COD: CloudFlare: Solving a host of site-side problems

We all know that some basic site issues like slow load times can suck the life out of a website. For that and a host of other things, now there is CloudFlare.

CloudFlare is a "new model" site performance, security, and analytics solution. This Palo Alto-based start up offers performance, analytics, and security solutions that most sites can deploy in just a few minutes. There's no hardware or software to install. Once on the CloudFlare platform, site traffic is routed through their "intelligent global network" that optimizes the delivery of web pages at the fastest rate possible.

But it doesn't stop there. By having all of the traffic pass through their platform, CloudFlare blocks threats and limits abusive bots and crawlers that waste server resources and bandwidth.

Not every bot, of course. Useful bots like those from Google pass right on through. But by blocking bad agents, site performance is enhanced and threats reduced.

Additionally, the site offers strong site side analytics, and provides a fail safe mechanism that keeps your web site up even if your servers go down.

Here's an interview vid of CloudFlare's CEO, from this year's TC Disrupt:



Given the growing number of spam and hack attacks on today's web, the need for such a solution quickly becomes apparent. And by providing its suite of services without affecting your hardware and software infrastructure, they have made deployment and costs very manageable.

Actually, beyond manageable. The basic level of service that provides the performance optimizers is free. A more robust package adds more security and analytics, and costs just $20 a month for the first site, and a fiver for each additional site. You can combine basic and pro services and get one consolidated bill.

The pro version offers what looks to be a very useful and intuitive dashboard that, among many things, shows you the recent threats and attacks on your site so you can take appropriate actions. It also affords the opportunity to block traffic from bad actor urls, even entire countries.

An enterprise level offering offers world class security and analytics credentials at very affordable rates.

There are no long term contracts, and monthly fees make it a solution that most businesses can well afford. Cool stuff, and this structural and payment model is definitely the wave of the future.