Hosting and running costs after a custom application build
Hosting and running costs after a custom application build: what runs on the server, the monthly cost, why a backup is not a restore, who holds the accounts.
After a custom application build, your system lives on a server that someone pays for, monitors and backs up. For a small internal tool that is in the order of a few tens of euros a month; for an application with customers and traffic, a few hundred. Every owner asks this before signing and rarely gets an answer in the quote.
What runs after the build and what it costs
| Part | What it does | Internal tool | Customer-facing app |
|---|---|---|---|
| Server | Runs the application | One small cloud server, a few euros a month | Managed platform or several servers, tens to hundreds of euros |
| Database | Holds your data | On the same server | Separate and managed |
| Backups | Database and files | Daily, off the server | Several times a day, two locations |
| Monitoring | Alerts you before a customer does | Free tier | Paid, with on-call |
| Domain and certificate | Address and HTTPS | A .hr domain around 15 € a year, certificate free | Same |
| Updates | System and library patches | Monthly | Weekly |
The ranges are a direction, not a price list; they depend on location, data volume and traffic. The people’s work, and the 15-25 % a year rule, is in software maintenance and support cost.
A backup is not a restore
In 2012 US-CERT, now CISA, recommended the 3-2-1 rule first written down by Peter Krogh: three copies of every important file, on two different media, one off site. For an application: the database runs on the server, one copy goes to another disk or service, one to another data centre or provider.
A backup nobody has restored is an assumption. Ask for a restore to an empty server once a quarter, with the time written down. What else to check: cybersecurity for small and medium businesses.
Who holds the accounts
Server, domain, e-mail, repository and platform are accounts opened in the build’s first week. Why they must be in your name, with the vendor given access, is in who owns custom software you paid for. The practical part: the card charged is yours, and passwords live in a shared password manager, not in e-mail.
Why this differs from a website
Publicly quoted “after the build” costs in Croatia almost all refer to websites: domain, hosting, maintenance. A website shows content that rarely changes; an application holds data that changes every minute and without which the company stops. That is why an application needs a database, backups, monitoring and updates, and a website mostly does not.
How small the first step can be: small-scope software projects; the full bill including the build: custom software development for small business.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the application run on our website hosting? Sometimes, for a simple internal tool; shared hosting usually blocks background processes and a backed-up database.
Who pays for hosting: us or the vendor? You, from your own account; the vendor maintains it. Hosting is a separate line in the quote: how to commission custom software.
How often should backups run? As often as the data you can afford to lose: a working day means daily, an hour means hourly.
What if the vendor disappears while the application is running? If the accounts are yours, it keeps running and a new vendor gets access. If not, you chase access first, then a vendor.
Related Articles
- Software maintenance and support cost
- Who owns custom software you paid for?
- How to commission custom software
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