff had acted to contain it. Judging by the comments on his post, customers’ faith in Codero did not seem to be shaken, despite the downtime.

CNET
Codero Blog

Codero Control Panel

As Codero concentrates on dedicated hosting plans, the choice of control panel software is entirely down to the user. Cpanel, Plesk and WebMatrix are all available (the Linux options do cost extra). In addition, users can choose their operating system from a range of different Linux and Windows versions. Windows installation comes with a setup fee and monthly licence fee attached; Linux installation is free.

Codero Extras

Codero doesn’t offer traditional free gifts and vouchers to entice users, but it does have a number of discounts and offers.

New clients are offered a discount which applies as long as the user is a paying customer, which is impressive. Codero also operate a price match guarantee and other discounts and bandwidth offers.

Codero Money Back Guarantee / Cancellation Policy

There doesn’t appear to be a money-back guarantee in place for Codero customers. However, the 100% uptime guarantee is a plus point. Any customers who are affected by network failures receive automatic refunds of 5% for every hour of downtime, up to a maximum of a 100% refund in any given month.

Codero Summary
Codero’s commitment to excellence is obvious, and its hosting plans are marketed on quality rather than quantity. This kind of service never comes cheap, but 100% uptime guarantees are a rarity, and Codero is one of the few hosts to offer that on its dedicated plans.

With extensive experience in the industry, a massive amount of support material and a plethora of dedicated and cloud hosting packages to choose from, corporate clients will enjoy the stability and convenience Codero offers. Yes, this kind of service costs money, but the fact that a company can come out of a massive DDOS attack with customers on their side is testament to the loyalty it inspires.