Welcome to the updated independent review of the top ColdFusion hosting services.
How To Choose the Best ColdFusion Hosting Vendor
How do you choose the best ColdFusion hosting for your company’s next project or web app? There’s a lot at stake. Make the right choice, and your project is more likely to run smoothly and become successful.
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Contents
- How To Choose the Best ColdFusion Hosting Vendor
- How To Decide Which ColdFusion Hosting is Right For You
- How Do We Pick the Best ColdFusion Hosting Company?
- In-House ColdFusion Hosting or Managed Hosting?
- ColdFusion 2021 is in the Cloud
- Adobe ColdFusion Hosting in the Cloud
- Side note on Docker
- Adobe ColdFusion Hosting
- Lucee CFML Hosting
- Conclusion About ColdFusion Hosting
This is an updated 2022 independent review of the top ColdFusion hosting services.
The wrong choice can create issues that become fatal. Painful mistakes occur when:
Unreliable CF hosting leads to
-
- servers crashing,
- costing your company vital traffic,
- user trust, and
- potential revenue.
- Slow CF hosting can
- reduce usability,
- cause user dissatisfaction, and
- impact the adoption of the product.
- The end result could mean the new project fails, and your company’s profits and market share decrease.
- Slow performance can also impact SEO ranking, sending your site to page two or worse in the search results, which impacts your visibility.
- Security issues and data-napping remain ever-present dangers with lower-quality hosts.
Let us help you select the best ColdFusion vendor for your situation. This means avoiding the headaches of deciding between so many different CF hosting companies, so let's eliminate our enemy and start our journey!
Note: The companies listed below do not pay or compensate TeraTech in any way. And unlike many other articles on CF hosting, we don’t use affiliate links either.
We have listed companies alphabetically below to avoid bias from the orders they are given.
“In all reality hosting companies is not an indicator. With the advent of docker and commandbox ANY hosting company is a CFML hosting company. So in all reality there are more hosting companies for CFML right now than ever since it’s inception.”
Luis Majano,
on the LinkedIn discussion about CF Hosting
How To Decide Which ColdFusion Hosting is Right For You
Just a reminder… In case you don't have time to read the full article now, you can download and read it later. Download the whole article in PDF
Each vendor has different strengths and weaknesses. To identify the best vendor for your specific situation, start by defining your requirements for a ColdFusion hosting service. Define your top priorities:
- Is speed a priority?
- Does scalability matter?
- Do you need high uptime, stability, and the potential for longer-term growth?
- One big factor: Which variant of ColdFusion are you using? ACF, Lucee, Enterprise Standard…
CF Enterprise vs. CF Standard
- Which version of Adobe ColdFusion are you running? CF Enterprise is an advanced version of the development platform that provides many more features than CF Standard. You can run multiple CF-developed websites on a single server with both products. However, ColdFusion Enterprise supports multiple server instances, which may be important if you want to separate out different subsites.
Related: CF Enterprise vs. CF Standard Buying Guide
Security
- What level of security does your company need? Banking, financial services or e-commerce companies require bulletproof security. A higher level of security will cost more, but the investment may pay off through fewer security breaches.
- Higher security usually comes with tighter controls. Some companies favor a more loose approach to security, so it is easier for them to keep innovating, especially during the development phase. If you plan to tighten security as you get closer to launch, make sure you understand the cost and processes you are committing to.
Site Backup
- Running a web app without a backup begs for trouble. Fortunately, most companies appreciate the value of backups. But how do you prefer to do your backup? Some web hosting companies, such as Hostwinds, offer automatic backups as part of their packages. Others require you to make backups yourself. If your team is doing their own backups, do you have processes to ensure those backups are made?
- Regardless of how you plan to back up, it’s a best practice always to have multiple backups. An external offline backup is often a safe bet.
- And no matter how you back up, make sure you test your backups regularly to ensure they can be restored.
Web Hosting Support
- Everyone needs a little help sometimes. Don’t assume you will be able to get the support you need. Some hosts provide real-time help, including phone calls, while others focus on a ticket support system with a 24-hour turnaround. If your app is mission-critical, be sure to choose a host that offers real-time, all-hands support.
Scalability
- Plan for growth. If there is a chance that your app will go viral, you should understand ahead of time what to expect in terms of timeframe and cost. Be sure a hosting service can respond to your company’s growth in traffic and data.
