Major differences between Dedicated Server and VPS Hosting

• December 14, 2010 23:25
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A virtual private server, popularly known as VPS, is a form of web hosting service in which a single server is split into a couple of portions.

This splitting technique, made possible by virtualization software and technology, lends the portions the semblance of multiple servers.A separate OS (operating system) can be installed on each virtual machine and can be rebooted independent of the others. Each virtual server is allotted a quota of resources by the administrator of the main physical server. A hypervisor which is run by the main server is used to create, manage and destroy the resources of these dependent virtual servers.

A dedicated server is a form of web hosting service in which a company leases out an entire server to a client. The entire server hardware is fully owned by the web hosting provider. Depending on the prearranged plan, the firm may also provide support for the software installed on the server. The client has the right to choose both the hardware and the OS to be installed. Again, depending on the hosting plan, the provider can also manage the server on the client’s behalf.
For a site on a shared hosting environment that has outgrown its quota of server resources, upgrading to a VPS or even a dedicated server seems very logical. But the cost of a dedicated server is not cheap. So, a VPS is recommended for a budget-minded person whose website has become a resource hog on a shared web hosting platform.
Both are equally good for web hosting resellers who have substantial number of clients, and also for running large e-commerce websites.

The main differences:

Dedicated servers offer more control than VPS to clients over entire server environments. In both cases however, clients can install any software of their choice and configure it to their liking and add other users.
The main difference is that in a VPS hosting, a client’s server environment is on a single physical machine together with other clients’ server environments, with each client restricted to his/her own environment. However, all the clients get the root access to the physical machine and share hardware resources, such as CPU (central processing unit), memory and hard disk, according to their allotted quotas.
On the other hand, with dedicated server hosting, a client does not share the server environment with anyone else on the physical machine. He/she utilizes all the hardware resources alone. Only the client’s files reside on the entire server, both physically and remotely.
Now let’s move on to weigh the pros and cons of both dedicated server and VPS hosting.

Advantages of dedicated server over VPS:

• Dedicated server hosting offers more control and flexibility than VPS hosting.

• A dedicated server gives less overhead and a better ROI (return on investment).

• Only the client has the root access to the rented server throughout the duration of the dedicated hosting service, while multiple VPS clients have root access to hardware resources of a server.

• For mission-critical applications that contain extremely sensitive information and require the highest level of security, hiring a dedicated server is a better option.

• Generally security is better managed on a dedicated server environment. This is because on a VPS there are other clients on the same server who might run some malicious scripts which might compromise one’s account, if security is no well-managed.

• A dedicated server client does not worry about bandwidth restriction as someone on a VPS does.

• Issues might arise if a VPs host oversells its spaces with the hope that clients would not use their allocated resources to the fullest. This does not happen in dedicated hosting, as the service company has no access and right to sell any space.

Advantages of VPS over dedicated server:

• A virtual private server is less expensive than hiring a dedicated server. One pays for what he/she actually needs and not things that can never be used.

• Maintenance and support is fully provided by the web hosting firm. This gives the client the much needed time to concentrate on his/her business.

• A VPS client doesn’t worry about server management, as it is provided by the hosting provider. Unless a dedicated server plan includes management, an unmanaged server can be an overwhelming challenge to someone who doesn’t have the required technical know-how. For someone who is less technical-savvy in terms of managing a web server, VPS is more suitable.

In summation, if a VPS plan meets one’s needs of server resources, there’s no point to waste hard-earned money on a dedicated server. In this scenario, what one needs to do is to constantly monitor database speed, processing speed, bandwidth usage and memory through his/her control panel. But if resource starvation causes one’s website to significantly slow down on a virtual private server hosting, then it’s time to consider upgrading to a higher VPS plan or moving on to a dedicated server.

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