Managed Hosting
A managed web hosting plan is one where the hosting company takes care of the administrative actions for a particular website rather than the website owner or a web master. The cost of a managed hosting plan is considerably more costly than a non-managed plan, but the cost can be justified and totally worth it for the owner of a website who is bust with other aspect of the business or just has no desire to be involved with operating the site.
With an eye toward the cost, be sure of the features included in the managed hosting plan to make sure the plan includes everything necessary to operate the website according to the goals. A high end plan will most likely include a dedicated server while a low end plan will include a virtual private server (VPS).
The reasons for choosing a managed account varies, but the most common reason is the lack of time to handle the matter. Other reasons are lack of understanding of the tasks involved and some website owners would rather outsource the work to someone else for no particular reason.
To get a handle on cost and justify that cost is to keep in mind, the higher the cost the more customer service and support the website will receive. A fully managed hosting plan will be monitored by an experienced web master on a regular basis. The web master will monitor the web page and perform all the necessary administrative duties, as well as repair any problems that arise.
A partially managed plan is monitored by the web master, but the website owner will have the responsibility to handle some of the administrative duties, tasks and functions that are necessary to keep the web page up and spinning and fully accessible. A partially managed plan gives the customer control over the web page, but experienced assistance, if necessary. It is important when purchasing a partially managed plan to know what the customers role is and whet the hired web master will do, in terms of administrative tasks, monitoring and update the data and trouble shooting and repairing problems and solving problems.
It is also important for the customer to know and understand the features included with the plan and the options that may be available, either at no cost or for a small fee. This will help when deciding on a plan and determining if the cost is worth it.