You have started your blog or website. You are gaining traction since you have been writing for a while. Creatively writing posts takes time, and also supporting it with images is not a trivial task. One expects a good increase in traffic from the new content posted regularly, and besides this, search engines also offer a greater inflow of traffic from the content which you had worked on previously.
Everything that we just wrote about will amount to an increase in load bearing capacity of your server. This will further degrade your server’s performance with time, affecting your work and your customers taking note of this dip in performance.
Contents
- 1 Distinctions between Dedicated hosting and VPS hosting
- 2 Dedicated Hosting
- 3 Virtually Private Hosting
- 4 Dedicated Servers
- 5 VPS Hosting Benefits
- 6 Benefit of a Dedicated Server
- 7 Comparison of unmanaged and managed variants
- 8 The dilemma of other hosting options
- 9 Between the two, which should you go for, VPS or Dedicated Server?
Distinctions between Dedicated hosting and VPS hosting
First, let’s understand the similarities between these two options:
Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting and dedicated hosting both offer better control over the hosting environment, especially with respect to software installation. They both allow the purchase of specs needed when it comes to hardware.
VPS hosting is like a common platform that can be shared but still has the benefits of individual space. VPS also allows you the flexibility of trying out various web hosting options with a dedicated and focused server at no additional cost.
Ask yourself if you should consider a better plan of web hosting.
The most important thing about this step is to change to a better hosting type than the one you are currently using. Because if you are still using the old hosting platform which you started with, then it is best that you opt for a change now to a focused server or even a plan like VPS hosting.
Through this article, you will get a clear idea of what will better suit your needs, like should you opt for a dedicated hosting or go with something like a better plan, for example like the VPS hosting. You will also know from this article what will be advantages and disadvantages of both these types so you can make an informed decision.
Let’s understand VPS hosting first.
If you opt for VPS hosting, you will divide the server into two parts. These are different sites and different accounts. Let’s make it simple by breaking it down this way- you will have a personal computer with varied users who work in different ways.
VPS hosting offers two options- a lower range and a high range option. The cost varied from 20$ per month and can go upto 100$ each month.
Virtual Private Servers will always have more than one hosting set up that you can opt from. This way, they won’t have access to complete customization of hosts that are dedicated. Saying so, this definitely makes the setup easier and more basic for starters.
VPS kind of hosting will offer simpler solutions like less traffic and easy to maintain and use sites. You can consider VPS hosting as a good option where you get complete access to the server, plus you don’t have to bear the additional or expensive costs attached to a fully focused server.
When a simple hosting plan doesn’t offer what you want, and some extra control over the host doesn’t harm, then virtual private servers could prove to be the ideal choice for you. But if you need an upgraded hosting plan which gives you more customization control, then you could consider a dedicated server hosting as an option.
Dedicated Hosting
Dedicated hosting server is literally your personal space where you have all the rights to the resources and will be able to do the setup as per your wish. You will have complete control in case of dedicated hosting.
A dedicated hosting plan usually works better when you have more than 5 million visitors or above and also have the necessary bandwidth of technical support to manage and make the server user-friendly.
There is no one size fits all solution. You will have to figure what your needs are and the basis that makes an informed decision about which kind of server works better for you. So take a moment to reflect on these factors and then base your decision with a practical approach in choosing the correct hosting.
There is also another important factor in the cost. Dedicated servers are very expensive, and therefore it will be better to start with a virtual private server initially and then as your business grows, you move into a dedicated hosting plan.
Virtually Private Hosting
VPS hosting is like the virtual world where you can have your own private space. You can share the hosting space with many other sites and share the various resources available to all of you in the form of a single server. But what’s different are the various protocols based on the usage of these resources between both the VPS hosting and the dedicated users.
In this case, a hypervisor or different mechanism software is used to create individual accounts on the servers. This protects your privacy from the neighbour’s intervention, and you get to access a common pool of resources. However, the server could be powerful but low on the bandwidth in terms of traffic as compared to VPS hosting.
