December 19th, 2016
Web page hosting can be done on many platforms, including more traditional methods like dedicated and shared servers, and more recent additions to the mix, like cloud-hosted servers. What sets these three web hosting methods apart is their efficiency. As many businesses have tight budgets allocated for website servicing, there are some things to consider when choosing the proper hosting way.
Dedicated Servers
Dedicated web page hosting users pay for the use of at least one whole server. This gives them the ability to control the servers' resources, but it has a limited amount of bandwidth, CPA, drive space, and RAM.
Shared Servers
Shared hosting is more commonly used among small or medium-sized companies that do not have robust websites in need of extra attention. The company will pay for a finite amount of space on one server, which is shared by several other sites. The service company, in this case, is responsible for server maintenance. This is a cost-efficient, low-maintenance option that works well for some companies.
The Downside
Shared web page hosting services, especially shared servers, have significant drawbacks. Increased traffic on the websites that your company shares a server with can lead to poor performance of your own site, and if your individual website traffic increases, you will have to purchase more storage space on the server. Security breaches among these sites are also more likely to affect yours as well. Finally, if the server goes down, so do all of the websites that it hosts.
For dedicated servers, you must have staff on-hand that can take on any server glitches. While these servers are more easily predictable, since they are only responsible for hosting your website, in many cases, the cost of hiring IT maintenance personnel outweighs the convenience.
Cloud Servers
Cloud hosting combats the downfalls of both traditional web hosting methods. Since the storage space is virtual, companies can provide more or less space on an on-demand and as-needed basis.
When hosting a website using the cloud, multiple servers are used to balance out the possibility of server failure. When a cloud service hosts your website, you are not responsible for maintaining any of the hardware, eliminating the need for on-site IT maintenance specialists.
Because the cloud-hosted servers are more resilient, they can support multiple websites, like a shared server. However, they do not suffer from the same performance issues, so your website will not go down.
After switching to cloud hosting, 82% of businesses reported saving money. Cloud web hosting companies can maintain your sites and keep servers up to provide the most convenient, low-maintenance web hosting to suit your business' needs.