When space is allocated on the physical server hardware to host a website’s code, data, content, etc., it is known as Website Hosting. Now, how your website interacts with the server space depends on the nature of your website and your work. Depending on your requirement, you will need to buy a specific hosting plan that suits your needs.
In this article, we will be comparing Dedicated Server Hosting and Cloud Server Hosting.
What is Dedicated Web Server Hosting?
When the complete space in physical server hardware is allocated to a specific website, it is known as Dedicated Web Hosting. Here, there is no sharing of the facility provided by the server with any other website.
What is Cloud Web Server Hosting?
Cloud Hosting is an arrangement when your website’s code, data, etc. is spread out across multiple physical server locations which then acts as a coordinated single server space.
Which is better for your business?
The server that suits you will depend on your business requirements and specifications of the technology that your work will need.
Here some factors that will help you decide -:
- Performance:
Dedicated Servers store and process all the data of your website locally which results in faster processing. You can run heavy functions and complex algorithms on your website's data and yet there will be no lag.
In cloud hosting, the retrieval of information takes time as since infrastructure is divided, there is extra processing in accessing all the data and this might bring latency.
If you are a big corporation that involves processor-intensive functions, have too large data, or need heavy performance from your website even if the traffic goes very high, a Dedicated server should be the preferred option for you. But if you are a growing small or medium-sized company that doesn’t need very high performance, a Cloud server will be a better option for you.
- Scalability:
There is a lot of difference in the aspect of scalability in Cloud and Dedicated server.
Dedicated server capacities are large generally but there are fixed specifications which mean that capacity is limited to physical hardware there is in the server. You can add disk space, RAM, processor, etc. but that will require a lot of time and effort and will also cause downtime.
Whereas, Cloud Hosting is considered the most smooth in terms of scalability. It is a virtual environment and the server is divided. As your traffic grows, you can easily scale up by adding more computing facilities or vice-versa. Another benefit is that the scaling can be temporary too in case you are expecting high traffic for a very short period.
If you are an established enterprise that is clear about your requirements, the traffic you expect to receive, Dedicated Hosting will be a better plan for you but if you are a high growth company that faces a lot of volatility, Cloud Hosting will be an optimum plan for you.
- Migration:
Both Cloud & Dedicated server hosting perform the migration without much hassle but the challenges one faces in both are different. Dedicated Hosting requires more planning and needs a realistic understanding of both current and future requirements.
In Cloud Hosting, the biggest challenge is compatibility. One needs to ensure that a program that runs on a single physical server will also run when the website is shifted into a cloud where it runs from multiple physical spaces. Apart from the technical compatibility, the licenses should also allow for such migration to take place.
- Security:
It’s very difficult to breach security in a Dedicated server because the complete hardware is dedicated to your website and the resources are not shared. Cloud Hosting is a little more vulnerable. Yet, the onus of managing security in Dedicated Hosting is on you(unless you have bought an additional Managed plan) whereas, in Cloud Hosting, the onus on security lies on the hosting provider.
The plan that fits you will be also decided by the nature of the data. Companies that have data involving financial transactions and need confidentiality to protect that data prefer a Dedicated Web Server Hosting Plan.
- Management & Control:
Expanding on the discussion of the security aspect, the complete management of the server rests entirely on your shoulder in a Dedicated Hosting arrangement unless you have bought a managed plan in which the server management is done by the hosting provider company. Also, you have full control over the resources.
In Cloud Hosting, most of the management and control of the server is done by the server provider themselves.
- Cost:
A Dedicated Server is more expensive than a Cloud Server as it provides more control over the resources. Cloud is cheaper and good for beginners and small players who need more flexibility in scaling. With proper planning, the money you will pay in Cloud Hosting will mostly be at par with the traffic you get. You get more traffic, you will scale up. You get less traffic, you will reduce the features.
In a Dedicated Server, your costs won’t reduce just because the traffic on your website is less for a few days since you have to maintain that entire infrastructure.
Thus Cloud seems cost-saving, yet, as you grow the marginal benefits of Cloud start to reduce as you will be looking to expand capacity as after a point, you will add more data, traffic, code, images, etc. and the scaling on Cloud would become expensive at which point you would want a permanent Dedicated Server Hosting.
- Customization:
Since you are in control of the server, there is a lot more room for customization on what you want for your website. How many e-mail accounts you want? How many domains & sub-domains you want? How do you want your data to be structured? As your business develops, these requirements will change, and Dedicated Hosting will provide you more freedom on how to navigate through these requirements.
- Integration:
This is an aspect where Cloud Hosting is preferred as it provides more support if you want your server to integrate with utility-based tools whereas, in Dedicated Hosting Servers, you may have to pay extra for such integration.
- Reliability:
A Cloud Server is considered way more reliable as the data is stored across multiple physical locations and a technical fault in even one of the servers won’t create many issues on the live functioning of your website.
- Backup:
It is always easy to store data on a cloud than on a physical device. This doesn’t mean a Dedicated Hosting doesn’t provide backup, it does, but compared to cloud hosting, it will be a little hassle.
Conclusion-:
There is no right or wrong choice in planning your server hosting plans. In the end, it will boil down to the requirements of your work. You need to have an honest understanding of how much growth you expect and what direction you will have.
If you are a budding firm in a high growth phase that wants to optimize on the budget and is prone to uncertainty in the market, