Rackspace Review: Top-Notch Cloud Hosting Provider

Rackspace is a premium cloud hosting provider which serves many Forbes 100 companies. Rackspace Cloud is famous for its high-quality servers, security, compliance, and exceptional customer service. That's because the Rackspace company wants to eliminate the stress related to cloud platforms and help business owners focus on generating revenues. 

In addition to cloud services, Rackspace offers plenty of applications. Among them are Internet of Things & Edge, SaaS Lifecycle Management, CRM, ERP, and Consulting and Advisory services. You can also grow your email deliverability with its Email & Productivity, perform cloud migration with the Managed Services, or protect your data with the Application and Network Security app or multiple other products. 

Block Solutions for Various Corporate Needs 

The platform allows changing your managed cloud storage volume without growing the server size. It's only necessary to format the drive, attach it to the server, and start using it as a usual hard drive. Clients can detach such "blocks" and reattach these storage volumes to the servers in other locations. Such storage devices (or volumes) can keep your data even without being linked to servers. You may use it for archival purposes too. 

Customers can always check the details of the volume they use: its status, type, size, region, and which of the servers you can attach it to. That's because users can add volumes to servers located only in the same regions. It's also possible to resize the server after detaching its volumes. Once you need to delete the volume, you'll also need to disconnect it and delete all backup copies. 

Three Server Types to Meet Customer Demands

Rackspace offers three types of servers for its Cloud Block Storage solution, and customers are free to buy additional space once they want to grow the hosting plans. The standard performance SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment) volume will fit users who need extra space, and the Solid State Drive (SSD) will work for apps requiring higher performance. 

SSDs can work faster than SATA drives because they have no moving parts. However, such a productivity boost costs more. The fastest PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) is offered with OnMetal Cloud Servers. They boast consistent performance and flexibility. Clients can use this software capacity in many countries since its data centers are located in the USA, Germany, the Netherlands, UK, Australia, Singapore, and China.

In this Rackspace review, we'll share information about the company, its private, hybrid, and public clouds solutions, and consider the pricing plans. 

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About Rackspace  Company

Rackspace was incorporated in San Antonio, Texas, in 1998 by two American software developers. Initially, they aimed at creating applications but came across a problem that changed their plans entirely. The thing was that nobody knew where to store those programming solutions. So, the founders decided to become a managed hosting services provider. 

Since this platform was launched more than 20 years ago, it's one of the oldest cloud hosting platforms. At that time, companies that offered storage space focused on technology. But managers decided to change the vector for customer service and technical support and turned into a great company with more than  6,000 employees worldwide.

Currently, the brand boasts clients from more than 150 countries and a website translated into three languages: Spanish, German, and Portuguese. And in 2011 and 2013, Fortune added Rackspace to the top 100 employers. However, the world saw the rise of three public cloud hosting giants (Amazon, Microsoft, and Google). And as the Rackspace company couldn't compete, it decided to partner with these top players. 

Going Public

In 2008, Rackspace went public with its IPO (Initial Public Offering) of its shares to investors and individuals. It issued 15,000,000 common stock shares for $12.50, expecting to raise $187.5 million. But on the first day of trading at NYSE (New York Stock Exchange), RAX shares tumbled 20%. 

In 2020, after the company was renamed Rackspace Technology, its management decided to open trading on NASDAQ with the RXT ticker symbol. It offered 33,500,000 shares at $21 per share, hoping to get $705.5 million. But things were just the same as 12 years ago, and by the end of the same day, Rackspace Technology's share price dropped to $16. 

Rackspace Hosting Plans and Cloud Platforms

Public Cloud

The digital era requires transitioning to more reliable and flexible data-treating. And mass migration to public clouds proves that older data storage formats are no more effective. But in the 21st century, it isn't enough to migrate your data to a public cloud and perceive it as another data center. 

Only switching to the cloud-native mindset can help you scale the IT network structure, improve operational models, and use cloud technologies more effectively. Such an approach will help businesses leave their competitors behind and leverage all the benefits of cloud services with qualified support. 