Price Point
- Many people consider price their top priority, but we believe in considering it last. Set your “must-have” priorities, then look at the price tag. It’s often easier to adjust your budget than to retool your system and expectations to a cheaper option.
I would like to show you modern ColdFusion development best practices that reduce stress, inefficiency, and project lifecycle costs while simultaneously increasing project velocity and innovation. For this purpose, I have created a 10- step checklist that you can download (for free)
How Do We Pick the Best ColdFusion Hosting Company?
When I am selecting the best CF host for a particular project, I walk a bit of a tightrope. I try to put myself in a CIO’s position. Making big decisions — often stressed out and sometimes underappreciated. What matters most to you?
The “best” host must fulfill the abovementioned needs while embracing ColdFusion with a dedication that inspires confidence.
To me, peace of mind has as much value as stability or speed.
Of course, your criteria may be different from mine. Keep reading for additional criteria and an independent list of the major CF hosting companies.
Perhaps you have to answer the phone or go to a meeting… No worries. Download the whole article in PDF
In-House ColdFusion Hosting or Managed Hosting?
The next step is to decide where your CF boxes will live.
Determining your basic hosting needs will dictate how you arrange your servers. Does your company need in-house hosting or managed hosting?
And what’s the difference?
In-House Hosting means all servers and networking equipment are owned and operated by your company. You are responsible for all maintenance and DevOps. This costly option is in the domain of big players, with millions of users capable of logging in at once. If you’re in that range — lucky you!
Managed Hosting is a dedicated server or cloud server owned by a third-party host and rented out as virtual space. Usually it includes support and backups too.
Co-location is a hybrid solution. The servers are yours but they are located at the hosting company’s location. Just as with in-house hosting, you are responsible for all maintenance and DevOps on your servers.
Here’s a pros and cons list for each to help determine which one is right for you.
In-House ColdFusion Hosting
- Pros:
- Control company-owned and company-maintained servers.
- Keep sensitive information secured within the company.
- Internet connection not required for data access.
- Cost-effective for companies not concerned with uptime.
- Cons:
- Higher initial costs.
- More personnel and money needed for maintenance, upgrades, and day-to-day operations.
- Dedicated space needed for servers
- More vulnerable during natural disasters if no offsite backup is made.
Managed ColdFusion Hosting
- Pros:
- Dedicated server place is no longer required.
- Cloud hosting is great for smaller companies that may outgrow their infrastructure.
- Scalable and flexible.
- Lets you access from any place that has an internet connection.
- Easy backup is often included.
- Cons:
- Speed limited by internet connection of the host.
- Third-party hosting company has direct access to your sensitive information.
- Can’t access data without internet connection.
- Dedicated solutions can be more difficult.
Co-location ColdFusion Hosting
There is another form of data hosting. Co-location (shared) hosting means storing data on a server at a third-party location. You can access these servers on-site or remotely. Shared hosting offers hybrid In-House and Managed hosting, with a mix of benefits and disadvantages.
- Pros:
- It is less expensive than in-house hosting, making it great for startups.
- It is convenient, allowing a third party to manage your server hardware while you focus on other things.
- Cons:
- Limited capabilities. Does not scale well.
- There can be security concerns with the lack of direct control of the boxes.
ColdFusion 2021 is in the Cloud
Adobe’s ColdFusion experts and developers promised with CF 2021. They delivered. From multi-cloud abilities, allowing users to choose cloud hosting services at a granular level, to an agnostic stance about which service you use, the newest version of CF promises to have more cloud capability than its predecessors and competitors.
You can either roll your own CF cloud hosting solution( using AWS, DO, Google or Microsoft Azure), or use a CF host cloud option. Let’s look at these options in more detail.
Perhaps now you feel dizzy from this much information and need a break? Download the whole article in PDF and read the rest later.
Adobe ColdFusion Hosting in the Cloud
AWS (Amazon Web Services)
According to Amazon:
AWS is a secure cloud services platform offering computing power, database storage, content delivery, and other functionalities to help businesses scale and grow.
AWS can be very helpful for ColdFusion developers.
Related: Brian Klaas speaks about: Level Up Your ColdFusion Web Apps With Amazon Web Services.
- AWS (Amazon Web Services) Pros:
- AWS has over 5 times the computing power of other leading providers.
- Over 14 years of experience with hundreds of thousands of customers around the globe.
