This was a while ago, but Gandi disabled my account - with no warnings - for running a Tor node on one of my VPSes. I then had to send a copy of my passport to eventually get it reenabled. The frustrating thing was that they were also my domain registrar, so during that time I lost all access to my domains as well.

I transferred my domains away after that and decided it wasn't wise to mix services together due to this risk. So now I have domains with Tucows, DNS with Hurricane Electric and VPS with a provider that only does VPS. And I don't bother running Tor nodes any more.

Maybe not for running a Tor node, but Gandi may have received complaints about traffic on this node ?

Gandi allows any service to be run on its platform, abuse is not allowed as it isn't on other provider.

Thus, they must do the necessary legal operations according to the law, policies and their contract.

Not quite. Gandi has a morals clause in their ToS.

From the Gandi blog: (http://www.gandibar.net/post/2007/01/11/Gandi-fights-back-ag...)

  Domains registered with Gandi must be used in accordance with the rights of third parties (copyrights, intellectual property rights, personality rights, etc.), and current applicable laws and regulations. 

  For example, Gandi does not tolerate activity that is morally objectionable or that poses a threat to public order, that spreads Computer Contaminants (Viruses, Trojans, etc.), and/or that engages in fraudulent activity such as Identity Theft.

Some of these things are fairly broad and vague. There's the whole grey area of speech that may or may not violate the rights of a third party. Then you have the whole "public order" thing. Plus, you're potentially dealing with French legal standards, which may be very different than the US standards that I'm used to.

Yes, I had severely underestimated the amount of bad traffic that would pass through a Tor exit node.

Thanks! This is actually very important as I do use them for my 'important' domains as well. Even though I can't foresee any problem like this, it's something to keep an eye on.

Can you provide more details about your situation ?

Here's the email exchange with Gandi: http://pastebin.com/raw.php?i=ra00BxXM

I've used Gandi for the last 3 years and DigitalOcean for about six months. I like both of them but for mostly non-overlapping reasons.

DigitalOcean has excellent documentation and very fast responses to my support queries. Their prices are lower. I'll keep using them and recommending them to others.

Gandi gives me very good performance as well as a few extras that keep me interested. They also offer a broader range of services (like domain registration) and have an excellent track record of supporting good causes. I'll keep using them and can recommend them as well.

If I (maybe unfairly) divide user skill levels up into thirds, I'd recommend DigitalOcean to an average user, and Gandi to those with above & below average needs. Basically, Gandi has simpler products for those new to hosting and also rolls out new things like IPV6 and DNSSEC faster if you really want to test them. These aren't always supported (you break it, you may be on your own) but are available early compared to other hosts.

Rather than look at this as a zero sum proposition, take a look at Gandi's 'supports'[1] page, realise that they continue to thrive despite no advertising, and think about whether you want in on that deal.

[1]https://www.gandi.net/supports/

I've spent around US$15/month with them for over 10 years and have been very happy with their service and (when necessary) support.

not yet on their VPS offer (but that is my platform for all of my future projects). On every other gandi products I used, I've been amazed by the technical aspect and their support.

I've used their VPSes for a long time, and I must say I really like both their services and the company.