Choosing the Right Account Type
Lineserve Cloud offers two account types designed for different use cases. Selecting the right account type during registration ensures you have access to the features and support your organization needs.
Account Type Overview
Feature | Individual Account | Business Account |
Best for | Developers, freelancers, personal projects | Companies, startups, teams, enterprises |
Billing | Personal credit/debit card | Company billing, invoices, PO numbers |
Team Members | 1 user only | Unlimited team members |
Invoicing | Basic receipts | Professional invoices with VAT/tax details |
Support | Standard support (24/7) | Priority support + account manager (optional) |
Compliance | Standard | Custom DPAs, SOC 2 reports, audit access |
Payment Methods | Card, mobile money | Card, mobile money, bank transfer, purchase orders |
Spending Limits | $1,000/month default | Custom limits, credit terms available |
Individual Accounts
Who Should Choose Individual Accounts?
Individual accounts are perfect for:
Developers building side projects or learning cloud technologies
Freelancers hosting client projects or personal portfolios
Students working on academic projects or research
Hobbyists experimenting with cloud services
Small projects with modest resource requirements
Personal use such as file storage or hosting personal websites
Individual Account Features
Account Management
Single user access: Only you can access the account
Personal email: Account tied to your personal email address
Quick setup: Minimal information required
Instant activation: No business verification needed
Billing & Payments
Credit/Debit cards: Visa, Mastercard, Amex
Mobile money: M-Pesa (Kenya), MTN Mobile Money (Uganda, Ghana), Airtel Money
Simple receipts: Basic transaction receipts via email
Pay-as-you-go: Only pay for what you use
Free tier: $50 welcome credits + always-free resources
Technical Support
24/7 chat support: Available in the console
Email support: Response within 24 hours
Community forums: Access to developer community
Documentation: Full access to help center
Ticket priority: Standard queue
Spending Limits
Default limit: $1,000/month
Request increases: Submit support ticket for higher limits
Billing alerts: Set custom spending thresholds
Individual Account Limitations
❌ No team member access
❌ No professional invoicing
❌ No custom compliance agreements
❌ No dedicated account manager
❌ No purchase order billing
❌ No role-based access control (RBAC)
❌ Limited to $1,000/month spending (unless increased)
Business Accounts
Who Should Choose Business Accounts?
Business accounts are designed for:
Startups building commercial products or services
SMEs requiring professional invoicing and team access
Agencies managing multiple client projects
Enterprises with compliance and governance requirements
Development teams collaborating on projects
Regulated industries (banking, healthcare, government)
Business Account Features
Team Management
Unlimited team members: Add developers, admins, finance staff
Role-based access control (RBAC): Fine-grained permissions
Owner: Full account access
Admin: Manage resources and team
Developer: Deploy and manage resources
Billing: View billing and invoices only
Read-only: View-only access
Custom roles: Define your own permissions
Team activity logs: Audit trail of all actions
SSO integration: Single sign-on with your identity provider (Enterprise)
Professional Billing
Company invoices: Professional invoices with company details
VAT/Tax handling: Automatic tax calculation based on country
Purchase orders: PO number support for procurement
Payment terms: Net 30/60 available for qualified businesses
Multiple payment methods:
Corporate cards
Bank transfers (EFT, wire transfer)
Mobile money (business accounts)
Purchase orders
Budget management: Set budgets by project or team
Cost allocation: Tag resources for departmental billing
Enhanced Support
Priority support: Faster response times
Critical: 1 hour response
High: 4 hour response
Normal: 12 hour response
Phone support: Direct phone line to support team
Account manager: Dedicated contact (Premium tier)
Quarterly business reviews: Architecture and optimization reviews (Premium tier)
Technical account manager: For enterprise customers
Compliance & Security
Custom Data Processing Agreements (DPA)
SOC 2 Type II reports: Upon request
ISO 27001 certificates: Available
PCI DSS compliance: For payment processing workloads
Audit access: Right to audit provisions
SLA guarantees: Contractual uptime commitments
HIPAA Business Associate Agreement: For healthcare workloads (contact sales)
Advanced Features
Organization hierarchy: Create sub-accounts and projects
Consolidated billing: Single invoice for multiple projects
Resource quotas: Set limits per team or project
Advanced monitoring: Custom dashboards and alerting
API usage analytics: Detailed API metrics
Business Account Registration Requirements
To create a business account, you'll need:
Company name: Legal registered business name
Business registration number: Tax ID or company registration number
