Getting Started with GoDaddy VPS Plans

GoDaddy offers self-managed and fully managed VPS plans. While the first might be sufficient for users who aim to have full control over their server, the latter is better for those who lack the time or skills to do so.

Self-managed VPS hosting solutions are the perfect choice for system administrators and developers or people with the proper skills and enough time to manage the server.

Suppose you seek full control over your VPS. In that case, GoDaddy can grant you full root access with SSH keys, a command line for flexibility and power, and a wide range of scalable performance options with flexible server configurations.

GoDaddy offers two types of VPS hosting plans, with standard RAM or high RAM. The first offers up to 16 GB RAM, while the second takes things to another level – up to 32 GB RAM.

The RAM is the only difference between the two, increasing the price of the high RAM alternative. Otherwise, you can expect from 1 CPU Core to 8 CPU Cores, 1 GB to 16 GB RAM, 20 to 400 GB SSD Storage, and one to three additional IPs available on request in both plans.

GoDaddy’s self-managed VPS plans support CentOS, Ubuntu, or Windows Servers. They are compatible with cPanel/WHM and Plesk Obsidian Web Host Edition. Furthermore, you can expect monitoring and alerts at 5-minute intervals and additional dedicated IP options.

When it comes to customer support, you can benefit from standard hosting phone support, comprehensive help/how-to video library, and technical blogs, along with community peer-to-peer advice within the self-managed VPS plans.

Now, onto the more advanced, thus more expensive option – a managed VPS.

GoDaddy’s managed VPS plans offer from 2 – 32 GB RAM, CentOS or Windows Server, and cPanel/WHM or Plesk Obsidian Web Host Edition. They enhance the server security by performing monitoring and alerts at one-minute intervals. Furthermore, the managed option allows for services monitoring and proactive remediation.

Apart from the above-mentioned customer support options, you can also expect server setup, DNS setup and configuration, SSL installation, HTTP/2 server configuration, and SQL Server Express install. GoDaddy also offers package management, email client setup, PHP module install/upgrade, MySQL optimization, WordPress setup, call for a custom service request, disk space audit, and firewall rules configuration in the managed VPS plans.

GoDaddy has also included a dedicated services team in the managed VPS plans. Better yet, you can send them unlimited service requests.

At last, there’s the issue of site migrations. With GoDaddy, you get five free site migrations on the managed VPS plans. Also, you can expect 70% off on each migration after.

Now, you might be wondering, which should I choose? Well, most of all, the self-managed VPS hosting plans are suitable for eCommerce, hosting multiple sites, web or database servers, resource-heavy applications, email servers, and testing environments.

However, in my personal experience, managed VPS almost always turns out as the more viable option. This is especially true for the long term. See, with the managed VPS, a team of experts will always be available on-demand to respond to your quests. Your server will also always be up-to-date and fully functional, meaning you can expect better uptime and performance.

Now, if you have been following me for a while, you sure know what comes next. Let’s test it out. Does GoDaddy stand true to its promises regarding the VPS plans?

Setting Up a GoDaddy VPS Plan

As usual, I will get the cheapest option. First of all, I am here for testing purposes, so I will not need full managed support. Instead, I would like to browse the user interface and report my findings to beginners and experts in the niche. Better yet, I will save a few bucks in the process.

So, I will get the Standard RAM Self-Managed VPS.

Once you click on Configure Your Server, you will see the following screen.

Here, you need to select an operating system. As mentioned, the basic plan offers Linux support only. In the rest, you can also choose from Windows.

Next, you should choose the term length. At this point, you can choose from one month, six months, a year, two or three years.

During the server setup, you can also add a control panel. However, you need server admin experience for the plan I’m about to purchase. So, you will get root access via SSH. Otherwise, you can benefit from an easy-to-use Client Area, such as the industry-standard cPanel.

Finally, you can enhance your security and speed with GoDaddy’s available add-ons.

The Deluxe Website Security blocks malware before it reaches your site and stops DDoS attacks with an advanced WAF. With the included CDN, you will also boost your page load time by 70%.

