We keep your site updated, monitored and backed up.
A monthly arrangement for web applications that need looking after all the time, not only when there's a project running.
What's covered
Security update management
A web application depends on dozens of software packages. We review and apply updates every month, and test them before they reach the live site. We patch critical security vulnerabilities on timescales agreed with you.
Uptime monitoring, intrusion detection and vulnerability scanning
We monitor the site and its admin area day and night, so if either goes down we're alerted, usually before your customers notice. We also monitor the servers for capacity problems, and intrusion detection alerts us to signs of unauthorised access. A vulnerability scan runs against the live site every night, so a newly published vulnerability is caught even when no code has changed.
Verified, off-site backups
Every month we verify that your database and files are being backed up correctly. We also keep a second copy off-site, away from your hosting provider, so a problem with your host doesn't take your backups with it.
Questions, faults and small changes
Ask us how something works, report a fault, or ask for a small change. Small bugs are included: things we can diagnose and fix quickly, and anything caused by an update we've applied. If something needs real investigation, or changes how a feature works, we'll tell you and agree what to do before we start.
In October, we mitigated two critical PHP vulnerabilities on the servers we look after within hours of their release. Here's how we handled them.
When something goes wrong
We agree response times with you, based on how much your business depends on the site.
A response means we've acknowledged the problem and started working on it. We keep you updated until it's fixed.
Major upgrades
Security patches, minor version updates and compatibility fixes are included. Moving to a new major version of a framework, of PHP or of the server's operating system is a development project: it changes how the application works and needs proper testing.
Software that no longer gets security updates is what Cyber Essentials calls unsupported software, and it has to be upgraded or removed. We keep track of when the software your site depends on is reaching the end of its support, and tell you well before it does. We'll explain what's involved, give you an estimate, and agree when to do it. The upgrade itself is billed as development work.
The first month
We spend the first month setting up the monitoring and scanning. By the end of it:
- The site and its admin area are monitored around the clock
- Intrusion detection and capacity monitoring are running on the servers
- A vulnerability scan runs every night
- Dependency updates are proposed automatically and reviewed every week
- Your database and files have a verified off-site backup
After that, the regular work starts: updates, acting on scan results and alerts, checking backups and fixing what comes up.
Not included
- New features, design changes and integrations, which we quote for as development work
- Content updates, such as copy, images or product listings
- Hosting and infrastructure costs
- Subscriptions to third-party services
Cost
The monthly fee depends on the size of your application, how much time it takes to look after, and the response times you need. We'll quote once we've seen what you have.
Need someone to look after your site?
We look after sites we built and sites other people built. Tell us what you have, and we'll tell you what looking after it would involve.
Get in touch