Web hosting is a service that enables users to make their websites and web pages available online for others to see. While it’s not impossible to host a site yourself, the amount of bandwidth necessary as well as raw processing power makes it incredibly difficult if not impractically pricey. Typically users have two options when deciding on a web hosting service; shared web hosting and dedicated server hosting. Choosing the right one is a matter of the amount of control the user wants to have and the degree of responsibility that the user wants assigned to themselves.
Shared
As the name suggests, web hosting involves small-scale users uploading their websites onto a single server. This is commonly the choice of beginners, independents, and small businesses and organizations. Essentially shared hosting is ideal for sites with low requirement of bandwidth and disk space. This is used when users don’t anticipate much incoming traffic.
In shared web server hosting organization, maintenance, software installation, security, et cetera are the responsibility of web hosts. They employ sophisticated software that help craft powerful control panels for the overall governance of the server. The ultimate benefit of this arrangement is cost and lack of responsibility on the part of the user in maintaining successful control over hosting. .
Dedicated
In dedicated web hosting each website is given their own web server. This server is individual to them and can allow for any OS and high volumes of traffic. It is used when a user expects lots of visitors, and as such is meant primarily for big businesses and other large entities. It has much greater bandwidth then a shared server so it’s able to handle traffic much easier.
With a dedicated server unlimited bandwidth is no sweat. It also means website security can be individualized. Dedicated servers allow the user to have complete control with complete responsibility to run their website smoothly and consistently. Due to this dedicated servers require proper management from an IT staff or staff member to monitor and fix problems immediately to allow for traffic to remain steady.
When you’re just starting out, nothing more than a hosted server is necessary. But as the sophistication of your website and business grow so will the demand for a dedicated server. Consider the upgrade a sign of success. Make sure the added responsibility doesn’t result in financial failure. If you’ve gotten that far you shouldn’t have a problem
