What is Dedicated Hosting?
Dedicated hosting is a hosting solution where the client leases or rents the server and the hosting services associated with it. It is called dedicated in a sense that – unlike other hosting solutions where a number of websites gets to share the resources of a single server – the client gets the exclusive use of the server and all its resources including the disk space, the RAM and the CPU.
One good thing with dedicated hosting, aside from the fact that you get exclusive use of the server’s resources, is that the client gets full and total control over the server. Although the hosting provider owns the server and the licenses of the software within it, the client gets full root/admin access to the server giving him full control over the server including the installation of extra applications that the client needs.Once the deal is sealed, the service provider simply keeps its hands off the management tasks associated with the server and lets the client take charge.
This arrangement is so beneficial for large and medium-sized companies who want to exercise full control and authority over server while at the same time assuring the security of the server.
How can dedicated hosting be beneficial to my website?
Dedicated hosting can bring a lot of benefits to websites in a number of ways. These are among the ways that dedicated hosting can be beneficial to your website:
One, with dedicated hosting, you need not spend a significant amount of money for the purchase of a top-of-the-line hardware and the licenses of the operating system and other software for the server;
Two, you stay totally in control over your server, giving you the freedom over the choice of the server’s computing power and other resources such as RAM and disk space including the choice of the operating system and the applications needed. This also holds true for the much needed customized system configurations according to your website’s needs;
Three, your server shall be ensured of a powerful, reliable and optimal performance, day in and day out; and
Four, your server is assured of better security and stability as nobody else has access to it but you yourself.
Can dedicated hosting be disadvantageous to a website?
Of course, yes. Dedicated hosted is not a perfect technology and as such can also bring a number of disadvantages to a website. The most commonly identified disadvantages are as follows:
Among the biggest disadvantage with dedicated hosting is its cost. Compared to other hosting solutions, dedicated hosting is certainly more expensive. This is because you alone shoulder the cost of running and managing an entire server, sharing the burden with no one else. This is the price of your independence and autonomy with your server.
Another disadvantage with dedicated hosting is that clients shoulder a greater responsibility in terms of server management and other system tasks. This means that clients should have a working technical knowledge on servers and its operations. Dedicated hosting is a hands-on job for server administrators.
Clients may also need to spend additional amount of money for the salary of an in-house IT staff. This is true with clients who need assistance in the operation and management of their servers.
Despite the fact that you have the whole resources to yourself, ensuring a reliable and fast performance, your server could also experience significant amounts of downtime especially if you do not have basic troubleshooting skills and you have no in-house technical staff to troubleshoot for you.
Is dedicated hosting a good idea?
Dedicated hosting is certainly a dream come true especially for websites who wishes to exercise autonomy and independence over their servers and their resources. This is also very ideal for websites who expect a lot of heavy traffic and wants enough room to flex their muscles but are not yet ready to take the plunge into investing a sizeable amount of money for the purchase of their own server.
