2

I have a dedicated server with WHM and cPanel installed on it.

recently I decided to move to cloud services since the dedicated server is costly and I'm not actually using any of its power, freedom and functionality.

I was considering moving to AWS or Heroku since they are less expensive, scalable and I don't need to manage the server myself.

I only have few websites on my server and I'm managing them via cPanel and WHM

I'm only using mySql database

I have also have some cron jobs setup

I use ftp to upload and maintain my websites (no git)

I was wondering if anyone could explain how I can transfer my files, databases, and domains to either AWS or Heroku.

I prefer the one that is easier and faster to migrate to.

Thanks.

Ardavan Kalhori
  • 1,664
  • 1
  • 18
  • 32
  • "I was considering moving to AWS or Heroku since they are less expensive, scalable and I don't need to manage the server myself." You *do* need to manage the server yourself on AWS. "recently I decided to move to cloud services since the dedicated server is costly" So's Heroku. – ceejayoz Dec 06 '12 at 21:53
  • 1
    Heroku is great, provided your application [fits the platform](http://www.12factor.net/). Legacy apps usually don't fit, particularly due to [disposability](http://www.12factor.net/disposability) and [dependency management](http://www.12factor.net/dependencies). At that point, you decide if it's less work to use Heroku or do it all yourself. – willglynn Dec 06 '12 at 22:27

2 Answers2

3

If server/network management is not your strength, I would strongly advise against using AWS (even as big a proponent of AWS as I am). You absolutely must manage the servers yourselves, at least the configuration aspect (not the hardware aspect). In fact, you will find that you have to do things like set up security policies, identity access management, IP addresses, etc. that are not always that intuitive to one who is not used to working in a bit of an operations capacity.

You will also likely have to consider application architecture changes to work best with AWS services. Additionally, you will have to become accustomed to the AWS way of doings things (that starting and stopping server instances may make all your data go away and such).

If you are looking for a hands-off server approach, you might be better served looking at something like Slicehost/Rackspace.

I can't talk much to Heroku as I have only minimal experience prototyping on it. You can think of it more as an application platform. For simple applications that don't have unique traffic demands or architectural requirements, it seems a good solution for getting an application up and running with minimal server-related configuration. Again a legacy app will probably require some re-architecting to do things the Heroku way.

Mike Brant
  • 70,514
  • 10
  • 99
  • 103
1

AWS are good but the support at Rackspace is far better and much more suited for someone like you. Rackspaces support is 24/7 and even on their online chat system you don't need to wait more than a few mins to speak to someone who actually knows what they are doing.

Simon Hayter
  • 3,131
  • 27
  • 53