If you don't like the sound of shared hosting or have tried it out before and no longer feel it meets your needs, you may be tempted by a VPS or virtual private server. VPS hosting has become very popular over recent years and requires companies with more stability and reliability when they have basic or modest hosting needs. The reputation of shared web hosting has taken a hit over recent years due to the amount of companies overloading their servers with hundreds and thousands of sites, leading to decreased performance.
One good reason for leaving shared hosting behind in favor of VPS is that you can be negatively impacted by the behavior of other site owners when you opt for the former. If one site crashes, yours will suffer a similar fate. In many ways, you are depending on the quality of the people you are sharing the server with. With a VPS, you will still be sharing the server but the behavior of others won't have the same impact on yours. Your website will be hosted on a container, which makes it separate from other sites and means you won't be affected by other sites taking up too many resources. You can easily add or remove resources from your part of the server when needed. Just one click of a button can give you more RAM so you can cater for an upturn in visitors.
Falling prices for quality solutions
VPS hosting solutions are also much cheaper than they were even in the recent past. You could get a decent VPS package for just $10 per month, which is the same price that you'll pay for many shared services without the performance problems and risks you're likely to face with shared hosting. It's a good idea to spend time researching the market and finding out who the most reputable hosted providers are before you sign on the dotted line. You may wish to consider at least four or five different providers prior to coming to a decision.
What disadvantages should I be aware of?
There are a few disadvantages to be aware of when it comes to VPS. As your site will have its own operating system and software, the web host will have a tough job providing the up-time you're depending on whilst maintaining the system. If a security or software problem occurs, bigger issues can follow it, and managing the sever when traffic levels are high can be tough as resources are taken on the minimum requirements.
When you are using VPS, it's a good idea to only install programmes that are particularly important. This will lead to better access times, and what's more is that only installing the programmes you need can help you to keep costs down. If you have grown beyond shared hosting level or expect traffic levels to increase in the near future, VPS may well be for you. Security standards are high, so a VPS could be useful if you're dealing with confidential data. If you are adding more employees to your team, the higher e-mail capacity provided by VPS could be helpful. VPS can also be of real value when you have plans to host multiple sites, applications and blogs. You can expect to be given a high level of bandwidth and the chance to upgrade and downgrade subscriptions whenever you need to, with relative ease.
VPS offers greater resource availability than shared hosting and a better standard of file system and compartmentalization. It may be time to upgrade to VPS at your earliest opportunity if you're ready to take your site to the next level, you require extra control, your site has started to have bigger CPU and RAM demands, your e-mail requirements are growing and you wish to be able to customize appearance and settings more effectively. There are many reputable companies on the market who can cater for your VPS needs. Just remember to avoid opting for the cheapest service you can find as chances are you won't be provided with the high-quality solutions that you are depending on. Why not see which options are available to you today if you're ready to upgrade to VPS?
