A dedicated server is a type of hosting on the Internet wherein a customer can rent a whole server for his own purpose. Compared to shared hosting, this type of web hosting gives full control to the customer. In general, this service can provide a better return of investment as well as less overhead expense. Commonly housed in data centers, a dedicated hosting service also provides HVAC systems and redundant power. The service provider often owns the server hardware and may provide technical support for the software applications and operating system.
A shared hosting service, on the other hand, is a type of web hosting service wherein a single server accommodates various websites from different customers. Each website has its own partition on the web server. This is the most cost-effective alternative to web hosting because a lot of people pay for the server maintenance costs.
Advantages Of Dedicated Server Hosting Over Shared Hosting
Compared to shared hosting, a dedicated server is used by only one customer. With this kind of hosting service, a website can have large traffic without being bogged down by server issues due to sharing of resources with other websites or customers. For small-time entrepreneurs who run a small hosting enterprise, uptime and reliability is assured to their clients because the server is controlled by the entrepreneur.
- Customer is provided administrator access to the server. Because the customer has root access, he can easily install applications as well as customize the server any way he wants it. He can host applications or websites which require special configurations and components. The customer is also provided with an application where he can easily check server resources and manage them.
- Server is used by one customer only. The customer’s website, service, or application is not disrupted by other customers thereby ensuring that the whole server is reliable and always available. A customer has his own CPU and can only be used for his own purposes. In general, he can even choose his own CPU. Bandwidth and RAM don’t pose any problems because the customer doesn’t share them with other customers as well. RAM can also be easily upgraded should there be a need for a greater amount. It is also easy to provision for more bandwidth.
- Customer is provided with priority technical support. A dedicated server hosting service is more expensive than shared hosting and as such, a dedicated server customer is provided with priority technical support. In most cases, a shared hosting customer doesn’t receive the same level of technical support as the dedicated server customer. Because most dedicated servers are provided by the service provider, it is expected that the provider will ensure that the server is always stable and running at all times.
Advantages of Shared Hosting Over Dedicated Server Hosting
- Shared hosting is less expensive than dedicated server hosting. There are a lot of customers sharing the resources of one server therefore the maintenance costs are divided among the different clients whereas for the dedicated server hosting, only one customer pays for the server maintenance costs. If the server is hosted in a data center, the customer will also have to pay for rack space, bandwidth, electricity, and other related costs.
Although dedicated server hosting has a lot of advantages over shared hosting and other kinds of web hosting services, one’s decision to prefer it over the others is primarily driven by the type of website and the budget the website owner can afford. One can save money by using a coupon code and setting up your website. If it’s going to be a commercial website and expected to generate a lot of traffic, then it is best to take advantage of the dedicated server. However, if it’s just going to be a personal website or a small business site then shared hosting service is enough.