Virtual server hosting
A server that exists, without a box you own.
Hosted virtual machines on customer-separated networks, sized from what the workload actually uses, with a management boundary written down before anything is provisioned.
- SeparatedEach customer’s virtual machines sit on their own network.
- Sized by measurementFrom the real workload, not a vendor datasheet minimum.
- Clear boundaryWhat is operated and what stays yours, agreed up front.
- Managed optionsOS management, monitoring, backup and DR defined per engagement.
Who this suits
Three common arrivals
- The refresh you would rather not make. Hardware is due for replacement and the capital request has been deferred, rejected, or simply lost its appeal.
- One workload. A line-of-business database, a terminal-services host, an application component needs somewhere to live — and you do not want a whole platform to go with it.
- The cloud did not fit. You costed a hyperscaler and found the licensing, the variability or the complexity did not suit the workload. You want a server and a person to call.
Not the same as colocation
The dividing line is ownership of the hardware. With colocation you own the equipment and it is racked and operated for you. With a hosted virtual machine you take capacity instead of an asset — nothing to buy, refresh or dispose of.
Both can run side by side. A workload tied to specific hardware by a licence or a policy colocates; one that keeps changing shape is usually better hosted.
How separation works
The question every technically literate buyer asks, and every security questionnaire repeats.
Shared platform — operated by Honed IT
Customer separation — each customer on their own network
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Customer A
Separate customer network
- Application server
- Database server
- File server
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Customer B
Separate customer network
- Web server
- Application server
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Customer C
Separate customer network
- Terminal server
- Database server
Illustrative arrangement. Customer names and workloads are examples; no real customer, address range or facility is shown, and specific facility details are not published.
Honed IT operates
- The virtualisation platform, storage and the network separation between customers.
- Edge firewall policy and change approval.
- Monitoring, alerting and capacity review.
- Guest operating system patching and hardening, where that is in scope for your engagement.
- Backup operation and recovery, where those are in scope.
You own
- Your applications and the data inside them.
- Who is allowed access, and approving changes.
- Application licensing — including confirming with your vendor that a hosted virtual environment is supported.
- Recovery priorities: what must survive and how quickly it must return.
- Anything the engagement explicitly lists as out of scope.
Sizing, and what it is based on
Measured, not guessed
Where an existing system is being replaced, sizing comes from what that system actually uses — processor, memory, storage and disk activity over a representative period, including month-end or whatever your peak really is.
A vendor’s stated minimum specification is a floor for installation, not a description of your workload. Sizing to it is a reliable way to buy something slow.
Changing it later
Resource allocated to a virtual machine is adjusted rather than purchased, so growth is a change request instead of a procurement cycle. Capacity is reviewed periodically rather than only when something starts struggling.
Capacity, how quickly it can change, and the performance the workload needs are all established for your engagement.
What sizing is decided from
A vendor’s stated minimum is a floor for installation. Sizing a machine that has to carry your workload uses these inputs instead.
- Application requirementsThe starting point
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- Vendor specification
- Supported platforms
- Licensing terms
Where the vendor’s minimum sits, which operating systems they support, and whether a hosted virtual environment is covered by your licence. Worth confirming with them early.
- Measured workloadFrom your current system
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- Processor use
- Memory in use
- Storage consumed
- Disk activity
Taken from the system being replaced, over a period long enough to include your real peak — month-end, payroll, a seasonal run. Measurement replaces guesswork; it is not a prediction.
- ConcurrencyWho is on it at once
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- Active users at peak
- Scheduled jobs
- Integrations and reports
A system with twelve users behaves differently at nine in the morning than at three in the afternoon, and a nightly job can be the real constraint.
- GrowthWhere it is heading
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- Data growth rate
- Headcount plans
- Retention requirements
Resource allocated to a virtual machine is adjusted rather than purchased, so growth is a change request — but storage that doubles every year is worth knowing about at the start.
- Recovery dependenciesOften decisive
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- What must survive
- How fast it must return
- What it depends on
Recovery requirements shape the design as much as performance does, and a system that cannot start without identity or a licence server has to be sized and sequenced with that in mind.
Each input is gathered during scoping and the specification follows from them. No measurement of your environment is implied before one has been taken.
Backup and recovery boundaries
The assumption that costs people the most is that hosting implies backup. It does not.
- What you decideBusiness decision
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- What must survive
- How much work you can lose
- How long you can be down
These are business questions, not technical ones, and they differ per system. A file share and a core database rarely deserve the same answer.
- What is designedPer engagement
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- Backup schedule
- Retention
- Separation of copies
- Recovery method
Backup and disaster recovery are managed options scoped to your requirements. Where they are in scope, the design follows the objectives you set above.
- What is provenBy testing
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- Restore exercises
- Written evidence
A backup that has never been restored is a claim. Restores are exercised and evidenced; the frequency is agreed with you rather than offered as a standard figure.
Questions IT leads ask
How am I separated from other customers?
Hosted virtual machines run on customer-separated networks, so your machines are not sharing a network segment with another customer’s. The specific arrangement for your workload is confirmed as part of scoping, and it is reasonable to ask any hosting provider to put that in writing.
Who patches the operating system?
Whoever you agree should. Guest OS management is one of the managed options; where it is in scope, patching and hardening run inside an agreed window. Where it is not, your own team keeps it. Either answer is fine; what is not fine is both parties assuming the other is doing it.
Can you migrate our existing server?
Yes. The migration is run as a defined project with an inventory, a measured sizing, an agreed interruption window and a tested rollback position.
Will my application vendor support it in a hosted environment?
That is a question for your vendor, and it is on the discovery list for exactly that reason. Some licences and support agreements have specific terms about virtualised or hosted environments, and finding that out early is much cheaper than finding out at cutover.
How is this different from Azure or another public cloud?
A hyperscaler gives you enormous elasticity and a consumption-based bill that needs active governing. A hosted virtual machine is a defined server with a defined scope and someone to call. For a steady workload that is not changing shape, the second is often simpler to run and easier to predict. Azure work is available separately; it is not covered by this page.
Does hosting a machine mean its data is backed up?
Not by default. Backup and disaster recovery are managed options scoped per engagement. Assuming they are bundled is a common and expensive mistake, which is why this page states it twice.
What happens if we want to leave?
The workload and its data are migrated to wherever you are going next. It is worth agreeing the exit path at the start rather than at the end — a reasonable thing to ask of any provider, including this one.
Do you also do email hosting?
SmarterMail hosting and Microsoft CSP licensing for eligible Microsoft products are both available. Which suits you depends on what you already use and what you are trying to change; eligibility and scope are confirmed before anything is arranged.
Describe the workload.
What it runs, who uses it, and when it has to be available — enough to say what it needs. Hosted machines are operated remotely and usable from anywhere; in-person contact is straightforward in New Jersey and the NYC metro area.
Related: colocation and data center hosting · migration projects · managed IT