- Has the following certifications:
- HIPAA
- SOC 1/SSAE 16/ISAE 3402 (formerly SAS70)
- SOC 2
- SOC 3
- PCI DSS Level 1
- ISO 27001
- FedRAMP
- DIACAP and FISMA
- ITAR
- FIPS 140-2
- CSA
- MPAA
- AWS (Amazon Web Services) Cons:
- AWS can have a steep learning curve.
- By default, AWS does not have Enterprise-grade support. Separate plans must be purchased.
- Cost: AWS works as a utilities company. You only pay for what you use. They have a wide array of products with different price points. Beware if you are not careful about usage or hackers gain use of your cloud servers, your AWS bill can go through the roof!
- Website: https://aws.amazon.com/
Digital Ocean
Digital Ocean is a cloud computing platform that focuses on simplicity. Both simple to use and clearly priced Digital Ocean can provide for your ColdFusion needs. The community at Digital Ocean recommends running ColdFusion through Apache Tomcat or Apache HTTP Server.
- Digital Ocean Pros:
- Reasonably priced compared to AWS and other cloud competitors.
- Simple to use and Amazon S3 compatible.
- Extreme user-friendliness with its U/I.
- Digital Ocean Cons:
- No paid support.
- Pricing is the same whether you upload data or not.
- They do not offer as many regions as other services.
- Cost: Basic services start at $5 per month and can scale up to $960.
- Website: https://www.digitalocean.com/
Download the whole article in PDF and read it later in full… Take some time to get a cuppa'
GCP (Google Cloud Platform)
GCP is a cloud platform that boasts using Google’s core infrastructure, data analytics, and machine learning. It is server-less, relying strictly on cloud dynamics. They pride themselves on leading the industry in price and performance.
- GCP (Google Cloud Platform) Pros:
- The fastest I/O among the competition.
- Strong in storage segmenting and data analytics.
- Has a one-click browser-based SSH Console.
- GCP (Google Cloud Platform) Cons:
- No control over Virtual Machines.
- Limited choice of programming languages. (ColdFusion is not pre-configured on GCP; however, a VM can be created on Compute Engine and uploaded.)
- It is difficult to transition away from Google Cloud Platform.
- Cost: GCP offers individual products so you can build the package that best suits your needs. A handy pricing calculator is available on the site to assist in constructing your custom line of services.
- Website: https://cloud.google.com/
Hostek
Hostek provides both cloud hosting and traditional CF hosting. It has a team of ColdFusion experts on hand. They also offer Fusion Reactor, a ColdFusion Monitoring platform, along with their services.
- Hostek CF Hosting Pros:
- Their support system offers three different ways to contact them:
- Live Chat
- Online Ticketing System
- 24/7 Phone Line
- Offer a one-month free trial.
- There is a wide array of technical specs with additional add-ons available at an additional cost.
- Their support system offers three different ways to contact them:
- Hostek CF Hosting Cons:
- Fluctuating performance speeds.
- Poor uptime.
- The control panel is not user-friendly.
- Cost: To get a quote with Hostek, you must first schedule a free consultation with one of their experts. The company will build a plan suitable for your needs.
- Website: https://hostek.com/
“They manage the server for me, most issues I submit a support ticket and they handle it. The latest CF update was done while I was sleeping. They also monitor so if it goes down, they are aware and check into it. This costs a bit more, but it's been worth it. And their control panel is pretty good. You can do a lot yourself pretty easily.”
Chris Giminez, in ColdFusion Programmers FB Group
Chris's website is Cyber Scriber
Illuminated Hosting Services
Illuminated provides both regular and cloud CF hosting. This company excels in users and services. They are well respected and praised on forums, often rated high when it comes to client satisfaction. Advanced Hosting Services feature some of the following technologies: ColdFusion hosting, .NET, NodeJS, PHP, Lucee, and WordPress 1 click install, site.pro, and Python, among some others.
- Illuminated Hosting Services Pros:
- All major languages available.
- Illuminated also specializes in Dedicated Servers, VPS, Private Cloud, Hybrid Cloud and Colocation services.
- Good customer service and support.
- Illuminated Hosting Services
- ColdFusion 2018 and 2021 is still not available.
- Cost: you get an option to build your own plans, but the basic price goes from $8/mo.
