Tips On Purchasing Business Class DSL and Cable

Are you certain that business DSL or cable is your best option?

The proliferation of virtual dedicated server hosting provides an alternative that is less expensive, and provides connection speeds that are far faster, than static DSL or cable service. Additionally, there is no hardware to buy or maintain.

Under this arrangement, the hosting company divides a physical machine into several virtual servers. Each lessee has complete control over their server down to the firewall and choice of operating system. Transmission burst rates are comparable to a fully dedicated server and overall transmission speeds are considerably higher than shared hosting.

Is a custom reverse pointer available?

Typically, a provider will assign an IP that resolves to a generic host name that includes the IP separated by dashes followed by a sub-domain. For example, “12-34-56-78.redstate.ispdomain.tld.” The provider should be able to change this for you to something like “mail.mydomain.com.” It is much easier to get this done at the time of lease. If you cannot obtain a custom reverse pointer, find another provider.

Avoid mixed ranges or MAC IP assignments.

In general, it is a good idea – if possible – to avoid mixed Class C ranges. A C range or “/24” is comprised of 256 IP addresses from, for example, 12.34.56.0 to 12.34.56.255.

Some providers use a database of machine access codes, or MACS, to re-assign the same IP address to business customers in mixed ranges. Usually this is the MAC of the customer's router. If you purchase a new router, you can usually change the MAC through the firmware setup.

Get the proposed IP address in advance and check the spam history.

It is much easier to get ON spam blacklists than it is to get off of them. You can use our multi RBL check. A very good source is also available at DNSstuff. Spamhaus has an excellent database of known spammers, with their IP ranges, categorized by ISP. Upon request we can provide you with a general spam history of a range of IP addresses, free of charge, from our database. You wouldn't want to move into a new home to find out later that there is a crack-house down the block.

Reliability trumps speed.

Use common sense. In some areas, DSL is much more reliable than cable service while cable is generally faster. Obviously, some ISPs are more reliable than others. You need to do some planning and homework. It is usually a good idea to start with a short term contract.

Somewhat off-topic but choose a first-rate domain registrar.

Most small businesses use the DNS servers of their domain registry. Pinching pennies on "cheap domain names" doesn't make much sense.