Know About Virtual Private Servers

Tuesday, December 8, 2009





A lot of webmasters start out their websites on shared web servers. This is naturally the most logical choice as it requires a small overhead cost. For a lot of websites, this type of server may provide adequate support to satisfy their specific needs. However, as the site grows in both its content and traffic, the shortcomings of shared servers slowly make themselves more apparent. Issues regarding storage space and bandwidth begin to pop out left and right until eventually, webmasters realize that shared servers are no longer able to provide them with the right tools to competently manage their websites.

The Answer

Once webmasters are able to realize their sites’ need to upgrade their servers, the search for the better alternative begins. The most obvious solution for this particular dilemma is to opt for a more ‘powerful’ server that will be able to satisfy the needs of the growing website. The first thing that comes to mind has got to be a dedicated server. However, this can prove to be quite a pricey alternative as it will require webmasters to shell out a considerable amount of money to be able to acquire this type of service. If the budget permits it then all’s well and good; but if not, one might want to look into another kind of server which is known as the VPS or the virtual private server.

So what is a virtual private server? Well, it’s basically a combination of the shared and the dedicated server. VPS makes use of advanced software that divides the server into several virtual machines that act as separate and independent servers. In terms of physical resources such as disk space, the CPU, and memory, it is still shared by more than just one website. However, each VPS functions as an independent and separate entity serving the needs of individual websites.

The Advantages of VPS

The most obvious advantage of opting for a VPS is that webmasters are able to reap most of the benefits of dedicated servers at a fraction of the price. Although it may still have a number of disparities when compared to actual dedicated servers, VPS are still quite a viable solution. Especially when its rates are taken into consideration – it definitely provides value for money.

The benefits of VPS become even more relevant when it comes to the software involved. Webmasters will have the option to install additional applications on VPS with almost unrestricted virtual freedom. This is also applicable to the operating system used as most VPS are compatible with all of the popular types of OS’s in the market.

Potential Disadvantages

VPS don’t really have too many negative aspects. Nonetheless, one potential predicament could involve issues with software malfunctions. However, this shouldn’t be a problem so long as the webmaster has sufficient knowledge when it comes to server web hosting. In short, people who don’t know what they’re doing may want to opt for a simpler type of server solution as VPS is definitely not for the novice users. Otherwise, there shouldn’t be too many problems with using VPS.

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