- Website: https://www.illuminatedhosting.com/
Microsoft Azure
One of the fastest-growing cloud service providers is Microsoft Azure. It contains more cloud server regions than any other service provider, making 90% of Fortune 500 companies trust their data with them.
- Microsoft Azure Pros:
- Adequate flexibility with access to VMs.
- Fully scalable and compatible with CFML.
- Great networking technology.
- Microsoft Azure Cons:
- Expensive compared to other providers.
- Not very compatible with platforms other than Windows.
- There have been a series of outages in the past.
- Cost: Microsoft follows the way of GCP and AWS with a pay-as-you-go system, with a free 12-month introductory period for some services. Depending on your selected products, you build a package best suited for your budget. Microsoft Azure is expensive compared to other providers, which Microsoft tacitly acknowledges by offering a cost-saving primer.
- Website: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/
Let the information you got so far sink in. Download the whole article in PDF and read it later in full…
Side note on Docker
Docker is not a CF host. It is a container tool that lets you run a CF server on any cloud hosting provider.
Many CFers doing CF cloud hosting use Docker containers for their virtual CF servers.
- Easier spinning up of new developer or test servers (seconds vs. the current days/weeks)
- Elimination of server configuration errors on spinning up new containers.
- Option for future easy automated clustering of containers via Docker orchestration software.
Docker is the company driving the container movement and the only container platform provider to address every application across the hybrid cloud.
- Pros:
- Since Docker's containers are smaller than VMs, your current servers can support more containers than VMs.
- Docker has lightning fast boot times.
- Docker works on all OSes.
- Cons:
- Containers are much more hacker-friendly. The security is not as prevalent among containers than VMs.
- Containers are not 100% isolated.
- Limiting access when dealing with containers is more tricky than with VMs.
- Cost: Docker’s basic community edition (CE) is available for free use. However, Enterprise packages are available through consultation and quotes.
- Website: https://www.docker.com/
Adobe ColdFusion Hosting
Tip: Adobe ColdFusion has offered a list on its website with the noted partners for ColdFusion hosting services. It’s worth listing them here.
Coalesce
Coalesce Solutions works with your company to create a bespoke solution tailored to its business model and ambitions.
Coalesce depends on ColdFusion and AWS to build compliance-centered application server solutions to support their requirements as a PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) Level 1 Service Provider, as well as those of their customers operating in regulated environments with requirements such as PCI, HIPAA, FISMA, and FedRAMP.
- Pros:
- Works with Adobe as a preferred vendor to build and offer ColdFusion AMIs through AWS Marketplace, including AMI versions optimized by Coalesce for security and AWS service consumption.
- Helps re-platform CF to work on AWS.
- Emphasis on security.
- Cons:
- AWS-centric, with an overall emphasis on migration and compliance.
Website: https://www.coalesceservices.com/migration-acceleration
CFDynamics
CFDynamics provides hosting services for ColdFusion developers and webmasters that need high-speed delivery and a stable development and hosting platform.
The CF-centric hosting service tries to pack as many logical, useful services as possible into its packages.
- Pros:
- Virtual Private Servers keep your data stored away from prying eyes.
- Bang for your buck.
- Money-back guarantee within 30 days of starting.
- Cons:
- The admin panel and UI could be better.
Website: https://cfdynamics.com/
Yes, Adobe has a lot. Take your time, or… Download the whole article in PDF and read it later in full…
Hostek
Hostek is an Adobe ColdFusion hosting partner. They maintain a team of ColdFusion experts on hand. They also offer Fusion Reactor, a ColdFusion Monitoring platform, along with their services.
- Hostek CF Hosting Pros:
- Their support system offers three different ways to contact them:
- Live Chat
- Online Ticketing System
- 24/7 Phone Line
- You get a one-month free trial.
- There are an array of technical specs with additional add-ons for purchase.
- Their support system offers three different ways to contact them:
- Hostek CF Hosting Cons:
- Fluctuating performance speeds.
- Poor uptime.
- The control panel is not user-friendly.
- Cost: In order to get a quote with Hostek, you must first schedule a free consultation with one of their experts who will help build a plan suitable for your company’s needs.
- Website: https://hostek.com/
Media3
This ColdFusion hosting service has been around since 1995.
- Pros:
- They know CF better than most. CF drives its entire support, billing, sales, and control panel functions.
- Also a ColdFusion Cloud Hosting company.
