When you embark on an online project, it is pretty complex for you to predict its success, so you are tempted to set off with a shared web hosting deal. It may be that you experienced no problems with a shared hosting service for some time. There might have been occasions, however, when you were entirely dissatisfied with the downtime. There might have been yet other occasions when someone got access to your website password and login, and obliterated your website from the server within no time. All that may have been tolerable for some time, when you were not really serious to see your venture become a true success, however it appears to be no longer true. Also, as your hosting needs enlarge over the course of time due to either a surge in the number of visitors or a need for improved functionality, it becomes crucial for you to consider other hosting options. One option may be to consider upgrading to a VPS hosting service. However, even a VPS hosting package may not be able to sustain the exponential growth pattern reflected by a rapid surge in the number of hits to your site.
This is most likely the time when the expansion of your online enterprise has reached such a level that you need a better web hosting option such as a dedicated hosting server. As a result, a dedicated hosting service appears to be a smart and viable option to you, because it can not only sustain your online growth but can also provide that additional functionality and protection needed by your project. This article is written with the purpose of giving you an idea of what a dedicated web hosting service can do to support your project growth. What follows describes the vital features of dedicated web hosting.
I. Complete Server with No Sharing
Dedicated web hosting implies that the hosting company hires out a whole server to you, which can then be used as dictated by your individual requirements. One of the major benefits of a dedicated server is that the server resources are fully at your disposal.
II. Customized Installations As per Requirements
Another benefit is that custom programs may be set up on the server.
III. Option to Modify Access Rights
In case you have provided access to other users to the applications that are set up on the server, they can also make use of those programs at the same time as you.
IV. No Upper Maximum on Data Transfer
Any website that has a huge user base is expected to profit immensely from a dedicated hosting package. This is because of the fact that there is generally no upper bound on the total amount of bandwidth for a site that resides on a dedicated server.
V. No Upper Limit on Achievable Customization
One of the greatest arguments quoted in favor of a dedicated hosting service is that it can be customized immensely. There are plenty of dedicated server hosting companies out there that give you complete flexibility in regards to the attainable level of customization.
VI. Flexible Options to Add Additional Features
Since a variety of features are available to the end-user to choose from, so you can select any particular features that are most important to you.
VII. A Variety of OSs to Choose from
You can choose the right type of Operating System which may prove to be the ideal platform for your Web applications. Two major operating systems namely Windows and Linux Red Hat are commonly offered by many dedicated hosting providers.
VIII. Choice of Control Panel
As far as the selection of the control panel is concerned, the two most popular brands offered by a great majority of providers include CPanel and Plesk. Although CPanel is the more widely used one, Plesk is also popular for a number of grounds and functions that are absent in CPanel.
IX. Reliable Service
Another reason for booming enterprises to opt for a dedicated hosting service is that it is highly stable. In view of the fact that the server is not divided into virtual partitions, there is no additional load on the system resources, on account of which the installed applications run exceedingly fast.
X. Maximum Speed
Due to Unlimited Bandwidth As no requests are originating for using the bandwidth other than the server, there is a steady data transfer from the site. A direct effect of this will be that visitors requesting access to your website via their browsers will be able to view your website almost instantly with the shortest possible delay.
XI. Tightened Security
A dedicated server hosting plan is also well known for its ability to handle any security risks as opposed to a shared hosting server. Since many user accounts reside on a shared web hosting server, it becomes relatively easy for a user to upload a malicious virus-infected file or program, which if goes unspotted by the installed antivirus, can infect your account as well. This cannot be exploited with a dedicated hosting server, in which you not only own an external hardware firewall to thwart intrusion attempts, but also have the capability to modify access rights to reinforce the security further. Because of this, with a dedicated server, you can enjoy a tension free sound sleep in the night knowing that no one can gain access to your server at any cost.
XII. Dedicated IP Address Eliminates Translation Software
Another significant advantage of a dedicated hosting plan is that your site is allocated a unique IP address, which can be recognized as soon as a visitor attempts to access the website URL. Apart from a small minority of companies which offer a unique IP address with their shared hosting plans at an added cost, the majority of providers do not offer this feature. A shared IP address, available with a shared hosting server, results in a relatively slower access to the website, owing to the fact that a separate software on the server identifies the partition to which the URL is assigned. Under normal circumstances, the URL translation operation with a shared IP address takes only a bit more time in contrast with a dedicated IP address, however it can increase appreciably under peak loads. This does not happen in the case of a dedicated server given that it does not need any translation software, with the result that the site loads at lightning speed.
XIII. Additional Protection for Data Because of Redundancy
The ability to install multiple hard drives on the server is another major benefit of a dedicated hosting server. The benefit of having more than one hard disk on the server is that the first one can be used as a primary device while the second one can be used as a backup medium. This adds a great deal of safety to your crucial business data and comes only with dedicated server hosting. One application of the extra storage medium may be to safeguard any crucial data your web applications might be generating, such as your customer credit card information. Moreover, the dedicated hosting provider may also give you the option of having a backup FTP account, the advantage of which is that you can reproduce critical data on it in parallel with the usage of your regular FTP account.
Conclusion
Given all the information presented in this article, it becomes fairly easy for you to pick a dedicated hosting provider which not only fulfils your needs but is also cost-effective. This may not be as hard as it seems to be once you have familiarized yourself with all the necessary information given by this article.
There are plenty of ways for selecting the right dedicated hosting company, and to be honest, there is no specific line of action that may be taken up in order to pinpoint the right one. Nevertheless, the important attributes and benefits of dedicated server hosting outlined in this article can go a long way towards the selection of the right company.
Michael Smith has years of know-how in hosting technologies and companies. He owns and operates a site Dedicated Web Hosts which offers articles on web hosting, information about hosting technologies, along with category wise reviews of some of the best hosting companies.