{"id":1037,"date":"2024-08-07T08:31:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-07T08:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/?p=1037"},"modified":"2024-08-07T16:43:25","modified_gmt":"2024-08-07T16:43:25","slug":"please-read-the-fine-print-on-bandwidth-offers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prolimehost.com\/blogs\/please-read-the-fine-print-on-bandwidth-offers\/","title":{"rendered":"Please Read the Fine Print on Bandwidth Offers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Unlimited\"There\u2019s a lot of controversy in web hosting circles<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 on how to compete with bandwidth offers, with some providers offering unlimited bandwidth on their plans, although most restrict this to shared hosting only.<\/p>\n

Unlike most, I suppose, when I see the term UNLIMITED –<\/strong>\u00a0I always look for the fine print, very much the same way I view the term FREE. I\u2019m like, I know there\u2019s a catch, but now where to find out what it is.<\/p>\n

And I\u2019m not saying all Unlimited offers are bad<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 just that it normally pays huge dividends long term to know what to expect when your website gets popular, and starts pushing a ton of traffic. Some providers handle Unlimited very well, while others will boot you in heart beat for violating their Terms of Service (buried somewhere in there is a clause that explains how their Unlimited offer really isn\u2019t Unlimited).<\/p>\n

I ran across an advertisement while checking for deals on dedicated servers<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 for Unlimited bandwidth on a dedicated server, which is very rare. I won\u2019t say who the provider is, but here is a quote from their website:<\/p>\n

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Naturally with unlimited traffic for more cost transparency<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

(note that there is no asterisk on traffic)<\/p>\n

Under benefits, they show<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Traffic\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Unlimited*<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

(now comes an asterisk \u2013 uh oh, have to read the fine print)<\/p>\n

At the bottom of the page, in small print<\/strong><\/p>\n

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*There are no charges for overage. We will permanently restrict the connection speed to 10 MBit\/s if more than 10,000 GB\/month are used (the basis for calculation is for outgoing traffic only. Incoming and internal traffic is not calculated). 100 MBit\/s speed can be optionally restored by committing to pay 6,90 \u20ac (incl. VAT) per additional TB used. Please see\u00a0here<\/u>\u00a0for information on how to proceed.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"Risk\"So what can we glean from this clause?\u00a0<\/strong>First, that their servers are on a 100Mbps uplink port, which is an outdated standard, but it also LIMITS your data transfer to that speed. And then there\u2019s that opening sentence about no charges for overage \u2013 but wait, what overages? I thought this was unlimited.<\/p>\n

On to 10,000GB\/month or 10TB\/month \u2013 that\u2019s a lot of data transfer, but it isn\u2019t \u201cunlimited.\u201d OK, so your site has pushed in excess of 10TB so far this month, and you got hit with a notice that your port speed is now \u201cpermanently\u201d restricted to 10Mbps, or one tenth of what they could allow.<\/p>\n

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Option 1: If you expect a continuing excess of traffic limit, we offer for 6.90 \u20ac each additional GB of bandwidth to the permanent establishment to 100 Mbit \/ sec.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Notice the hyperlink\u00a0in their clause on how to proceed. Seems that permanent really isn\u2019t permanent if you start paying, but wait \u2013 the clause says 6.90 \u20ac per additional TB used, but when clicking through, Option 1 states 6.90 \u20ac for each additional GB of bandwidth \u2013 that\u2019s a HUGE difference. I can\u2019t help but think one of those is a typo.<\/p>\n

Again, I\u2019m not saying Unlimited is necessarily bad<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 just that you need to calculate the risks associated with these offers by reading the fine print first. Whether or not a provider offers limits on bandwidth or offers unlimited is not a reflection of the quality of their respective services.<\/p>\n\n\n

\"ProlimeHost<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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