Cloud hosting on Azure
Azure App Service for web applications, Azure virtual machines and Azure SQL Database: a natural fit for organisations on Microsoft 365 and Entra ID.
Website hosting in South Africa, with business email, under one SLA
Website hosting in South Africa puts your site, applications and mailboxes on servers close to your users, with data kept in the country. Arke Technologies in Johannesburg runs managed website hosting, virtual private servers, cloud hosting and business email for larger organisations, public bodies and schools, secured, backed up and supported under one SLA.
Virtual private servers (VPS): what they are and when to use them
What are virtual private servers? A VPS is a virtual machine carved from a physical host by a hypervisor, with a guaranteed share of processor, memory and storage and full administrator access. Virtual private servers, sometimes sold as virtual dedicated servers, behave like a server of your own at a fraction of the cost, and they are the workhorse of business hosting.
We run Linux VPS servers on Ubuntu, AlmaLinux or Debian, with Apache or Nginx and a HestiaCP or cPanel control panel where you want one, and Windows VPS servers for .NET applications and software that needs Windows Server, with the licence built into the design. VPS hosting servers can run in South African cloud regions, so VPS servers in South Africa keep response times low for local users. Patching, firewall rules, monitoring and backups are ours to run.
A Google Cloud VPS is a Compute Engine virtual machine with Google's network behind it; an organisation already on Google Workspace can run it under the same Google identities and administration. A VPS server with a GPU, for AI inference or rendering, is available on the major clouds; for steady GPU work, owning the hardware through our private AI service can cost less over its life.
Free VPS servers and cheap web hosting: what the low price leaves out
Free VPS servers, free cloud hosting tiers and cheap web hosting servers are built for testing, study and hobby sites. AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud all offer limited free tiers or trial credits, useful for a proof of concept. For an organisation's website or mail they fall short:
No service-level agreement, so nobody is accountable when the site is down.- Limited resources: free virtual private servers are small, and are suspended or billed once you pass the limit.
- No backups or restore testing unless you add and pay for them.
- Shared risk: on cheap shared servers, a compromised neighbour can get the server's address blocklisted, and your mail stops arriving with theirs.
- Unclear data location, which complicates POPIA.
Free cloud hosting services have a place in development; production needs a contract. For most organisational websites, the cheapest reliable option is a correctly sized, managed VPS.
Cloud hosting on AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud
Cloud-based hosting runs your site or application on a hyperscale platform instead of a single server, with managed databases, load balancing and automatic scaling. All three major cloud hosting providers run regions in South Africa, so cloud hosting in South Africa no longer means sending data overseas.
Google Cloud hosting
Web hosting on Google Cloud uses Compute Engine virtual machines, Cloud Run for containerised applications, Firebase Hosting, and Cloud SQL as the cloud hosting database. Our own AtlasOS platform runs this way, on Cloud SQL and Firebase App Hosting (visit the AtlasOS site (opens atlaspractice.app)).
Google Cloud hosting services bill per resource used, so Google web hosting pricing depends on traffic, instance size and database tier, and Azure and AWS work the same way. That flexibility has to be watched, so we model the monthly cost before you commit and set budget alerts from the first day.
Email server security, and choosing secure email providers
Phishing email remains one of the commonest ways into an organisation, so email server security is part of hosting, not an extra.
- SPF, DKIM and DMARC on every domain, so others cannot send mail in your name and your own mail reaches inboxes.
- Multi-factor authentication on every mailbox, with legacy sign-in methods switched off.
- Encryption: TLS between mail servers, encryption at rest, and message encryption for sensitive content.
- Filtering for phishing, malware and impersonation before mail reaches users.
- Retention and backup held apart from the mail platform; see backup and disaster recovery.
Secure email providers and encrypted email providers differ mainly in who holds the keys. For most organisations, Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, correctly configured, meets the need, with stronger encryption for a few sensitive roles. See email security.
Cloud hosting risks, and how we prevent them
- Unpatched software. Outdated plugins and server software are a common way in; we patch on a schedule and report it monthly.
- Lost data. Daily backups held away from the server, proven by restore tests.
- Surprise bills. Budgets and alerts on every cloud account, and monthly cost reporting; see cloud cost optimisation.
- Lapsed domains and certificates. Renewals tracked on the asset register, and certificates renewed automatically.
- Lock-in. You hold the domain, the accounts and the credentials, and we document the build so another provider could run it.
Governance, compliance and procurement
- POPIA. Hosting in South Africa avoids the conditions section 72 places on sending personal information abroad, and access to servers and mailboxes is controlled and logged.
- King IV, PFMA and MFMA. Change records, access logs and SLA reports are kept ready for audit; see IT governance, risk and compliance.
- Controls aligned with ISO/IEC 27001 and CIS Controls, reported through a named service lead, change control and a monthly service review.
- Procurement: Level 1 B-BBEE contributor with 135% procurement recognition (sworn affidavit available on request); CSD number, SARS tax compliance status and company documents on request; buy through a proposal and purchase order, a quotation or a tender response.
- Continuity and exit: one contract and one accountable team, so a new site or application is a change to the SLA, not a new supplier; you own the domain, content, databases, mailboxes and credentials, handed over with the documentation if you leave.
Cloud hosting pricing: what drives the cost
Last reviewed: September 2026.
Cloud hosting prices depend on the resources you reserve and the service around them:
- server size and whether it runs all the time;
- traffic, and data transferred out of the platform;
- managed databases and their backup retention;
- Windows Server or control-panel licences;
- mailbox count and licence tier for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace;
- the security, monitoring and support hours in the SLA.
We quote hosting as a monthly fee after scoping, and mailbox licences per user, monthly or annually. A cloud hosting price comparison is only fair when each quote includes backups, patching and support, so we itemise them.