01
Explicit ownership
Record whether the client or agency owns each service, who pays, and who can authorize transfers or cancellation.
For agencies and freelancers
Hosting for agencies and freelancers
Use managed shared hosting for conventional client sites, keep domains and critical accounts clearly owned, and reserve VPS for projects with a contracted server-operations scope.
Bitfoo opens for orders soon.
- Likely start
- Shared hosting
- Primary risk
- Access ambiguity
- Common stack
- WordPress
- VPS use
- Scoped
Managed client sites
Ownership and handoff
Application still maintained by agency
Requires server operator
What matters first
Make every client environment separable and explainable
Good operational structure protects the client, the agency, and the next person who inherits the account.
02
Environment separation
Avoid shared credentials and undocumented dependencies between unrelated client sites.
03
Repeatable maintenance
Standardize updates, testing, monitoring, backups, and incident response across supported site types.
04
Clean offboarding
Prepare a handoff record with access, DNS, code, assets, integrations, renewals, and recovery instructions.
Recommended starting path
Match the hosting model to the support contract
A client should not inherit an unmanaged server unless someone has accepted the responsibility to operate it.
Conventional client sites
Managed shared hosting
Use the supported platform for WordPress, WooCommerce, and conventional PHP sites.
- Agency maintains the application layer
- Bitfoo maintains the hosting platform
- No custom Linux services are required
Custom client applications
Unmanaged VPS
Use when the project scope includes server administration and the application needs host-level control.
- Custom runtime, containers, or persistent services
- Monitoring and backup scope is contracted
- A named operator owns Linux and incident response
Relevant services and guides
Build a client-service map
Keep domain, hosting, application, and certificate responsibilities visible rather than bundling them into an undefined “website” service.
Registrations and DNS
Domains
Manage renewals and DNS while keeping the client ownership and transfer path explicit.
Explore domains →Managed client sites
Shared web hosting
Use the managed account platform for conventional sites and supported applications.
Explore hosting →Application guidance
WordPress and WooCommerce
Use workload-specific guidance for caching, updates, transactional paths, and recovery.
View WordPress guidance →Before committing
Prepare the handoff before the project ends
Handoff quality is an infrastructure feature. It should be designed at onboarding, not improvised after a relationship changes.
- 01
Create the service register
List domains, DNS, hosting, CMS, repositories, certificates, analytics, integrations, renewals, and owners.
- 02
Separate credentials
Use individual access where possible and remove former collaborators promptly.
- 03
Define the maintenance boundary
State who applies application updates, monitors business functions, restores backups, and responds to incidents.
- 04
Run a handoff test
Confirm that another qualified person can access, deploy, update DNS, and recover the site from the documentation.
Related guidance
Common questions
Should the agency or client own the domain?
The arrangement can vary, but ownership, billing, renewal, DNS authority, and the transfer path must be explicit in the client agreement and service register.
Can several client sites use one shared plan?
The Business and Pro plans support multiple sites, but all sites on an account share its resource and security boundary. Separate accounts may be preferable when ownership, access, billing, or risk should be isolated.
When should an agency choose VPS?
Choose VPS only when the client application needs host-level control and the engagement includes ongoing Linux security, monitoring, backup, recovery, and incident responsibility.
What belongs in a client handoff?
Include service ownership, credentials or access invitations, domains and DNS, hosting, CMS, repositories, assets, integrations, billing, renewals, backups, deployment steps, and recovery instructions.