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How to Get Free SSL Certificate?

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

SSL certificates have been sitting around for a while. You might have noticed some websites addresses display green or grey locks at the start – that is the sign that the website is SSL protected. For a novice, the difference might feel insignificant but it has a great impact in customer conversion. So, before coming on to the question how to get free SSL certificate, I would like to take you on a tour to what exactly is SSL and how to get free SSL certificate.

How to Get Free SSL Certificate

SSL – From the Scratch

When the whole website thing started, not much attention was paid to the security. The hackers were either not proficient enough or had no idea that cyber crimes could one day be more profitable than bank robbery. Whatever could have been the case, cyber crimes were not as much trouble as they are now. So, the early developers made some protocols on how websites will send and receive data to the end user. Though, this transmission was still very secure, it was not unbreakable. With what is now perceived, any computer professional with even little idea of how transmissions worked could break into it. The protocols were then combined and abbreviated as HTTP – HyperText Transfer Protocol.

For many years HTTP worked all fine. The internet had become second most sought-after place for shopping. The threats were almost non-existent. It was the era of bank robbery instead. The internet was not lucrative enough (yet) to overthrow drug trafficking as the most profitable crime in the history of mankind.

Meanwhile, on the internet, things worked pretty smooth. Shoppers would log in, add items to their cart, filled card details and waited excitedly for their shipments to arrive. As eCommerce and internet transactions became more and more mainstream, hackers realised they had been undermining the potential of the internet as a platform for crime.

Over the coming years, computers became an integral part of our lives. The world was manufacturing more desktops in a year than it had so far manufactured. Companies like IBM, HP, and Lenovo quickly became epithets of computing. Government agencies started moving online and organizations underwent digitalization in crazy pace. Desktops became more affordable than ever. On an average, every 8 out of 10 school-going children had computers sitting in their homes. Everything was well within the reach. But it was not just us who has access to computers. The next few years, internet developed even more; it was now out of its embryonic phase and into adolescence.

At the same time students were learning to work on Microsoft Office, someone self-taught himself how to break into networks.

Source – makeuseof

Internet crimes grew exponentially to a limit that it was viewed as a risky business. Luckily, the silver lining did come early with the deployment of several additional protocols that made HTTP even more secure – and came to be known as HTTPS.

The lock that you see preceding a web address is a sign that transmission to and from the site is secure. Not that the HTTPS is unbreakable but it had hackers have a difficult time parsing data packets away from its destination. Though cyber crimes continued to exist, they were now less likely to happen.

SSL certificates really became the thing. Customers only bought from websites that had the padlock symbol and abandoned unsecured sites immediately.

How Do I get security certificate for website

How SSL works?

The number of websites featuring SSL certificates noticed a sudden spike and quickly became Unique Selling Proposition for some. Free SSL certificate became the most searched term in search engines. The later sections of this blog feature an entire tutorial on how to get free SSL certificate.

Take the above photo for reference. The Client is the browser accessing the web address and the Server the source from where the data is fetched to the client. HTTP connection transmits the information in pretty much the same form it is present in the server. Technically, it is extremely difficult – though not impossible – to break into the server and request files to a remote location. The files are most vulnerable when in transit as they are then open to all sorts of attack from the internet. It is at this point that all the notorious things take place. Data packets can be fooled into a wrong path and finally into a different computer or can be read right when the transmission is underway.

HTTPS – S stands for ‘Secure’ – only adds an extra layer of security by encrypting files that are transmitted across the network. Passwords and essential details like credit card data are sent in similar fashion.

What is Encryption?

Encryption makes the data being transferred unreadable. It does so by modifying files from its original state and turning them into a set of random characters. Thus, the statement “How to get an SSL certificate?” could probably look like –

**&^@#$%)765#$#$%%/.[]/.#-=!2@afnjd$%&@*”

The file gets decrypted into its readable form only after it has reached its destination i.e. only the source and the destination have access to the algorithm required to decrypt the data. Even if an attacker misleads data packets to his computer, the files would never render into their readable form.

How to get Free SSL Certificate – An Easy Guide

In this guide we will procure an SSL certificate from Cloud

How to get SSL – Eligibility

You are not bound to run into issues regarding eligibility unless you are illegitimately running a domain. Most hosting services now come integrated with SSL certifications. Go4hosting provides free SSL certificate 1 year plan complimentary with its dedicated hosting, so make sure to give it a try too.

Not all hosts will support SSL certificates in their dedicated servers. Speak to your hosting provider if you are allowed to have SSL certification on your website.

Take a note, the below figure denotes how SSL will get displayed once your installation is successfully completed.

Step 1: log on to a website providing SSL certificates.

You can choose from the list of plans Go4hosting has to offer.

We will be configuring SSL to our WordPress through Cloudfare.

Step 2: Purchase the plan that you believe best suits your requirement. Or, log on to the Cloudfare.

Step 3: Signup and add your website

Signing up is easy, you only need an email address and a strong password on your mind. Type in your details and click “Create Account”, as shown in the screen below.

Type in you domain name and click Add Site.

Step 4: Select Plan and generate new nameservers.

It now takes you to select plan screen. Since we came here looking for free SSL certificate WordPress, select the free plan. The rest of the steps will remain the same regardless of which plan you choose.

After you click on Confirm Plan, click on Continue in the next screen.

What pops next will be a screen that looks like –

We have masked our nameservers for obvious security reasons. Copy your nameservers but do no close the tab, we will get back to Cloudfare for final tweaks.

Step 5: Add these nameservers to your domain

The only way to do this is to login to your domain provider’s website.

If you are not sure who your domain provider is, click “I need help changing my nameservers”.

The website will run a quick search and display your provider. In our case it was Go4hosting itself.

Now go to your domain provider’s website and sign in to your account.

We have signed in to our account and below are the snapshot of the same.

Remember, we have to change our nameservers. The only place this can be done is through the admin panel provided by the domain host.

Click DNS and in the next screen click “change” that pops next to your name server. Note that different domain providers can have these settings arranged differently but the methodology shall remain more or less the same.

Proceed to adding your nameservers. We have included a screenshot below to help you. Do not forget to save after you have copied both the nameservers.

You are reading – how to install SSL certificate

Step 6: Installing Cloudfare on WordPress.

You are now a step closer to having your website SSL certified. Login to your WordPress account and go to Plugin.

Our aim here is to search for Cloudfare SSL plugin and configure it on WordPress.

Search “Cloudfare Flexible SSL” in the search box. The plugin will be displayed after a quick search.

Click on “Install Now” button to install the plugin.

After installation, you will notice the “install now” button has changed to “activate”

Activate the Plugin.

Final Step: Enable SSL in Cloudfare

Remember we told you to not close Cloudfare, it is about time we got back to it.

This is where we last left.

How to get SSL – Conclusion

SSL is only a way of reinforcing security of your website. While SSL can make your site more secure, it cannot guarantee ultimate protection. In the end, it bows down to how secure your network connection is.

One good example is Baidu, a china-based multinational company specializing in Artificial Intelligence and internet-related service. Baidu’s website has no SSL despite being among the top 10 sites in the world*.

Note – as per the data when the blog was originally written.

We hope you are now clear with how to get free certificate for website. If you have any queries you can reach out to Go4hosting’s support. We have been providing world class services and products in the IT-industry, including SSL certificates.

Essential Attributes that Differentiate SSD and HDD Storage

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

Not long ago, there was hardly any option other than buying a laptop or PC with hard disk drive. Choice of an SSD storage system was only limited to the ultra-portable devices such as Mac with Macintosh HD. As far as the form factor of the rest of devices was concerned, buyers had to settle with Hard Disk Drive. 

However, things have changed drastically and have certainly changed for better with buyers being able to choose between Solid State Drives or Hard Disk Drives while configuring their systems. One can also configure systems that have SSD as well as HDD as storage resources. 

Understanding SSD and HDD

Conventional method of data storage is by using Hard Disk Drive that is designed to store data in a non-volatile form so that it is preserved even if the entire system is switched off. 

Hard Disk Drive is nothing but a metallic platter that leverages magnetic properties for storing information in different forms such as audio files, video files, and so forth. The disk drive uses its arm with read and write abilities, for accessing the data as the platters keep on revolving.

As far as the basic functions are concerned, a Hard Disk Drive is identical to a SOLID State Drive except the data is stored on SSD Server in the flash storage chips that are integrated with each other for non-volatile storage of information. These flash memory systems are usually fixed on the motherboard of system or can also be installed in the form of PCI express card. 

The flash memory chips are superior to the flash storage drives in terms of speed of accessibility and reliability. Obviously, SSDs are costlier than pen drives having identical storage capacity. There are multiple attributes of Solid State Drives that explain their superiority over Hard Disk Drives.

Physical dimensions

The very presence of metal platter adds to the size of a Hard Disk Drive. This requires the entire structure of the platform to be larger in dimensions for accommodating the bulkier HDDs. On the other hand, SSDs are compact in sizes and can improve the appearance of platform. 

Storage of information

As explained earlier, a Hard Disk Drive operates with help of moving components and is therefore subject to mechanical failure due to wear and tear of moving parts. On the other hand Solid State Drive leverages inter-connected memory chips for seamless storage of data and does not comprise of any moving parts. 

Speed of data access

It is quite obvious that Solid State Drives offer much faster data accessibility since there are no moving parts as found in Hard Disk Drives. In terms of read and write speeds, Solid State Drives are at least five times faster than Hard Disk Drives. Access to information is governed by its location on Hard Disk Drive, while there is no such limitation in Solid State Drives. 

Solid State Drives outperform Hard Disk Drives as far as the speed is concerned. In just a matter of few seconds, you can boot your system which is equipped with an SSD. In contrast, a HDD fitted device will consume more time to initiate the action. SSD also boosts speed of launching apps and executes file transfers much faster than HDD fitted systems. 

Hard Disk Drives require frequent defragmentation to organize the scattered files on platter. Fragmentation is no more a matter of concern in case of Solid State Drives since these obviate use of a physical read head. Data can be easily stored and accessed in Solid State Drive thus accelerating the overall speed of operations. 

Cost of HDD and SSD

There is a whopping difference between prices if HDDs and SSDs with an SSD costing almost $200 more than an HDD. Hard Disk Drives are products of conventional technology that is developed over many years and this is one of the reasons for its economical price. 

Many users feel that one needs to understand the large spectrum of advantages offered by Solid State Drives over Hard Disk Drives and should be prepared to shell out those extra dollars. 

Storage capacity

Solid State Drives can be availed to cater to large storage demands because there are SSDs available with 4TB storage capacity. These versions are quite expensive and the more affordable SSDs offer up to 1TB space and are preferred in systems as primary storage devices. 

Overall reliability

Although many individuals may think that a compact and faster SSD would be the obvious choice in comparison with a storage device that consists of mechanical and moving parts. In fact, both HDD and SSD have their own merits and demerits. SSD can suffer from failure due to weakening of its cells over a period of time.

In conclusion

Solid State Drives are found to be better options than Hard Disk Drives in terms of speed, performance and reliability. These storage devices are slightly more expensive than the conventional drives presently. However increased use of SSDs will certainly bring the prices within affordable limits.

How Secure is a Shared Server?

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

When you need web hosting solutions, you can choose from different types of hosting plans, like shared hosting, VPS hosting, dedicated hosting and so on. For companies that are being launched or for the start-ups, shared hosting plans tend to work best because these are very cost-friendly. Smaller businesses especially find shared servers a good option as these are affordable for them. They are also typically easier to run and you do not need a lot of technical expertise to implement the plans. However, at the same time, the shared server is not as secure as you would expect it to be. There are in fact many security threats which makes signing up for shared hosting plans risky for some businesses, particularly those handling ultra-sensitive data.

How is shared hosting risky?

In shared hosting, there are multiple websites sharing the same server resources. So, resources are shared amongst many users which in turn bring down the costs for each of these client enterprises. However, shared server means that all these websites will also share a common IP address. This is where the problem really lies; a common IP address brings forth many security issues which can harm your website in many ways.

What are the security risks you can face with a shared server?

  • Although the sites sharing a common server may have different content and distinct domains and sub-domains, they all have a server in common. So, the threats from hackers are great. In case your neighbor’s site is hacked for some reason, chances are that you site security will also be compromised. Such instances occur when the hacking attempts cause very severe breaches which can affect the entire server.
     
  • When you share the same IP address, it also means that if any of the neighboring websites engage in malicious activities, it will affect your website too. So, when a neighboring site is blacklisted, it can damage your business reputation and can bring down your rankings in search engines too.
     
  • When you sign up for a shared server, the memory and CPU or processing power of the server will also be shared. Since the RAM and CPU are shared by many sites, each client will be given a definite amount of memory and processing power for its needs. When any of your neighbors use up more than his share of resources, the others automatically get affected.
     
  • Since the IP address is shared by multiple website, whenever clients’ experience Denial of Service attacks, other sites also become vulnerable to such attacks. Shared hosting also makes website rather prone to malware attacks. Other kinds of harmful data may also be uploaded to the various websites. These can put the data in your website at risk. Such harmful data are typically introduced to shared servers through the loopholes in a client website and these can also be used for stealing data.

How to mitigate security risks in shared servers:

  • Security experts recommend that if you can keep your site databases away from site management and content, hackers will not be able to access and delete valuable information even if there is breach in the server. But, to separate the databases from the server will require the business owners to carry out many extra steps. So, to tackle this threat, it is advisable for a website to choose a good web hosting service which has enough experience in thwarting common hacking attempts.
     
  • It is also recommended by security experts that instead of choosing shared hosting, smaller enterprises can consider signing up for affordable VPS hosting solutions. In this type of hosting, the server resources do not have to be shared by clients. They can enjoy definite resources that are allotted to them by the host and they are free to scale these up and down depending on the traffic demands. Although many clients will reside on the same physical server, they can run their own operating systems, custom software or applications in their virtualized environments.
     
  • One of the most important things that a site owner will also have to look into is preventing information attacks in a shared hosting environment. So, it is vital that site owners discuss their security issues at length with the hosting provider. Those which can offer implemented cage structure can guarantee high security than those without this feature. Another important question a site owner needs to ask its hosting provider is whether it will be allowed to embed binary codes during site development. Binary codes can well be sources for entry for any hacker particularly when these have not been properly scrutinized by programmers of the hosting services.
     
  • Finally, the main problem with shared hosting plans is that hacking may jeopardize data security. When a server is attacked, the data on all the sites is automatically vulnerable to attack. This means that loopholes in the security structures of neighboring sites can lead to more security problems for all the websites in the future. But, such information attacks may be minimized when the hosting provider you have signed up with can include highly advanced security features in its packages.

Dedicated Server -One Complete Solution to Avoid Congestion

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

If you have a well-established brand in the market, thriving on a shared server could hamper your customer base. You could receive congestion, face downtime, and experience down gradation of services at times when the resources won’t match your high traffic demand. In a shared server, your neighboring website might use up most of the processor power or utilize maximum CPU for its own usage; hence creating hindrance in your website’s smooth functioning. Dedicated server hosting could provide you the control and the smoothness that you desire for.

–Better Performance: Processor power, memory, CPY utilization, and disk space does not have to be shared with other sites.

–Greater Reliability : Risk of slow performance due to server downtime or because of unwanted activities taking place on neighboring sites is out of question here.

–Better Security : No one can access your confidential data as server sharing isn’t happening.

–Unique IP address : Unique IP address is allotted to your site.

–Path up gradation facility : Memory, disk space and processors could be added as per requirement change.

Dedicated server hosting, when compared to other hosting services like VPS hosting or cloud hosting is costly. But, it gives you a better return on investment, if your website experiences high traffic constantly.

Choose the Fully Managed Cheap Dedicated Server Hosting in your websites

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

Website Hosting? Go for the Best, With Go4hosting!

Dedicated servers are fully-managed, business category servers. They are excellent for heavy resource-based applications and large websites. With the usage of a Plesk dedicated server, customers get complete management control across the hosting atmosphere, creating an excellent impetus for critical hosting requirements.

Points which must be taken care of while selecting cheap dedicated server hosting services are:

Better durability offered by Hosting Service: the durability of the net hosting service provider plays a very pivotal role in selecting an internet hosting provider.

Cost of the Dedicated Server set up: Value of the package ought to be the priority concern when selecting an internet hosting service.

Assistance offered in Hosting Service: Assistance also ought to be one of the vital issues when selecting an internet hosting service. A reliable net hosting organization ought to give assistance in the simplest way to their consumers.

What are you able to do with a Dedicated Server?

Some of the characteristics of a dedicated server are as follows:

  • Realtime Malware Scan
  • Realtime PHP/Mysql Scan
  • Option to settle on Apache / Ngnix
  • Cache server
  • SPAM protection, analytic anti-spammers
  • MySql cache/query optimization

Using a managed dedicated server rental leads to the best utilization of each of the resources like RAM, C.P.U. and Hard Disk by a specific consumer. The various resources won’t be distributed as in web and VPS hosting. At the present time, dedicated servers are being restored by various cloud servers, however, there still exists a requirement for dedicated servers. Dedicated servers are opted for by several firms rather than cloud hosting because of the better security, full management across the hardware, or to meet a particular hardware demand.

Further, there is no restriction on the number of Email hosting accounts or any web site hosted by the customers. The dedicated server will be totally used by specific clients only. Customers will be able to serve up several websites at their convenience if they want.

What are the factors to settle on a dedicated Server?

Here are a number of the highest given reasons due to which individuals opt for a dedicated server across alternative hosting features:

Security is a high priority

If customers are implementing a serious on-line business, encryption ought to be a serious priority. With the usage of net hosting services with distributed resources (VPS or web hosting), customers court the danger of safety breaches and threats. A dedicated server hosting inversely provides the best encryption for their websites and any customer data.

Customers expect systematically high levels of traffic

The quantity of traffic arriving at the web site each day is a crucial factor in the websites’ performance. In case customers anticipate major levels of traffic regularly, a dedicated server rental can permit the website to efficiently manage the most important traffic spikes.

Page load times ought to be lightning quick

If the page load time period is straggling, the customers may typically cast a negative influence over the performance of the concerned web site. Customers who return to the various website can typically solely anticipate 2 or 3 seconds for the concerned page for loading once they are leaving, thus saving themselves from losing any business and page guests.

Customers require custom programming choices

If they have got custom programming requirements, a dedicated server is a correct choice for such customers. Typically speaking, Web hosting servers rarely offer tailored programming choices, while a dedicated server belongs entirely to customers to be set up exactly as needed. Customers will have complete management across their server along with the hosting atmosphere.

Customers are anticipating major growth

If customers have got a website which needs pivotal resources, customers will realize it is suitable, to begin with, dedicated hosting instead of making an attempt to migrate the concerned website to a dedicated server later.

What’s “Fully Managed” state and are all Dedicated Servers managed?

Having a fully managed product implies that we do not simply design the server and then leave the remainder to you. Our support groups are here to help in the journey as and when our customers need assistance. Fully managed support includes management of software package updates and security patches along with the LAMP stack.

Each of our dedicated servers can be easily managed! Also, our servers are organized for complete control by the client, utilizing the selection of cPanel/WHM or Plesk board.

Get the best of fully managed yet cost-effective dedicated server hosting for your websites with Go4hosting, and see your business transcend the boundaries of success!

Know more about – Mediawiki Hosting, Cloud CDN

Achieve Your Aim for Business Expansion with a Dedicated Server

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

Organizations regardless of size and business nature want to keep their servers up to date and mitigate the risk of security violation. As a result, they rely more on dedicated servers instead of moving their IT infrastructure to shared hosting, virtual private servers and managed hosting. This is because the dedicated server indeed stands on the acme of web hosting performance scale and is usually under the control of the user. This means you can reboot the server when required and make it in sync with the software it runs. With this web hosting solution, you will have control over software configurations and server maintenance, which are crucial for business expansion.

No doubt, expansion is a path towards prosperity for business and its testimony can be observed in many ways. Some build more buildings while others increase the number of staff to manifest their expansion trajectory. However, this development can’t be counted until an entrepreneur will upgrade its IT resources with the fastest and most powerful server. Successful businesses catering to online transactions have to deal with huge volumes of traffic and as a result, they never compromise on the capability of the server while hosting their websites. They usually need more disk space and higher bandwidth to store unlimited data and allow uninterrupted website access respectively. Fortunately, they can fully achieve such business objectives with the support of a dedicated server.

The growing business is a storehouse of mission-critical data and information that need to be accommodated in a secure environment. The dedicated server is facilitated with an exorbitant storage space to safeguard data and applications of entrepreneurs who start to expand their businesses online. Besides, the dedicated server hosting alleviates occurrences of downtime caused by an abrupt spike in traffic, allowing the user or enterprise consumer to access on-demand data easily and quickly. From the point of view of visitors, they can access websites anytime and from anywhere, not to mention they can make the most of fast load times.

No matter what size or type of business you run, dedicated server has the ability to leverage you to use multiple applications and improve your productivity and revenue. In fact, aspiring of achieve maximum business growth can become a realistic by having a robust dedicated server. It suits business needs especially if you want to expand your clientele base and close more deals.

Machine Learning Algorithms Everyone Should be Aware of

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

The craze for machine learning has soared new heights ever since Harvard review article named ‘data scientist’ as the most lucrative job of the coming decade. Machine learning, to some, might sound like a complete sorcery, although it is only an inheritance of some trivial concepts of mathematics. So, as long as you did not skip mathematics lecture in your university, you are good to go. Before we begin discussing these algorithms, you should know on which platform should you really implement these ideas. Machine learning and AI, being some of the most logic-intensive concepts, demand a rather simpler platform – like python.

Without further ado, here are the top machine learning algorithms you can learn –

1. Linear Regression –

Perhaps the easiest algorithm in the domain of ML. Linear regression is helpful when the data is somewhat arranged in a straight line. A few anomalies can be accommodated, or more appropriately ignored from the set. In linear regression, a best fit line is drawn around the data set. A best fit line is one that passes through maximum number of points in the given set. See figure below.

Source – Mathematica

In figure above, the blue dots represent data points that are concentrated towards the vicinity and start to get sparser towards the end. The line shown is the best representation of a function that can predict the behaviour of given data set.

  • y = ax + b, is the equation of the drawn line.
  • The goal is to calculate a and b, by substituting values of points through which the line passes and solving any two equations simultaneously.
  • The best fit line may or may not pass through any of the given points. The bottom line is, the best fit line should be closest to all the points.

Source – dataio

Once the values of a and b has been established in the equation y = ax + b, values of x and y for new instances can be determined. This is the basis of Machine Learning – utilizing past experience to predict future events.

2. Logistic Regression

If you haven’t noticed yet, linear regression is used when the values are continuous (like marks, percentage, etc.). When relationship with boolean values (TRUE or FALSE) needs to be established, logistic regression is implemented.

Such type of regression can be leveraged in determining whether an event will occur or not. In predicting events there are only two possibilities –

  • The event will occur – marked as 1 in the boolean
  • The event will not occur – marked as 0 in the boolean

So, if we are predicting whether a patient with certain symptoms is Covid positive, we do so by labeling sick patients as 1 in out data set.

Source – Logicworld

Using logistic function you can find out how or if a virus will spread to a particular person. In the example below, I have mentioned a scenario to help you understand the logistic function in a easy way.

Example –

There is a malware in a dedicated server that has the tendency to replicate itself. Say, there are 10,000 storage sectors in the server; the malware has only recently entered and has not replicated yet.

Let us assume the malware can only spread to one sector every day. On the very first day, say sector 1 was infected.

From sector 1 the malware infected sector 2 (randomly chosen number)

  • 1 and 2 now infect 3 and 4.
  • 1,2,3 and 4 infect 5,6,7,and 8.
  • 1,2,3,4,5,6,7 and 8 infect 9,10,11,12,13,14,15 and 16.
  • 1 to 16 bad sectors now infect the next 16 sectors.

The iteration continues until all the 10,000 sectors have been infected with the malware.

3. KNN Algorithm

Most analytical problems involve decision making and hence KNN models are some of the most widely used algorithms in the field of Machine learning. KNN is used almost everywhere. You will not come across an ML code that does not make use of KNN algorithms—KNN is really so versatile.

Source – towardsdatascience

Refer the diagram shown above. The assumptions that KNN algorithm makes is that similar things exist in close proximity. For a moment, assume the dots represent birds. Similar dots mean birds of the same species. Dots with similar shapes but differently colour coded should be assumed as different.

Now, a flock of bird will comprise all birds of the same species. This is what KNN algorithm intends to exploit. Similar data values tend to be in the vicinity of one another in the K-Map.

Say, a function inputs three values, age, height(cms) and number of children. The table represents the range of values age, height and number of children can take.

Age1-95
Height (cms)30-200 cms
Number of Children0-7

The three fields may overlap with one another in certain cases but values from one field will always be in close proximity of values that are alike.

I have demarcated boundaries between the various data set. If I assume an arbitrary point anywhere, then based on where the point lies I can accurately determine the data set to which the point belong.

KNN is easier to implement than it seems. Steps include –

1. load the data

2. assign K to the neighbours

3. for each set in the data, calculate –

                        a. distance between the given set and the example set

                        b. put distance and index into an ordered set

4. sort the set on the basis of distances

5. pick the first k entry from the sorted list

6. fetch the labels of the K entries selected

7. return mean if it’s regression and mode if its classification.

4. Bagging and Random Forests Ensemble Algorithm

If the above three algorithms pushed your brains to its max, there is yet another bad news. Bagging and random forests algorithm could have significant learning curves. In short, this is where you would need to do much brainstorming. Luckily, we will only scratch the surface and leave the rest to you to figure out on your own.

Before we begin dismantling this strange-sounding algorithm, let us quickly jab in the vibe of ensembles. Ensembling, in layman terms, means combining results from multiple learners for improved outcomes. This increases the accuracy of our ML algorithms, making them more apt for real-life implementation.

The ideology behind ensembling is—ensemble of learners working in unison perform better than single learners. Think of it like multiple brains at work. Bagging is one of the three ways in which ensembling is done – the remaining two being Boosting and Stacking.

It is one of the most robust machine learning algorithms as it is able to perform both progression as well as classification. The name “forest” springs from the algorithm’s capability to create decision trees. Obviously, more the decision trees, more robust the predictions.

To classify a new object based on classification, each tree gives its classification. Now, decisions from the trees may not be the same, it then becomes the job of the forest to choose a classification which gets the maximum number of votes in the entire forest.

7 lifesaving tricks for a successful Server Migration

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

Migration of server is a common occurrence with the ever increasing adoption of cloud technologies. Organizations that were not native to clouds have increasingly started moving their business to cloud, to reap its benefits. Whether you are virtualizing your server (with clouds) or upgrading it, these are 7 lifesaving tricks that can help you safely migrate.

Arriving to conclusion

We do not intend to scare you off, but migration is not easy.

Know what you want from your new server or provider. Establish the nature of your needs, and decide whether the benefits are worth the risks. If you run an online business that accepts credit card payment, switching to a more secure server is reasonable, and the migration is justified. If the idea central to your server-switch is just to have a feel of how advanced servers perform, you might want to reconsider your business-running instincts.

Work out the server best for you

Because ‘Mark’, who sells groceries next to your store is running a dedicated server, doesn’t mean you should run the same, too. An ideal server is one that caters to your needs; it is not always true that similar businesses run similar servers. So, a dedicated server should be your choice if you are looking for performance; A VPS, if you are looking for a dedicated server-like alternative at affordable costs; a cheap cloud server, if you want round-the-clock accessibility, all around the world, with a bargain service.

Pre-migration leaps

Dump what is not required

Migration could be a severely painful process. So, keep it as short as possible. The last thing you would want is to lose critical data to complexities born out of unnecessary, broken files. Instead, lose what is not required. Dump data, folders and packets that are no more useful to you.

The less data you have to migrate, the less time it will take.

Bring down the TTL

TTL – Time to Live – is a setting for DNS record specifying how long a DNS query is supposed to be cached by the resolver until it expires. A low TTL allows you to implement changes fast, high TTL benefits from DNS caching. For regular operations, you need to strike a perfect TTL for your DNS (a balance between low and high TTL) to reap benefits from both ends.

However, for server migration, you should bring down your TTL to get DNS live as quickly as possible, post-migration.

Choose the time that fits

It would not be wise to migrate during peak-load hours, unless, of course, you are planning to lose customers and brand reputation. It is better to initiate the move when running low loads. Pull out the traffic statistics for the past few months, and analyze at what time the traffic is meagre.

Most websites run 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and globally; thus making it impossible to initiate migration without losing on customers. A viable solution to face-punching this issue could be to route traffic to other servers meanwhile.

Migration-hour kicks

Perhaps, the test hour, migration will lunge at you with few kicks and snaps. But be ready for it.

The less important ones move first

Do not get started with blindly moving whatever data your eyes land on first. A wrong decision could lead you to a state of regret all your life. No matter how well you have planned and prepared, things will go wrong and unexpected at one point; shortcomings surface only during migration.

Prioritize your data, and initiate the move in ascending order of priority. This strategy will buy you ample time to eliminate flaws and save the business-crucial data just in case faults arise during migration.

Let data sit in your old server

Do not wipe out data from your old server even when the migration is complete. Files may fragment while moving, or may not even copy completely. Your old host will then act as a backup server to help restore those files.

Test before you rest

Several migrating experts, like us, would advise you not to move data, but copy an instance of the same. In cases, where the data does not get copied completely, you will at least have a backup to restore from.

Once completed, run your eyes and fingers on whether data has been completely transferred or not. Test run applications and scripts, if required. You can also simulate go-live on a local host, before you live your server on destination server environment.

Full-throttle when it’s green

Schedule the DNS update, or IP swap. And concurrently start the final sync. Once sure that all scripts are running the way they should, launch your server to the destination environment and set the floor on fire.

Problems that can creep in even after a successful migration

Site not responding

It is most likely that it is a DNS issue. Point your DNS to your new IP, or if already done, consider redoing.

Uploaded file not being displayed online

The most probable cause could be using old server name as FTP hostname. If possible, use your own domain name. Your domain will always point to the correct server regardless of where it has been moved.

Incorrect server key

Incorrect server key?

It is supposed to be so.

You have moved to a new server; the access credentials in the SSH protocol will also change. To fix, remove old server key from your local computer.

The problems listed above are the most basic and common ones. We have encountered unprecedented problems with every client we worked for. Though some of the fixes were generic and could have been solved at the client’s end, some proved hurdles even for our professionals. Nonetheless, we were able to fix them, too, to the utmost level of our client’s satisfaction.

We are into hosting – Cloud, VPS, Dedicated server, and many more – for some time now, and know the inside-out of our trade. Should you need our services, or help, we have more such informative blogs for you to read.

In case, you want us to write on something you want, or you have a piece of information that can benefit our community, do not forget to share in the comment box below.

About the Author

Nishant, content writer at Go4hosting, writes well-researched technical blogs on Cloud Computing, Server Hosting and Cyber Security. Nishant has written short stories, poems, and snippets for a number of blogs (including his own). When he is not writing he is either sleeping or playing tennis.

Know All About The Core Characteristics Of Cloud Computing

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

Are you still confused about the catch-phrase ‘cloud computing’? Well let me help you break it down for a better understanding. It is nothing but a service offered for every sized business by dedicated providers. So no matter which cloud supplier you select, every cloud possesses a few common characteristics. These are as follows:

  • A cloud is virtual because it is backed by a massive pool of resources. These are nothing but racks full of servers. When such a pool is divided into multiple virtual servers, voila! A cloud is born!
  • Cloud computing can be secure depending on the hardware deployed by the provider. In order to ensure utmost security, private clouds are hosted upon dedicated hardware. Even if you select a cloud which claims that it is secure, double-check its security compliances & certificates for your mental-peace!
  • Every cloud is flexible & highly scalable. After all, theoretically no virtual server can be physical. So they automatically become super flexible, and can be scaled-up/down as per your business critical needs in a jiffy! So you can spin up a server in a few minutes’ time and take it down just like that!
  • Cost is the biggest advantage of cloud. Hire a provider and you will experience instant cost savings (especially in a public cloud). In such a setup, the physical servers where you run your very own virtual server is shared with many others. So resources and associated costs are equally divided amongst everyone!
  • In open clouds, you can easily move your cloud around. So you are not restricted by a single provider’s proprietary technology. Rather, you get to leverage the best out more than one provider’s offerings.
  • Invest in a hybrid cloud, and enjoy the best of two worlds namely the security of a private setup as well as the affordability of a public cloud!  Try hosting all public-facing components in the common area (public cloud), and literally lock up your sensitive data in a private cloud.

I hope you have gained a basic understanding of the fundamental characteristics of cloud computing as well as cloud hosting in general.

Liked the post? Please feel free to leave a comment below!

10 Key Factors to Consider when Buying Dedicated Server Hosting for your Business

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

As the world experiences digital disruption, organizations far and wide are taking their businesses online. Websites have become a crucial link between a company and its customers. If you own a website, getting consistent traffic helps you gain new prospects and augment earnings.

Buying dedicated server hosting is one sure-shot way to help your website deliver reliable and consistent performance. With a dedicated server at your disposal, you do not have to worry about any potential glitches. Having said that, choosing a dedicated server can be a challenging decision for any business owner.

If you are considering investing in a premium dedicated server in the near future, you need to take into account several critical factors. So, what are these factors? Let us find out.

1) Performance Requirements

Every business has varying requirements with respect to performance. If your website draws more than 100,000 visitors per month, your performance needs will differ from a company that attracts up to 1000 visitors.

Then the kind of services you want to provide with your server also plays a decisive role here. You may be running an e-commerce business, a music streaming service or a multimedia-heavy blog. These services can be CPU, memory or disk intensive. Accordingly, you will decide how many servers you will need and what kind of hardware you will use.

If you are uncertain of your performance needs, take the help of an expert on matters such as bandwidth and load-times. This will help you decide the right blend of hardware for your business needs.

2) Potential Downtime

Before opting for a dedicated server Control Panels, one crucial thing that you need to take into account is its potential downtime. The hosting service you choose should guarantee round-the-clock uptime. It is, however, essential to remember that dedicated servers are prone to glitches, so even if there is a downtime for some reason or the other, you need to be assured of a speedy intervention.

The dedicated hosting plan you buy depends on how much downtime you can afford. This has to do a lot with the nature of your business. If you are running something like an e-commerce store, you cannot subject your website to a long downtime as it will drastically affect your earnings.

3) Scalability

Every business owner starts a venture with the aim of growing it steadily over time. Your website has a big role to play in the furtherance of your business. So, your site should guarantee scalability in line with the growth trajectory of your organization.

The dedicated hosting service you choose should allow you to scale your application in a seamless manner whenever the need arises. This means you shouldn’t feel the need to change your hosting provider if there is an increase in the number of visitors. Choosing a reliable hosting provider can help you stay away from all kinds of scalability issues.

4) Security

Security has become a key concern for any business in this digital age. Because a lot of sensitive information pertaining to you or your customers remain online, it is essential to prioritize security when choosing a dedicated server hosting plan. You should consider working with service providers who emphasize safety and security above anything else. 

Over the last few years, there has been a growing concern over the rising number of data breaches in the industry. The consequences of a breach are long-lasting: a large percentage of organizations shut business within a few months of a prominent breach. Your data is particularly vulnerable when your server faces a downtime.

You need to question your prospective host’s capabilities with respect to physical and virtual security. They must have robust firewalls, intrusion management and malware prevention tools in place to ward off any unfavorable incidents. They should also have reliable spam filtering techniques to safeguard your data.

5) Server Backup

When selecting a dedicated hosting provider for your business, assess the options they have for backing up your data. If your hard drive fails to restore your critical data in case of a glitch, you don’t have any option but to rely on a backup server.

Your hosting provider should prioritize data backup protocols. This way, you will be prepared to deal with any kind of disaster. They should have planning and testing protocols to protect your business against the impact of data loss.

Many dedicated servers offer a blend of storage and back up through the cloud to ensure protection against any potential loss. So, before you settle for any service, it would be good to identify the different options available for backup and storage.

Your solution should come with reliable server backup hardware. There should be automated server backup at regular intervals to make sure your data remains safe at all times.

6) Technology

It is important to consider the technology your service provider is offering with the dedicated server. Their operating system should be compatible with your computing environment. The RAM and storage offered should be enough to cover your future requirements.

Besides, you should have a wide range of hardware to choose from. The type of RAM and RAID systems in place are also critical considerations that you cannot ignore.

7) Quality of Network

The quality of your network will directly affect the loading speed of your website and this will have a bearing on the performance of your business. One of the key determinants of the network quality is your physical location.

If your business is based in Asia, selecting a host based out of the USA or Europe isn’t a good idea as it will slow down the delivery of your data.

To assess the quality of your network, you can check your prospect’s Network’s Operation Center (NOC) page and test the network before you buy dedicated server plan. Most of the hosting providers allow you to do this.

8) Technical Support

Your business can face hiccups at any point in time. In order to make sure your business runs seamlessly in the event of a glitch, you need to have a hosting provider that offers unwavering technical support 24 hours a day, 365 days a week. They should be able to duly fix issues as and when they arise. You can question your service provider on the time they normally take to resolve client queries.

They need to have a team of dedicated professionals available all round-the-clock and that too through multiple channels. This way, you can guarantee your operations will not come to a standstill in the event an issue occurs.

9) Control Panel

A control panel is a crucial yet often neglected feature of a dedicated server hosting plan. Control panels manage and support your server functions and applications and ensure the functional effectiveness of your website. The choice of control panel depends primarily on the operating system offered in your hosting plan.

10) Pricing

While pricing can never the most important factor when choosing a hosting service, it is important nevertheless. A dedicated server never comes cheap, so you need to take into account all the expenses associated with your hosting plan. This should include the setup and installation fees as well as the software licensing fees. Plus, you need to have adequate information on the up-gradation fees if you are considering an upgrade in the near future.

You will need to carefully weigh the features offered in your hosting plan before you settle for a value-for-money plan that works for you.

Wrapping it up

As digital transformation becomes ubiquitous, websites are becoming an invaluable asset for any organization that eyes growth and expansion. And to make sure your website delivers optimal user experience, a reliable dedicated hosting service is a must. It is, therefore, vital to choose dedicated server control panels carefully.

In case you are looking to buy dedicated server hosting or cloud hosting in India, please get in touch with our hosting experts and get a free quote today.

Key Healthcare Technology Revolutions and their Effects on IT Infrastructure

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

Healthcare as an industry has undergone a ground-breaking change with patients becoming more and more involved in their own treatments. Today, it is actually possible for a patient to stay in touch with and consult his doctor without stepping out of his home. It is also possible for medical practitioners like nurses and doctors to monitor patient health and vital signs remotely. All this has ensured that patients can get continuous effective treatment at home while at the same time, reducing healthcare-related expenses for a population that is aging. There are some key healthcare technology trends which have had a profound impact on the IT infrastructure. These have been described as follows:

According to Makovsky/Kelton survey, almost 90% of Americans are found to be now keen to share medical data to allow researchers to be able to study diseases better. They are even open to wearing smart devices for monitoring fitness and overall health parameters. So, more and more Internet of Things or IoT devices are being used and the data collected from their sensors will only keep growing as time passes by. A leading provider of global networks is of the opinion that almost 30% of worldwide data belongs to the healthcare industry. The biggest benefit of using these smart apps and devices is that patients suffering from chronic diseases can now get better and more effective treatments. For instance, according to a report released by Deloitte, patients who have been using medical apps have improved COPD management remarkably, leading to a lowering of nearly 50% in doctor visits.

Another important trend which the healthcare industry is now experiencing is the use of machine learning and Artificial Intelligence. So, the huge volumes of data relating to patients and diseases, prognosis and treatments, are now being processed through machine learning algorithms. This is a huge advantage as it will give medical professionals better and new insights into treatment of diseases. Moreover, it will also spare the researchers and doctors of a huge amount of time that they would otherwise have to spend on doing such research and that they can now to other pending work. Wired reports that such data-crunching algorithms are actually capable of saving pharmaceutical and medicine industries nearly $100 billion every year. With the growing adoption of Artificial Intelligence technologies, healthcare companies will now need more computing power which in turn means more power supplies.

A major concern for healthcare companies has been the security and management of healthcare information. EHR or Electronic Health Records refer to the most sensitive records which cyber thieves will want to get access to. Costs pertaining to incidents of stolen records have been steadily increasing. For instance, data breaches of EHR may translate into costs as high as $408 for every record. While data breaches are rampant in the financial sector too, the amount is far less when compared to stolen medical records. It is possible for cybercriminals to amass as much as $500,000 for a medical health record database. This explains why cyber security experts and IT professionals are now working on finding new and more effective solutions to secure the records while making them accessible for patients and doctors at the same time.

The truth is many healthcare businesses have to handle multiple datacenters which is not something that they wish to be involved in. So, more and more healthcare providers are now reaching out to colocation hosting providers or cloud based technologies for managing their IT infrastructures. There are several colocation hosts and private cloud vendors which satisfy HIPAA standards and various high-security compliance regulations. This is a positive change as healthcare enterprises will now no longer need to take on the task of managing private data centers.

With more and more patients agreeing to use IoT devices and mobile apps for monitoring their overall health or fitness levels, and with more and more healthcare institutions using such devices there is obviously going to be an inflow of colossal amount of data which must be stored securely in resilient data centers. It is also important that such data centers are located closer to end-users to allow data to travel faster. It will help to lower network transporting costs and reduce network latency. Incidentally, a report by ACG Research found out that this can bring down company costs by nearly 50% across a 5-year period. Such newly created data centers to cater to patients and healthcare enterprises are called edge data centers.