There is fair and equal distribution of resources and space where one website cannot intervene into someone else allocated space and likewise. This can be best explained as people owning apartments in a building where they can decorate their homes without breaking down the walls that separate each apartment from the other.
Dedicated Servers
As the name suggests- these type of server plans are completely focused on your needs and goals. You can use the empty space in the server to put whatever you deem right.
A web host will give you the option of setting up different configurations, although some will allow you to develop a server that is perfectly suited to your needs. There is a big difference between the VPS hosting and the Dedicated hosting plan when it comes to controlling the environment of the server. In the case of the dedicated server, you have control over your server’s environment entirely, which you may not have in VPS hosting, although here, you can share the resources with other players. You get full control over the software here as well, just like the control we usually have on hardware.
VPS Hosting Benefits
Cost
The hosting cost is always less when one uses VPS hosting as compared to a dedicated server. The mechanism to have varied customers on one platform divides the cost between several players, thereby reducing the cost of hardware functions amongst everyone.
In such a case, the customer pays only for a part of the space used in the server wherein they have complete access to the complete performance of the hardware. At the moment, a lower range dedicated server plans come at a price that is thrice as much as the VPS hosting.
Longevity and growth
The VPS hosting environment is better in terms of performance as compared to the dedicated hosting kind because here, customers get to use only a part of the resources at the server level, which can also be used for the hardware operation.
Unlike in the case of the dedicated server, the customer has complete freedom to use the hardware functions. In order to expand the available resources, one needs to add several separators or create sections on the physical plain of the server. This cant is done during the real run time, and therefore a downtime allocation has to be made for such changes.
Benefit of a Dedicated Server
Various resources available in one go
In this type of plan, you have the option of using varied resources available. VPS hosting cannot be compared with dedicated servers, especially in the case of space, CPU, storage, functionality, software modules, memory and various hardware offerings.
Security and Safety
In comparison with a dedicated server, the VPS server cannot guarantee full safety and security to its clients since they are prone to malicious attacks. On the other hand, a dedicated server warrants safety because there is only one user and owner at a time, and this reduces threats greatly. There is also rarely any breach of security in such a case.
Software installations plus various digital furtherance can be managed easily and better. This furthermore reduces the risk of malicious virus attacks.
Market veterans feel that the data related to the business are usually more safe from virus attacks within a virtual world. It entirely depends on what you think is right and how you set up your hardware.
An open-access from the back door can expose one to attacks from external servers. It is, therefore, to be noted that a VPS can offer better security options to companies, atleast when it comes to data hacking. This platform is enabled with automatic snapping, which makes it easier to relocate data or recreate it in case of theft or loss.
Plus, cloud hosting allows real-time redundancy.
Pace or speed
There is a big advantage of speed in the case of dedicated servers. Here the artificial or virtual world is non-present which offers latency in data passing. This leads to quicker loading and response initiatives.
Customization and Configuration
One can set up the server the way they like in the case of a dedicated server plan. But in the case of VPS hosting, the configuration options are many but limited. For instance, you cant set up something that will expose other clients to threats from servers. You cant set up big software due to lack of capacity in such a server. There is a capping on memory and allocation of space which makes it difficult to move full throttle basis how big your setup is.
Management offerings
In this scenario, dedicated servers have a better chance to score over VS due to better service. With software engineers, various technicians, better management solutions all in one space which do not have to go through a competitive date influx to solve your problem. Technicians are limited in what they can offer and perform on a dedicated space server. Because of the lack of many participants, there is a wide array of processes and solutions available at your fingertips.
Pricing
It’s a no-brainer that a dedicated server plan will be expensive than a VPS. The reason being when there is more than one player on a common platform, the cost gets divided between all.
The cost of a VPS hosting plan can go as high as $175 a month or could also be as low as a couple of dollars for the same amount of time.
