In business, staying on top of the cutting edge of technology is important to provide the services, the speed and the access to information needed through email, a website or web applications. Choosing between shared and dedicated server hosting is an important consideration and one that really can make a difference.
Shared Server
A shared server hosting program is usually the lowest cost option for a company or business. It is a good idea if you have a very limited online presence, aren’t using a lot of cloud-based applications, and only have basic email and other types of data requirements.
With shared servers several companies will all use a component of a server, similar to renting an office as compared to owning and using the entire building. Some businesses may be using more of the server than others, and sometimes this can result in slowdowns and other issues.
Dedicated Servers
To use the same example as above, dedicated server hosting is when you own and use the entire building all on your own. Your company has an exclusive server that is maintained by the hosting company, and it is developed to your specific needs. This can include the amount of RAM, disk space, CPU and other resources you may require.
There are several advantages to this for business. By looking at each one, it is easy to see why the dedicated option is better for a large number of companies of all sizes.
- Security – there is always a concern with internet security when there are multiple entities accessing a server. With a shared server malware, spammers, blacklisted websites cannot impact your website, email or online reputation.
- Speed – with a dedicated server you have complete control over the amount of use of the server. This means that there won’t be the unexpected use of bandwidth or a lot of data processing through the server that may cause your website to load slowly, connections to be dropped, or apps to run extremely slow.
- Scalability – a lot is talked about today about how cloud-based services offer scalability for business. The good news is that with dedicated server hosting the same factor is often in play, particularly with a top hosting service. You can start at a lower level and increased your server needs as your business grows.
Choosing a dedicated server through a top hosting service is a good option for many businesses. It is also well worth comparing features and benefits to the small difference in price between this top level option and the potentially more problematic shared server option.