Studies show that many healthcare executives are implementing telemedicine within their enterprises. Those who are yet to use this technology are now making a beeline for it. Telehealth solutions are believed to bring down overall healthcare costs which will benefit healthcare companies and patients alike. With the growing popularity of telehealth technologies, the healthcare organizations will be expected to improve their network efficiency, lower latency issues and guarantee sufficient bandwidth to enable video communications.

Cloud computing is growing into a new standard for health infrastructure with the technology passing from a new untested status to a tried-and-tested status. Cloud technologies are driving technological advancements and building new paradigms in the healthcare world. Use of cloud technologies in healthcare has actually tripled ever since 2014 due to the many ways in which organizations can leverage them. With the growing use of cloud technologies healthcare companies are finding it hard to maintain their IT staffs. Shortage of IT experts can halt implementation of new IT infrastructure technologies. So, healthcare companies are now on the lookout for the rightly qualified professionals for monitoring these new solutions. CIOs are seen to reach out to IT recruiters and they will perhaps make far more competitive salary offers that will be much higher than what they were offering two years back. The idea is to attract top talents with experience in Big Data and IoT, and cloud security.

Finally, many healthcare companies are still not being able to capture as much data as they would need for population health management since they do not have enough storage. Their on-site servers are expensive to maintain and these occupy a lot of space. So, organizations are searching for quality hybrid solutions. Surveys have revealed that many organizations are not utilizing their analytics power since their current IT infrastructure cannot process or organize so much structured and unstructured information. So, such companies will now address their data center and warehousing issues by structuring their databases differently so as to store patient information.

WHY YOU SHOULD HAVE A DEDICATED IP ADDRESS?

Posted on by Manoj Yadav

Digital transformation has marked a significant change in the way services are acquired, managed and provisioned to respond to business needs. The boom in e-trading business has bestowed them with new vistas of opportunities. Subsequently, sparking competition and emphasizing on the dire need for integrating high-security components, tools, and techniques that can mitigate errors (both technical and manual flaws), and bridge the performance gap.

At one swoop it has compelled e-commerce proprietors to adopt dedicated IP address in order to timely deliver their products/services in the expeditious and most secured manner. Now the question that strikes in mind – what is dedicated IP all about.

According to Wikipedia, Internet Protocol (IP) is a core communications protocol that belongs to the Internet protocol suite for transmitting datagrams across network boundaries. The IP facilitates delivery of packets from source point to the destination on the basis of the IP addresses assigned to the packet headers. Besides, it allows internetworking and establishes the Internet. To put it into perspective, its work is similar to zip code and post code that routes the users to the right destination.  

Moving ahead, IP address is a unique numerical digital allocated to each device that utilizes Internet Protocol to commence communication. The address defines the destination sources whereas the router shows the way to connect. A business is said to have a dedicated IP when it is dedicatedly and solely assigned to a single hosting account.

This blog explores the various benefits of embracing dedicated IP’s and debunks the myths allied to it with respect to SEO ranking:

An IP is typically segregated on the number of hosting accounts they are allied to – shared IP and a dedicated IP.  For instance, in shared hosting services, resources are pooled and used up by multiple users hosted on the similar physical server with the same virtual-name based IP working for all. In contrast to this, in dedicated server hosting, a dedicated IP is assigned to one web hosting account, which truly eliminates the sharing notion.

Myth Related to Dedicated IP

Having a dedicated IP or not continues to remain a subject of debate.  There are still many contemplating to know the impact of a dedicated IP address on a website performance. In this regard, let’s see what Google has to say:

According to this giant search engine platform, a dedicated IP will not give any boost in SEO rankings.  The rankings are evaluated on a host of factors including the speed at which a particular web page loads. It completely depends on the way a business has optimized their website(s). Hardly matters whether your website has a dedicated IP or the static one, specifically for SEO reasons. However, there are other legitimate reasons that elucidate the significance of a dedicated IP:

SSL Certificate: E-commerce websites need SSL for collecting credit card information. A SSL validates the authenticity of your secure transaction, subsequently giving your end-users a sense of confidence that they are on the right platform.  Usually, a web hosting provider allow businesses to integrate SSL on a shared IP, which often entails compatibility issues with the older web browser versions.

When a user tries reaching a website, a message – ‘untrusted connection’ flashes on the end-user’s screen. This in turn, sometimes takes your users to your competitors’ site. In order to ensure smooth functioning and curtail such issues, having a dedicated IP proves a beneficial bet.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP): FTP is a standard network protocol that enables clients to transfer data from one computer system to another in the most reliable manner. To set up a FTP site, specific software needs to be installed than only files can be shared, uploaded and edited. With dedicated IP, you can access your website even when the domain is not accessible.

Unbarred Accessibility: Static IP grants global access to the users. Thus, data /website can be accessed from anywhere, anytime. Indeed, you can setup the connection irrespective of the fact what IP you have. However, it is indispensable to have a fixed IP address to manage it or else you won’t be able to gain access to the programs when your computer refreshes its dynamic address. Above all, dedicated IP address provides the capability to access server directly without making any modification in the DNS settings for the domain name.

Brand Presence: It is clear from the above points that having your website run over a shared IP address may give rise to unwarranted issues and it can also have direct impact on your email service. Bad neighbor’s activity can also blacklist affect your email service to a great extent. Here, using a dedicated IP for email keep your email service at bay against all such nuisances.

Greater Stability: It goes without saying that when multiple websites share a single IP address, host of difficulties follow its march. In shared IP address, if one of the website gets blacklisted owing to spamming activity, there are possibilities that your website also gets foiled due the same. In this situation, having a dedicated IP can mitigate such nasty issues.

Apart from this there are certain applications that deny running on your server without a dedicated IP address.

To sum up the all, although a dedicated IP address has nothing to do with the SEO rankings, but the benefits that it facilitates to its users in terms of security, accessibility, and business repute can have a significant impact on holistic development and expansion of a business.

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