Our advice is to go with quality offerings at a price of $100 a month because anything lower than that, like in a range of $30-40, can prove to be cheap but poor in performance.
Comparison of unmanaged and managed variants
We are yet to cover the various tasks that help us in setting up either the dedicated hosting plans or VPS hosting plans like maintaining, configuring, managing the web etc.
In case of an unmanaged setup, you will be responsible for everything related to software. If you have opted for VPS, then you will have to manage everything except the virtual provisioning.
On the other end, we have fully managed setups where everything is taken care of by the web host. You have to simply decide what you want, and all the rest will be done for you, like maintaining, configuring and installing etc.
You will have to opt for either of these or something in between. The best approach is to connect with a web host that suits your needs and understand their offerings well. You should know that the offerings could differ depending on the web hosts.
You should also try and gauge how much of these technical tasks you can manage yourself along with doing what you are good at. Plus, there is a budget consideration, and there is no such all size fit all option when it comes to this. The cost could be high basis what is being managed by them.
OS
One of the most important decisions to be made is about the operating system. The most important perk about opting for dedicated hosting is acquiring complete control over the software. The options available for OS are windows and the other being Linux. The uncommon one is Macintosh.
Opting for Linux would prove to be cost-beneficial because it is free and has open access to all. Windows will have to be purchased or licensed from Mircosoft, thereby increasing its cost.
Security Protocols
We have understood all the aspects of offerings in the case of both VPS and Dedicated hosting plans. But one of the essential factors of deciding which one to go for is security.
If you have a site hosted in its own private space, it guarantees complete safety. This safety can come from both neighbours or from neighbour’s neighbours. If you may have been on a shared hosting plan and if your neighbours face a service denial, then that’s going to affect you as well. With dedicated hosting or VPS hosting, this threat reduces exponentially.
Perhaps a dedicated server will work best for you if you need the extra security as they have physical sectioning in themselves.
Both the hosting options come with a dedicated IP add. One of them will be standard, while others may have more options. This way, your site will not be confused with other sites, offer various perks of email advertising, and alongside this comes the certification of SSL. This also gives you security for payment handling once you come up with a different E-com site.
Technical and customer service support
You will receive the best customer service and tech support from both dedicated hosting and VPS hosting, owing to their high prices. These services would be 24/7. In fact, the preciseness may be different, but as an important client, you will manage to find a host who will be able to answer your questions, doubts or queries.
The dilemma of other hosting options
If you research, you may find that there are alternate hosting options other than dedicated hosting and VPS hosting, but they are quite different.
Through cloud hosting, you can host your site over various linked servers instead of a single one. This may seem to be an expensive option, but there are redundancies on multiple grounds in case something goes wrong. This type of option is usually taken up by large business houses and apps instead of small businesses.
Semi-shared hosting, contrary to its title, is more like a shared hosting option that is found on a server much powerful than the usually economical plans. However, understand this- that it is not a focused or a dedicated hosting plan.
Between the two, which should you go for, VPS or Dedicated Server?
Let’s answer this question for you after having understood all of the details of both the hosting options:
For starters, people usually begin with shared hosting since it is economical, and therefore WordPress hosting is the best choice. But as your business prospers, you will need something which is more dedicated to your needs than a shared hosting option.
Your goals can be achieved by both dedicated hosting and VPS hosting plans.
In a VPS, the server’s space is divided by different players and a certain is allocated to you. Along with this comes many resources of different players or from a single machine.
In the dedicated hosting option, you get the entire server as your base.
People usually prefer VPS if their traffic sources are high with different or specific needs.
We would therefore advise you to opt for VPS for atleast as it gives a value for money kind of hosting plan.
Both these hosting plans can be at a higher cost, but businesses like blogging which has grown out of shared hosting plans can achieve some exciting value. You shall get what suits your business, and if you are willing to pay more, you will walk away with some better performance and safety settings. You can also check our article on Wix Vs. Weebly.