Private Cloud

A private cloud also offers more effective resource management, scalability of storage facilities, use of advanced cloud applications, and optimization of workflows. But this environment is isolated on a separate server. Private clouds can belong directly to entities or be the property of cloud hosting providers. And this platform is happy to offer such opportunities to companies

Private clouds offer agility in accessing their products and having various features delivered. Moreover, such isolated networks provide additional layers for computing and storage capacities. Users can customize the components which better suit their corporate goals and rely on top experts who do the 24/7 monitoring. 

Dedicated Servers

Dedicated server hosting assumes that you, a single user, get control over one or several physical machines. And along with the machines, providers deliver required software, relevant services, and tech support to the client. Your IT department gets complete control over the operating systems and available apps. It's always possible to adjust the configurations and alternative resources to complete new tasks. 

You chose the optimized mix of applications to help you achieve operating goals faster. And this platform’s apps and features help businesses of all sizes stay compliant with the official regulations and cover the security risks. 

Hybrid Cloud

Hybrid clouds represent the mix of the public cloud solutions owned by third parties and an isolated on-premises IT infrastructure of a private cloud. Companies have both solutions, balancing the safety issues, workloads, and computing needs. This instrument will help you bear the heavy traffic with scalable public applications.

Moreover, it will deploy critical apps in the private network to ensure control and protection. The specialists will evaluate how effectively your existing apps perform and which Rackspace integrations can help you best. And after the full review, top experts will recommend the most fitting IT deployments and how to orchestrate the two environments better.  

Multi-Cloud Hosting 

When you talk about clouds, you probably use the words "hybrid" and "multi-cloud" as synonyms. Still, the difference is significant as mixed models assume that you use both cloud types and only one provider. The word "multi" in the second term relates to several providers involved. Alongside, having both private and public elements isn't required.  

Rackspace experts will create your multi-cloud solution and assist you with deploying it. They'll help you connect your applications to data centers from different locations. You get secure and instant access to cloud hosting services of all top-rated providers. And this platform’s engineers will be there for you 24×7×365. 

Rackspace Features

  • It's one of the top website hosting providers. Top experts help thousands of clients use dedicated web hosting. Among them are certified AWS specialists, Microsoft Cloud/Azure, Google Cloud, and OpenStack professionals. And with this platform, you can hold as many domains as you need. 
  • It offers email services for companies. If you still haven't decided which of the best email marketing tools to use for your next campaign, try Rackspace. It offers reliable deliverability, decent troubleshooting, and enough capacity to store and archive data in various formats. 
  • You get a 100% customized cloud solution. This platform approaches each client individually, helping them pick up the right combination of cloud space volumes and practical applications. Moreover, you get nearly immediate top-notch tech support around the clock. 

Rackspace Cloud Control Panel

Rackspace Technology offers a comprehensive interface that helps a user manage a company's cloud infrastructure. This tool is called Cloud Control Panel, giving quick access to core information about the cloud system. From the main menu, clients can go to several sections: Storage, Networking, Databases, Orchestration, and Backups. 

Also, this panel helps make your administrative tasks better managed. For instance, you don't have to leave the current page to check some data about the resource or select the required action. This interface allows leveraging filters to sort various cloud resources across their tags, image, region, type, or RAM. 

Cf Screenshot Control Panel

Rackspace Review: Pros and Cons

Now it's time to check the benefits and drawbacks of the platform’s host management solutions.

Advantages

  • You can leverage 100% uptime of your apps. No matter your industry, you need to have your servers up and running 24/7. Moreover, you need to have your data backed up and available immediately in case of failure. For example, if hackers attack your website, this tool will help to recover its functionality quickly. 
  • You have allocated cloud resources. This solution secures load balancers, servers, and applications for your business needs. This way, you can use them exclusively and rely on their performance at any moment. So, even if you have currently disabled or don't use your allocated hosting resources, they are still reserved for you.
  • You can get a mail hosting service. With the Email solution, you can level up your email protection, add file storage, synchronize your mailbox with other internal apps, and make your webmail service one of the best cold outreach tools. That's because this instrument helps to troubleshoot email delivery. 

