virtual-private-serversIn today’s fast-paced, technology-driven world, it is important to make the right decision when determining what the best web hosting solution is for your business. It’s important to ask the right questions i.e. where the best place to host your company’s website and email solutions is, and which server type suits your business best.

Fortunately there are several options to choose from. According to w3schools, there are three different types of web hosting services or environments available on the market today:

  • Shared Hosting.

Shared hosting is the most common type of web hosting and is also the most cost effective. Your website gets its own domain name and is hosted on a powerful server with up to one hundred other websites. Shared hosting solutions can include email, databases, and cPanel interfaces, and also, tend to offer good technical support.

  • Dedicated Hosting.

Dedicated hosting is the most expensive option of all the hosting options. Your website is hosted on its own dedicated server, it is powerful and secure, and is best suited for large websites that use special software, as well as those that have high traffic volumes.

  • Collocated hosting.

This option allows you to place your own web server on the premises of a web hosting company. It is similar to running your own server in your own office, but it is in an environment with better technical support and a high-security environment which your office might not be able to provide.

virtual-private-servers-1

Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting is a private virtual server that is technically a combination of both a shared hosting and dedicated hosting environment. The hosting environment imitates a dedicated server on a shared hosting environment or server. It is, however, not a shared nor a dedicated hosting offering.

Web hosting companies often design VPS hosting plans as a stepping stone between their shared and dedicated hosting offerings. The technology behind VPS hosting is similar to VMware – software that allows you to set up and run several virtual machines on one server.  For example, if you have a Linux server, you can run other operating systems on top of the Linux operating system without having to reboot the server. The same goes for a Windows or UNIX server.

The advantages of choosing a VPS hosting package are as follows:

  • It offers you the same setup as a dedicated server, however, at the fraction of the cost of a dedicated server.
  • You do not share your operating system with anyone else. Even though your virtual environment might be on a shared server, it is exclusively for your website and other web-hosting solutions.
  • You have your own instances of all the server applications such as MySQL, PHP, and Apache. If you need anything customised, you can make the changes and it will only affect your instances of the applications.
  • You have full root access to your server’s base operating system and virtual environments. This allows you to install custom applications that would normally require administrative access before you can install them.
  • All the Virtual Machines are installed using the latest software and they are expertly configured by competent technicians.
  • Web-hosting companies who offer VPS hosting packages also offer top support by experienced and dedicated engineers.

virtual-private-servers-2

Final Words

Staying abreast of all the developments in the Information Technology world is tough and requires a lot of time and dedication. It goes without saying that your business’s web hosting requirements will always be changing. As a result, it makes sense to make use of a VPS hosting environment before you move across to a dedicated server. This will allow you to move your business to the next level while staying ahead of the pack.