Server hosting firm takes aim at Amazon EC2

Gandi.net allows businesses to run servers on a virtualised web-based platform

Hosting firm Gandi.net is looking to take on Amazon in the cloud computing market, announcing updates to its virtual hosting service to better handle the traffic demands of hosted servers.

The service is targeted mainly at small and medium-sized enterprises, and allows businesses to run servers on a virtualised web-based platform.

Gandi.net said that it will enhance its service with two new management tools known as Watchdog and Flex. Watchdog allows administrators to monitor resource usage and possible overloads, while Flex can allocate more resources to the virtual servers when necessary.

"Many servers run at only 10-12 per cent utilisation because datacentre managers allow a large fail-safe for peaks in load," said Gandi.net chief operating officer Joe White.

"Cloud virtual private server hosting is much more efficient and cost-effective, and is completely scalable so that businesses only pay for what they're using, and can grow or reduce their capacity instantly."

The company hopes that the new tools will attract not only businesses using traditional on-site servers, but those using the Amazon EC2 and Slicehost virtual server platforms.