The Essential Website Security is cheaper, thus more limited. It offers automatic daily scans to detect malware on your site, along with a guaranteed clean-up. In turn, it defends your site against hackers and malware.

Still, you can choose to skip both options and select ‘No Thanks’ instead.

Now, before you click on Continue, you can review your order in the square on the right of the screen named Order Summary. As you can see, I will get the cheapest plan without add-ons. Essentially, this will depict what you can get with GoDaddy VPS at a minimum. Anything above is only going to get better.

I like GoDaddy because it offers the Contact Us option during the server setup stage. So, if you have any unclarities, you can send them a message to assist you in the process.

Back to my purchase; once you click on Continue, you will be transferred to the following screen.

In the Cart, you can review your purchase once again.

At this point, GoDaddy also offers more options regarding the term. For instance, you can get the VPS for 60 months.

You can also find the option to add a domain for your VPS on the right. Then, click on ‘I’m Ready to Pay.’

The next step is to Sign In. Here, you can create your account using Facebook, Google, or Email.

I will go for email. You need to enter your email address, username, and password here.

Once you sign in, you need to enter billing information. This section requires your country, first and last name, phone number, address, zip code, province/region, city, organization, and Tax ID.

Then, save your Billing Information and continue with the payment method. You can use your credit card or PayPal account to pay for GoDaddy VPS.

The last step is to Complete your Purchase.

And voila, you’re in your account.

As you can see, my product is still pending. So, I’ll have to wait a while for GoDaddy to set up my server. They reserve up to 24 hours to do so; however, the process sometimes takes only a few minutes.

Some time went by, and I decided to log in to my account, only to encounter the following.

See, usually, when I enter my account and password, I’m good to go. However, GoDaddy takes security seriously, and it aims to protect its users from online predators and identity theft.

I clicked on Get Started, which took me to the following screen.

The first step is the Submission Method, where you need to provide your identification information as the payment method account holder. For instance, you can attach government-issued photo documents, such as a driver’s license or passport.

At this point, you can choose from Secure Upload Online Form, Email, or Fax.

I went for the first option, as the fastest alternative. The next step is to provide identification.

At last, you can offer additional info you would like to provide for the verification.

Finally, click Finish. GoDaddy might take up to 24 hours to review the provided information, after which you will receive an answer via email.

Sure, I appreciate GoDaddy’s concern for its customers, and you should do too. These measures are taken to protect the end-users, or in this scenario, us. However, I got really annoyed waiting around for the response. It prolongs the registration process a lot.

Let me explain. See, I purchased the product on the 3rd of December. Keep in mind, GoDaddy charged me for the product.

I received the Order verification request the same day, almost immediately.

I submitted all required documentation, to be more specific, my scanned passport, which I didn’t actually want to do, but I had to. Even so, I received an email from GoDaddy four days later that my order was canceled. What?

The email states:

“If you feel this action has been taken in error and would like to request a reinstatement of your order, please sign in to your account. You’ll be asked to upload a viewable, scanned copy of the driver’s license or passport for the account holder of your chosen payment method. We’ll also ask you to provide a brief explanation of how you plan to use the products purchased”.

So, that’s what I did. I logged in to my account, provided the information once again, explained that I am an expert reviewer, and so on. Shortly put, it didn’t help.

I will not go over all emails to save you both time. I lost my nerves with this registration. I gave my money, explanation, card info (scanned card), and passport (scanned passport). Still, GoDaddy didn’t approve my account. It’s the 16th of December, and I still don’t have access to the Client Area.

The worst part is that I also called customer support. After a five-minute conversation, and keep in mind, they are charging for international calls, the agent still couldn’t help me. I still cannot understand what’s the matter. I explained the situation, to which he responded, wait, I will take care of it. Only to hang up on me.

So, that’s more or less all you should know about my journey with GoDaddy. It was a short one and probably will not repeat in the future. Well, at least for me.

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