We now have a staging server for Mailroom setup, which has already helped us catch at least 4 bugs before they ever saw the light of day.
They were relatively minor and somewhat obscure, but… having that server setup allowed the entire SproutIt team to hammer on development code and iron out most of the remaining wrinkles.
If you run a web business and don’t have a staging server yet, after recent experiences I would have to highly recommend acquiring one.
A hosted VDS (or VPS), which is basically like a segmented time-share arrangement on a much larger dedicated server, allows you to have root and full control over your OS.
These can be had for anywhere from $69 / mo. down to $29 / mo., depending on how much CPU, memory, etc. that you’ll need.
I generally wouldn’t recommend them for production usage for a large-scale application, but they work well for a staging server or place to run your personal blog.
You generally only run into problems with them, I’ve found, when someone else on your box is really hogging the CPU. (or, you’re the one hogging the CPU and they kick you off!)
The Joel Test for Web Apps
If you are a fan of Joel Spolsky’s writings on coding and the business of software development, you are no doubt familiar with his Joel Test: 12 Steps to Better Code.
Some of the commandments like ‘Daily Builds’ are not as applicable to webapps.
IMHO, having a staging server, where you have a daily or even hourly process that automagically updates the server with the latest development code, and is accessible by your team to be tested and hammered on from anywhere, is the closest thing to a daily build you’ll get for a webapp.
Hosting solutions plug: We’ve had great luck with OCS Solutions and AVLUX. They are especially well-suited for shops running Rails / Subversion / Lighttpd.
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