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Dedicated Servers
For serious webmasters, enterprise level businesses and massive storage
Dedicated Hosting Plans are aimed at enterprise level businesses and advanced users that need their own dedicated server.
A dedicated hosting service, dedicated server, or managed hosting service is a type of Internet hosting where the client leases an entire server not shared with anyone. This is more flexible than shared hosting. Organizations have full control over the server(s), including choice of operating system, hardware, etc. Server administration can usually be provided by the hosting company as an add-on service. Website owners usually start with a shared server with less storage capacity and cheaper bandwidth plans and once they are convinced with the volume of traffic that their site attracts they go for Dedicated Server.
You will have the power to manage everything on the server ranging from operating system to the configuration files of web server. In a shared server you will share everything from operating system to the space and the performance of your website depends on the traffic of other sites.
Information on a dedicated server is likely to be more secured than information on a shared server. A dedicated server can also be provided with its own firewall. If you are storing highly sensitive information on your server, this increased security will obviously be a high priority.
There are no visible disadvantages with dedicated servers apart from the fact that hosting on them costs you money and you will need someone with experience to set-up the server. You will be responsible for the installation of all of the software on the server, and with any needed maintenance of that software, such as the regular security patches and upgrades necessary to keep the software running correctly unless you use a Managed Dedicated Server.
If you run a busy web site, you may find it starting to outgrow its hosting account. A dedicated server may make your life easier, but before you take the plunge, you should be sure it's worth the price and that you can manage the server.
Ask these Questions Before You Select a Dedicated Server:
- How Busy is Your Site?
- How much Bandwidth do you need?
- How much Processor Speed do you need?
- How much Disk Storage do you need?
- How Secure should your Website be?
- Can you Set it up and Manage it yourself?
Most everyone you talk to now wants to start their own blog, their own forum, their own dating website; or some other online community. With all of the associated PHP code and scripts that these intensely software driven sites bring with them, even a slight increase in traffic and popularity can bring them to a screeching halt on a shared hosting plan.
Shopping carts are another thing that need a dedicated server. If your store gets popular and you start making a steady stream of income that you rely upon, the last thing that you want to happen is your site being shut down for traffic violations.
Dedicated Servers – Managed or Unmanaged?
Having a dedicated server means that all of the resources of a single server – the processor, disk space, bandwidth and so on – are available for your sole use. You will be able to specify the operating system to be used and also what applications will be installed on the server. However, that freedom comes with a lot of extra responsibility. You will be responsible for the installation of all of the software on the server, and with any needed maintenance of that software, such as the regular security patches and upgrades necessary to keep the software running correctly. This requires a higher level of technical knowledge and experience. If you feel that you are up to the task, then all is well and good. However, for those people that are not comfortable with the extra work needed then there is still a solution – a managed dedicated server.
A typical managed hosting plan will offer you a package that will include the installation of your choice of operating system and software applications, and the ongoing upkeep of that software. The plan should also offer all of the necessary data management needed to keep your web site running effectively, a regular and reliable back-up schedule, and monitoring of the server and web site. Such monitoring will not only allow the hosting company to ensure that everything is working at its optimum level, but will also allow the company to see if any upgrades in server capability or connectivity are needed.
A managed hosting plan should also offer excellent technical support. In many cases, web hosting companies assign managed accounts to individual technical support staff, rather than allowing any available staff to handle the support call. This not only allows the technical support person to become familiar with your web site and your needs, but gives you the comfort and confidence that comes from having someone familiar to contact if needed.
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