A Customer Portal Should Do More Than Show You Your Servers

Key takeaways

• Customer portals have typically been simple administrative tools that show you existing servers.
• myVelocity enables you to easily select and deploy applications, and build full environments, from a single location. 
• Integration with the Hivelocity App Store enables you to select from 30+ popular apps and deploy them automatically, eliminating manual tasks.  

The phrase “customer portal” might not generate excitement within your IT team. In many cases, a portal is a simple administrative tool. It provides a way to find a server, check an account, or maybe open a support ticket. 
 
But if you’re one of the people responsible for managing IT infrastructure, you know that an effective portal can make a huge difference in how you work. The best portals help you complete essential infrastructure tasks efficiently.  

The myVelocity infrastructure management tool from Hivelocity provides versatility that extends far beyond the simple server administration of typical customer portals. In addition to providing a view of the hardware you have, it lets you build the environment you want, enabling you to easily select and deploy applications, all from one place. 
 

Starting with an Objective 

Let’s say you want to use a server for business intelligence (BI) or analytics. Instead of following complicated installation instructions, you can go into the myVelocity App Store and simply choose to deploy open-source tools, such as Apache Superset or Metabase. Or if you want to run DevOps tools, you can select Docker, Coolify, Dokku, GitLab CE, or MicroK8s. 
 
Within myVelocity, you can easily deploy any of more than 30 popular applications in just minutes. You can select from monitoring, centralized logging, collaboration, web hosting, security, object storage, real-time multimedia, game infrastructure, and even gaming apps.  

You no longer have to navigate through packages, dependencies, and installation procedures. Instead, you can focus on a much more human question: What do I want this server to do? 

 
Building Stacks 

Each application can be a building block for something larger. You can quickly build full-fledged, multi-application environments for analysts, developers, marketers, or other teams. 
 
For example, if you want to build an analytics environment, you might install ClickHouse for the database layer and then Apache Superset for BI and data visualization. Similarly, you might deploy Docker, Grafana, Prometheus, and the ELK Stack (Elasticsearch, Logstash, and Kibana) to build a development and observability environment for your DevOps team. myVelocity makes it simpler to address higher-level technical and business objectives than standard administrative utilities.  
 

Streamlining Installation 

Choosing software from an app store is only convenient if you don’t have to spend hours installing and configuring it. The Hivelocity App Store was designed to dramatically simplify the deployment process. In fact, whether you are purchasing or reloading a server through myVelocity, you can have the installation handled automatically. Most deployments are completed in 10 to 15 minutes. 
 
The Hivelocity App Store even simplifies the security configuration process. For many applications, security rules and hardening are incorporated into the deployment.  
 
This model for deploying applications significantly reduces the number of small tasks necessary for managing infrastructure. In the past, you had to start the installation, begin configuration, look up a setting, find documentation, set up security rules, and then wait for everything to finish. Now you can stay focused on what you want to do with the infrastructure. 

This approach to app deployment not only helps you accelerate time to value; it also allows you to experiment quickly and easily. Want to run your own Nextcloud instance? Interested in using Garage for object storage? You can explore new use cases without having to block off half a day to install and configure software. Each app comes with a getting-started guide to simplify your next steps after deployment.  

Redefining the Customer Portal 

The customer portal used to be strictly a utility tool. It was a place you went when you needed to do something administrative. myVelocity shows what a portal can and should be: a place where you can build something new with your infrastructure.   
 
Learn more about myVelocity.

FAQ

Q: What is myVelocity? 
A: myVelocity is a custom infrastructure management tool from Hivelocity. Beyond providing visibility into what servers you have, it enables you to easily select from numerous applications in the Hivelocity App Store and then deploy them or build full-fledged environments on your infrastructure. 

Q: What is the Hivelocity App Store? 
A: The Hivelocity App Store provides a simple, intuitive way to select and deploy applications on servers. It offers more than 30 popular applications. You can select apps and then deploy them automatically in minutes, eliminating manual installation and configuration tasks. Many apps also have security rules and hardening built in.

Q: What can I deploy through the App Store? 
A: The current catalog includes more than 30 popular applications, from monitoring, logging, object storage, and security to web hosting, collaboration, multimedia, and game infrastructure.

Q: How long does an application take to deploy?
A: Most App Store deployments can be completed in approximately 10 to 15 minutes.