Kenya: KRA PIN
Nigeria: RC Number / TIN
South Africa: Company registration number
Other countries: Equivalent business identifier
Business address: Physical business location
Business email: Company email address (preferred)
Business phone: Company contact number
Industry/Sector: Your business category
VAT number: If VAT registered (optional but recommended)
Comparison: Key Scenarios
Scenario 1: Freelance Developer
Situation: Solo developer building websites for clients
Recommendation: Individual Account
Why:
No team members needed
Simple billing with credit card
Lower overhead
Quick setup
Upgrade later if: You hire contractors or need professional invoices for clients
Scenario 2: Early-Stage Startup
Situation: 3-person team building a SaaS product
Recommendation: Business Account
Why:
Multiple team members need access
Professional invoicing for accounting
Better access controls
Room to grow
Scenario 3: Enterprise Company
Situation: Established company with 50+ employees
Recommendation: Business Account (Enterprise tier)
Why:
Complex team structure
Compliance requirements
Purchase order billing
Dedicated support
Custom contracts
Scenario 4: Student Learning Cloud
Situation: University student learning cloud technologies
Recommendation: Individual Account
Why:
Personal project
Free tier sufficient
No billing complexity needed
Quick to set up
Switching Between Account Types
Upgrading from Individual to Business
You can upgrade your individual account to a business account:
Log in to console.lineserve.com
Go to Account Settings → Account Type
Click "Upgrade to Business Account"
Fill in business information:
Company name
Registration number
Business address
VAT number (if applicable)
Submit for verification
Verification typically takes 1-2 business days
You'll be notified when upgrade is complete
What happens during upgrade:
✅ All resources remain unchanged
✅ No downtime
✅ Billing history preserved
✅ Current credits/balance transferred
✅ Email address stays the same
✅ You become the account owner
Downgrading from Business to Individual
Downgrading is possible but requires:
Removing all team members (except yourself)
Clearing any outstanding invoices
Canceling payment terms (if applicable)
Acknowledging loss of business features
Contacting support to process downgrade
Warning: Downgrades may take 5-7 days to process.
Pricing Differences
Resource Pricing
Good news: Resource pricing is identical for both account types
Cloud servers cost the same
Storage costs the same
Bandwidth costs the same
No premium for business accounts
Support Pricing
Support Tier | Individual | Business |
Standard | Free | Free |
Priority | Not available | $99/month |
Premium | Not available | $499/month |
Enterprise | Not available | Custom pricing |
Free Tier and Credits
Both account types receive:
✅ $50 welcome credits (60-day validity)
✅ Always-free tier resources
✅ No credit card required for free tier
Bonus for Business Accounts:
Startups may qualify for additional credits through our Startup Program
Enterprise migrations may receive migration credits
Tax and VAT Handling
Individual Accounts
Prices shown include applicable taxes
VAT charged based on your country
Simple receipts provided
Business Accounts
VAT number verification
Reverse charge mechanism (if applicable)
Detailed tax breakdown on invoices
Compliant with local tax regulations:
Kenya VAT (16%)
Nigeria VAT (7.5%)
South Africa VAT (15%)
Other countries: As applicable
Making Your Decision
Choose Individual if:
You're working alone
You want simple billing
You don't need professional invoices
Your monthly spend is under $1,000
You don't need team access
Choose Business if:
You have a team
You need professional invoicing
You require compliance documentation
You expect to spend over $1,000/month
You need advanced access controls
You want priority support
Still unsure? Start with an Individual account. You can always upgrade later without any disruption to your resources.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I have both account types?
Yes! You can have:
One Individual account for personal projects
One or more Business accounts for companies
Use different email addresses for each
How long does business verification take?
Typically 1-2 business days. Faster for:
Recognized companies
Companies with existing online presence
Complete documentation provided
Can I transfer resources between accounts?
Yes, but requires support assistance:
Contact support with resource details
Billing transfers at month-end
Some downtime may occur during transfer
Need Help Choosing?
Contact our sales team for personalized guidance:
Email: [email protected]
Phone:
Kenya: +254 700 123 456
Nigeria: +234 800 123 4567
South Africa: +27 21 123 4567
Live Chat: Available 24/7 in console
Schedule Call: Book a call
Next Steps
After choosing your account type:
Complete account creation
Verify your email address
Add payment method
Enable Two-Factor Authentication
Start deploying resources
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