Dedicated server hosting is a service where users are provided with multiple resources specifically dedicated to their hosting requirements. Under dedicated server hosting, there is no sharing of resources; rather, the user gets to control resources such as bandwidth, RAM, or memory, upgrading or downgrading per their needs.
Dedicated server hosting is the best web hosting solution for websites that face a substantial amount of traffic, serve business-critical applications or host revenue-generating online stores. Dedicated hosting introduces significant advantages targeted at large, enterprise-level organizations that require vast amounts of computing resources.
But not all dedicated server hosting solutions are the same.
When looking for a dedicated server hosting provider, you must know what key features to consider and the benefits the provider could offer your business. Below, we have gathered a detailed list of the essential features of dedicated server hosting.
Server Management
Reliability is the key factor in why most SMEs choose dedicated server hosting as their web hosting solution. A fully managed dedicated server is supervised and maintained by a team of IT experts who provide excellent online presence and enterprise-grade site performance.
Shared hosting or VPS hosting can sometimes mean limited resources, but dedicated server hosting generally provides solid hosting support, meaning your site can outshine competitors.
Since you will be outsourcing server management, it will save your internal team a lot of time and effort, as your service provider will take care of application installation, OS updates, patching, and server monitoring. As for domain management, many people choose Godaddy or Namecheap.
Scalability
Most businesses, be they small or large, have ambitions to grow a larger customer base and increase revenues. But with a limited number of resources provided in cloud and shared hosting solutions, it can get really challenging to deal with high traffic spikes – and this is where a dedicated server is most in its element.
A dedicated host will provide 100% performance on demand. The server will typically have multiple roles – it may be a WordPress server with a MySQL database and an Apache and PHP front end. As the organization grows, there will be a massive amount of overhead available on the dedicated server.
If the business grows exponentially, beyond expectations, additional dedicated hosts can be added and the website applications can be separated onto different nodes to increase the overall performance of the platform.
Security
Security is a major concern for anyone using cloud hosting, and securing your web server is incredibly important. Businesses face a huge number of challenges in preventing their server infrastructure from being breached.
A security breach can halt business operations, damage reputations, and cause organizations significant revenue loss. Security is the main highlight of dedicated server hosting, as a dedicated environment provides unparalleled protection and accessibility to install security software like firewalls, anti-malware programs, and more. Moreover, it also allows for security patches and easy upgrades to offer strong security and protection against attacks or undesirable intrusion.
Look for a dedicated hosting provider that offers web app security, SSL certificates, spam filtering, dedicated IP addresses, DDoS protection, and intrusion prevention.
Administrative Access and Server Configuration
Dedicated servers offer administrative access to install and configure any software programs needed to meet your business operations. The user is in complete control of what functions the dedicated server is to provide.
Dedicated servers also have low maintenance costs as a team of server experts takes care of all the maintenance including caching software, anti-spam filters, etc. for flawless performance. The network layer is provided as a managed service, leaving the user to concentrate on the dedicated server.
High Availability
The hosting provider implements enterprise-level technology to protect your dedicated server as well as possible. The physical servers are protected by around-the-clock monitoring, redundant power, network, and storage connectivity.
The interconnect hardware that powers the server is managed by the hosting provider, ensuring excellent uptimes as high as 99.9%, guaranteed by SLAs. As a dedicated server customer, you do not need to worry about how the rest of the infrastructure hangs together; all that technical wizardry is maintained by the provider.
Operating System Choices
With dedicated server hosting, users can install operating systems that suit their business operations.
The web applications built for your business operations might demand the use of a specific OS such as Linux or Windows Server OS. In such cases, most dedicated server hosting providers allow you to run the OS your business requires.
Hardware Choices
Since dedicated servers can be costlier when compared to shared hosting, make sure to look for a hosting provider that offers various hardware options. This ensures that the hardware setup you choose meets the performance and capacity requirements of your business.
Users must be able to choose from a variety of options such as the number of cores, CPU model, RAM size, hard disk capacity, bandwidth, RAID, CPU speed, type of RAM, and so on. Hosting providers typically band their various hardware offerings, usually ranked by performance.
Specific use case servers are also available, including ultra-high memory servers for Deep Learning and AI, or ultra-fast CPU servers designed to crunch huge volumes of corporate information in a clustered database.
Control Panel Options
Feature-rich control panels make it easier to run and manage your server and web applications together. Most dedicated hosting providers offer great control panel options such as Plesk, cPanel, and WHM, which are flexible and allow easy control of operations.
These automation tools allow users to manage and accomplish important tasks of their site quickly and conveniently. Through a control panel, users can set up powerful spam filters, create and manage email accounts, web-based applications, manage databases, manage domains, and handle file management.
Top-Tier Technical Support:
There are times when your IT team may require technical support from the dedicated server hosting provider for troubleshooting. Most hosting providers offer solid, round-the-clock technical support via chat, email, phone, or ticket.
Technical support refers to a team of IT experts that are available 24*7 to provide convenient solutions to your site’s IT issues. Since they have the necessary expertise, they will most likely solve any potential site issues or server setting problems that may arise.
Apart from this, some of the hosting providers also provide helpful resources such as informational blogs, forums, knowledge bases, etc. for their customers.
Should I Choose Dedicated Hosting, Shared Hosting, or Virtual Private Hosting?
When it comes to hosting services, there are three basic options to choose from. Understanding the differences between the platforms can allow you to make the best decision for your specific business needs.
Shared Hosting: This type of plan can be thought of as a group purchase. Let us imagine that back in college, you and your three roommates bought a television for the common room. The cost to each of you was much lower since you all pitched in. However, you had to split the use of the television because you all were part owners of it. But, if your other roommates were not television junkies, then you made a pretty good deal, as it would not always be in use. The same fundamentals apply to shared hosting. You, along with several other entities, purchase the use of the same server to host your website. Fortunately, like your roommates, these hundreds of other websites may or may not have enough substantial use, or traffic, that ties up the server.
Virtual Private Hosting: VPS Hosting option takes properties of both shared and dedicated hosting. If we refer back to our television example, we can relate the television to a single server. It is one physical machine. There is a virtual solution to the dilemma that may occur if each roommate wanted to use the television or have different settings, which is if the television’s software allowed the screen to be split into four different spaces. This would let you and your roommates watch what you each wanted and how you wanted but in the confines of the one television. This is essentially virtual private hosting, splitting one server into multiple servers. Special software enables companies to purchase their own private space on a server, providing more control, but still limited by the capacity of a single server.
Dedicated Hosting: A dedicated server is one that you solely own, not shared by any other company. If you and your college roommates each bought your own television, you could consider it a dedicated television. Although the cost would be greater because you purchased it on your own, you are in control of the television and can customize it how you like. This is the principle behind dedicated hosting. This option is ideal for companies with high volumes of traffic, creating the need for greater bandwidth and more space. A dedicated server can create a better user experience by decreasing the chances of downtime and increasing performance speed.
Conclusion
Dedicated server hosting is the perfect hosting solution for resource-intensive websites that require a wide array of features for excellent website performance.
Dedicated servers offer better operational flexibility, scalability, enhanced administrative control, and so much more. It offers impeccable support to businesses and helps them grow at scale.
