This post is about the benefits of web hosting. Which will later be followed by the detailed comparison of the various types of web hosting which includes shared hosting vs VPS hosting vs dedicated hosting vs cloud hosting?
Web hosting:
What is web hosting? To put it simply: it is the place where your website will accommodate. Or it can also be put in technical terms this way: Web hosting allows us to put all our website content up on the internet then it allows everyone to view what we upload on there. Now whether it’s a professional website, a blog, or just some pictures it doesn’t matter. And if you don’t get hosting for your website all the website content will go unseen as no one will have access to that except for you.
Not only professionals but also the ones who have just a tidbit knowledge about websites must be well aware of the importance of web hosting. If the domain name is the address to your website then web hosting is the land or space for your business. When Internet users want to view your website, all they need to do is type your website address or domain into their browser. Their computer will then automatically connect them to your server and your web pages will be delivered to them through the browser.
Why it’s confusing to select right hosting package?
There are four types of web hosting.
- Shared Hosting.
- Dedicated Hosting.
- VPS Hosting.
- Cloud Hosting.
All four of them are unique in their own way. And have drawbacks of their own. One is expensive and the other one is cheaper. One is simple to operate but the other one is a bit complex. Some hostings are good for beginners and the other are for professionals. However, all of these hosting account types are similar in the fact that they all give you a web server to run your website on. They vary in how they are setup, the features they offer, and the level of customization you can have with each one.This is why it’s difficult to decide the right hosting package according to our website. Well! no more worries as we have you covered on this issue. All you have to do is read the lines below very carefully and surely you’ll get to some conclusions at the end.
So let’s move on to critically analyze them by getting to know about their pros and cons in between.
Shared hosting:
As defined by the name itself shared web hosting is about sharing your resources (data, memory, CPU time, disk space) with others. Shared hosting means your website is located on the same server and hard drive as a whole lot of other websites. But the best part is that this sharing 99% doesn’t affect any individual’s access. There your site might go down for a while but that’s rare. Shared web hosting is one of the most economical approaches, often as little as $5 per site monthly hence declared as one of the cheapest hostings. A shared hosting account comes with access to a control panel for your website folders, files, and applications such as WordPress or PrestaShop. From there, you can manage the most common website needs, including databases, email accounts, server logs, and (limited) server analytics.
Pros of Shared hosting:
- It is usually for beginners when they avoid denser coded hostings and shared hosting has minimum complexities.
- It requires the least amount of tech knowledge and financial investment.
- You can also create subdomains and enjoy various benefits of a standard control panel, depending on which features your host makes available.
Cons of Shared hosting:
- In Shared hosting security is not guaranteed. You don’t know who else is using the same server, so if one site has a memory leak or is hacked, your site could be affected as well.
- Storage and bandwidth are limited.
- There’s no server control hence performance is affected.
Who should use Shared Hosting?
To put it simply, this is for people who don’t need more than this. If you are OK with sharing your resources with others and are comfortable with the progress despite being sharing than why bother going to more expensive and private hostings. This should be the perfect and enough for you.
VPS hosting:
Virtual Private Server is a virtualized server. VPS web hosting has attributes of both dedicated web hosting as well as shared web hosting. This means that VPS hosting gives you the affordability of shared hosting while at the same time giving you more power and control like a dedicated server. It has several customization options and better performance options among its competitors. And as with any paid service, a more expensive plan offers more premium features, VPS hosting has same rights reserved for them.
Pros of VPS hosting:
- VPS has quite enough private disk space and overall resource availability.
- It ensures your site’s security with more robust safety features that are only available through VPS hosting.
- As you don’t share your OS with anyone else, there are no other websites on your server that potentially have access to your files.
Cons of VPS hosting:
- VPS-hosted websites are often more complex in terms of resource management and therefore will usually require a specific system administrator to focus on maintaining the server.
- If you choose an unmanaged VPS, it may be difficult to configure, taking longer to get your website up and running.
- It’s more expensive than shared hosting.
Who should use VPS hosting?
Virtual Private Server is for those who need a cloud server to a better workflow or looking to host unlimited websites. Because VPS packages can even allow SMEs to use a cloud server for work. Which can be accessed from anywhere over the internet. And reduces the impact of the workload on the physical desktops in the office.
Dedicated hosting:
This is also wisely named after it’s attributed. Dedicated web hosting is when your website is stored on a single physical server dedicated to your own personal use. And since you don’t share the server with anyone, you have full rights to the resources of the server, and you can configure the hosting environments to your exact specifications. This hosting is a bit expensive as mentioned already that these expenses are totally worth it as you get very high performance and a higher level of security compared to other forms of hosting.
Pros of Dedicated hosting:
- Since you have full access to all settings that’s why you can completely customize the server to suit your website’s need
- It’s completely secure. And as you are the only one using the server, you don’t have to worry about the neighborhood effects that are common with shared hosting.
- These hosting providers make sure that the money you put in is worth spending as they provide 24/7 support for your site’s better performance.
Cons of Dedicated hosting:
- First of all, it’s the most expensive among other web hostings.
- It has a complex setup process.
- You need skilled technical staff to maintain and optimize the server.
Who should use Dedicated hosting?
Dedicated hosting arrangement facilitates the ones who have limited sources. As you do not have to pay for an entire server room. And as an HVAC system or a full-time service administrator, you only pay for the facilities that you use. Your service provider takes care of upgrades and patches to your hosting environment.
Cloud hosting:
Cloud web hosting is initially based on the concept of cloud computing technologies. That allows an unlimited number of machines to act as one system. This means that instead of a website being hosted on a single server. It’s hosted on a virtual partition of a server. And draws its resources from a network of existing servers. Cloud hosting allows multiple servers to work together and to handle high traffic levels or spikes for any particular website. Even though here you have to share resources with other users, but because there are more servers involved, there are more resources available to everyone.
Pros of Cloud hosting:
- This hosting is cot efficient.
- Cloud hosting provides you an ultra-fast, auto scalable, and easily customizable platform.
- This is basically for businesses who generally tend to receive
Cons of Cloud hosting:
- Cloud hosting also needs advance knowledge to operate.
- Cloud hosting isn’t an easy solution to set up and start using right away, even for developers.
- Since you are sharing resources with other there’s a slight possibility of insecurity.
Who should use Cloud hosting?
Cloud hosting is often a solution for websites that have outgrown the resources of their existing shared hosting provider. If a website is extremely popular and causes a strain on the resources supplied by a shared server, you may need to find another i.e., cloud hosting.
Summing it all: To choose right web hosting might have seemed a lot more difficult in beginning. But once you go through the details of all four types of web hosting it’ll become easier to choose the right option.
For more such articles visit Webful Creations.