- Cons:
- Has a history of reliability issues.
Website: https://www.media3.net/adobe.cfm
Newtek Technology Services
Newtek has provided ColdFusion hosting solutions since 1997. The company also provides regulatory-compliant solutions, including HIPAA, PCI DSS, SOX, FISMA, and more.
- Pros:
- Around-the-clock US-based phone support.
- Packages built around the size of the business.
- Cons:
- Some history of reliability issues.
Website: https://newtektechnologysolutions.com/coldfusion-2018-hosting/
Vivio Technologies
Vivio is a ColdFusion Hosting partner offering remote IT Server Management. It creates hosting plans individually giving control of IT infrastructure and costs.
- Pros:
- Automatic backups.
- Bespoke (custom) solutions.
- Money-back guarantee.
- Cons:
- No free domain included.
- Higher pricing at entry-level.
Website: https://viviotech.net/coldfusion-hosting/
Time for Lucee CFML hosting. In case you don't have the time to read it now, download the whole article in PDF and read it later in full.
Lucee CFML Hosting
What about the people using open-source CFML, such as Lucee?
Here's the list of hosting services as well.
Hostek
Hostek is an Adobe ColdFusion hosting partner. They maintain a team of ColdFusion experts on hand. They also offer Fusion Reactor, a ColdFusion Monitoring platform, along with their services.
- Hostek CF Hosting Pros:
- Their support system offers three different ways to contact them:
- Live Chat
- Online Ticketing System
- 24/7 Phone Line
- You get a one-month free trial.
- There are an array of technical specs with additional add-ons for purchase.
- Their support system offers three different ways to contact them:
- Hostek CF Hosting Cons:
- Fluctuating performance speeds.
- Poor uptime.
- The control panel is not user-friendly.
- Cost: In order to get a quote with Hostek, you must first schedule a free consultation with one of their experts who will help build a plan suitable for your company’s needs.
- Website: https://hostek.com/
Hostmedia
- Pros:
- Cons:
- Some history of reliability issues.
Website: https://www.hostmedia.co.uk/
Lightsail
An option that many CFers like to do is do a Lightsail deployment on AWS and use Lucee.
- Pros:
- It is not pricey.
- A good option because you have full control of the server.
- Cons:
- A few occasions with failure or bad code deployment, but that is also on you and the quality of your code. 🙂
“Lightsail is just basically a very low-cost VPS with burst CPU capacity and a bunch of proprietary images.” – Steele Parker, in CF Programmers FB Group.
Website: Installing Lucee on AWS (EC2 or Lightsail)
Linode
“Linode and Lucee on a VM, perfect! And all in Europe. And, Linode support is one of the best I've encountered. Fast, 2 the point, knowledgeable and sincerely helpful. And even practical in helping. Do it 4 u or do it yourself, you choose 😁.”
- Pros:
- Decent alternative for AWS.
- Simplify your infrastructure with Linode's cloud computing and hosting solutions and develop, deploy, and scale faster and easier.
- Cons:
- Some problems related to memory consumption, network settings, etc. But, the support and the troubleshooting guides are helpful in resolving this quickly and efficiently.
Website: Onlinebase
Conclusion About ColdFusion Hosting
Congratulations for making it to the end of this post! This is a long, comprehensive, and exhausting list, but the stakes are high for you and your company.
We still think that it is not possible for one service to offer the best configuration for all companies. The best ColdFusion hosting choice for your project depends on many factors that we discussed above.
Remember to keep your company’s goals, infrastructure, and budget in mind when deciding which ColdFusion hosting vendor is right for you. Be sure to note your needs and restrictions.
Doing so will allow you to make the proper choice for all your ColdFusion hosting needs.
Are there any other factors you consider when choosing a ColdFusion hosting vendor?
What hosting service do you use and why?
Join us in the comments below.
Why not save the full article so you can come back to it anytime you need some information? Download the whole article in PDF
Michaela Light is the host of the CF Alive Podcast and has interviewed more than 100 ColdFusion experts. In each interview, she asks "What Would It Take to make CF more alive this year?" The answers still inspire her to continue to write and interview new speakers.
Michaela has been programming in ColdFusion for more than 20 years. She founded TeraTech in 1989. The company specializes in ColdFusion application development, security and optimization. She has also founded the CFUnited Conference and runs the annual State of the CF Union Survey.