Disadvantages

In some Rackspace reviews, users report a couple of issues they faced with this product: 

  • You can't perform simple tasks independently. This platform requires you to engage a dedicated manager once you need to upgrade the cloud infrastructure for your company or change your account status. Or you'll need to contact the platform’s support agents or create a ticket in the system. However, you'll have to wait for half an hour or more to get a response and probably have your issue resolved. 
  • The Rackspace website is quite confusing. If you're reading this review, you've probably visited the website. Rackspace Technology. And you'll agree that it's challenging to quickly understand the features and figure out the costs for the products you want to manage. That's because the Rackspace pricing plans are accessible only to subscribers and existing clients. 

Rackspace Pricing

Rackspace Cloud offers its products to business entities on a utility pricing model. This means you'll be charged for each service hour and get an invoice each month. But only users and admins can see this information in the Billing Overview section. That's because features of the Rackspace service for billing and paying are enabled through Role-Based Access Control (RBAC). 

This way, users can't get the data about invoices and payments using a Rackspace API. You only need to be registered with the Technology Customer Portal to see account balances, billing summary, estimated subscriptions, add the VAT, create payments, and perform other finance-related actions. 

Users will have to pay for one server from $499 to $1,249. And its specialists will study your business requirements and managed hosting infrastructure to estimate the volume of applications and features you need and offer a fair rate. Companies find this approach helpful as they can quickly scale the Rackspace services along with their business

The Rackspace cost will include managed service and basic infrastructure, but these amounts aren't comparable to rates of any Rackspace alternative. That's because of the Service Level Rate you choose and the minimal fee applied. 

Cancellations & Refunds

Once you decide to cancel the Rackspace cloud account, you'll need to go to the Customer Portal and select the Cancel My Account menu. But before doing so, it's critical to save all the data outside the cloud management service and remove it from the Rackspace cloud. And finally, you'll have to stop and delete all the cloud-managed products. 

Users can't cancel their accounts over the phone because the company representative can't complete this action for them. But you can initiate cancellation through the ticketing system, called the Customer Portal, and monitor your query status. Since customers pay for the service volume they have already used, they only get an invoice after canceling the account. 

Rackspace Support

Rackspace has always been famous for its world-class support, which users can get through the several channels below. 

  • Phone. The platform has an internal support phone line and a dedicated number for international calls. The support agents are available 24/7 and are ready to help you resolve issues. 
  • Email. If you prefer email communication, agents will advise, give you step-by-step recommendations, or offer a solution in writing.
  • Live chat. You can reach the support technicians in a live chat –- just click the link at the bottom of the home page. It usually takes a couple of seconds to get a response from the support team. 
  • Skype. This platform allows setting up and integrating your Skype for Business account. However, the support page doesn't offer to reach its agents via Skype calls or chats.  
  • Cloud Control Panel. Clients can create support tickets in the system and need to monitor their execution status because sometimes, agents will need additional information from you to close the inquiry.
  • Self-help documentation. You'll find various documentation on the platform’s web page. And multiple guides from the knowledge base can help clients fix some issues and do some basic setup on their own. 
  • Community. The platform has gained a large community during the years of its existence in the market. In these online groups, people help IT pros and ordinary users resolve issues they can encounter while using the platform and even perform specific professional configurations. 

Conclusions 

Rackspace is a comprehensive cloud provider which has plenty of features and built-ins. Each client can get a unique combination of storage facilities and apps and integrate the necessary applications to run your business successfully. Rackspace has delivered top-notch support for over two decades, and its team remains highly responsive and helpful. 

Business owners from various industries can streamline their workflows with Rackspace. Among them are e-commerce companies, top retail media networks, innovative mobile and application development firms, banks and financial institutions, manufacturing entities, education organizations, etc. This platform works equally well for small, medium-sized, and large entities located in various parts of the world. 

We hope this Rackspace Technology review will help you determine if this cloud provider is the right host for your company