A dedicated server is a form of web hosting whereby the client leases an actual server dedicated to him/her and nobody else. The advantage of this type of web hosting is that the server is physically dedicated to the user. The disadvantage is that it comes with its own risks and challenges. It is better to know in advance the risks associated with a dedicated server before deciding on whether or not to go for it. The purpose of this article is to provide some important information about dedicated servers and help you decide whether you should go for one.
In the early years of dedicated servers dedicated server hardware was quite expensive and the server itself could be quite large and bulky. The popularity of dedicated server hardware declined as the price of dedicated server software dropped. Nowadays there are many low cost dedicated server software packages available that are still very popular.
One of the disadvantages of a dedicated server is the high level of maintenance required. For example, if the server is used for an eCommerce website the administration of the site would require quite a bit of knowledge and expertise. Unless you are willing to hire a lot of employees, you would not be able to do the necessary maintenance yourself. A dedicated server might be suitable for small sites but not for large ones. Ecommerce hosting is one of the cloud hosting options where you can get unlimited resources without any maintenance cost.
The popularity of dedicated server is declining due to the increase in cloud computing usage. Cloud computing is basically a concept that allows users to rent hardware from a third party provider and use it on the internet. This lowers the overall cost of running and maintaining a website as the third party provider will take care of all the maintenance, security and uptime problems. While using a bare metal server the owner has more control over his website and can make changes whenever he likes. While some bare metal servers might be good enough for smaller websites, it might not be adequate for larger ones.
Many companies and individuals make the mistake of thinking that they can get the benefits of cloud computing without paying the price of a dedicated server. This is in fact a misconception and an attempt to cheat customers. Dedicated servers are ideal for high-traffic websites that need a lot of processing power and bandwidth. However, they are expensive and very resource consuming.
There are many benefits of using dedicated servers. If your site is used for online payment processing or is used as an eCommerce site, then a dedicated server is definitely a viable option. In addition to this, you do not have to share the resources with other websites. If you cannot afford a dedicated server then the best solution would be to opt for shared hosting or vPS hosting.
With shared hosting, you may face the problem of slow performance. If you have several websites hosted on the same server, each one will consume a fraction of the total resources and as a result the performance of all the sites may become affected. If you use a dedicated server then this issue will not occur. The resources that are consumed are evenly divided among the websites which will ensure that optimal performance is maintained. Shared servers may also suffer from security issues and viruses, whereas dedicated servers do not suffer from any issues.
Although a virtual private server may seem to provide unlimited resources and bandwidth, there may be a limit to the resources that are consumed by the server. The disk space required by the website also plays an important role in determining the speed of the website. Huge websites tend to consume a lot of disk space to small and medium-sized websites need less disk space. Bandwidth plays a vital role in the smooth functioning of the website. If the website requires a lot of bandwidth, it may slow down considerably and as a result the overall performance may be affected.
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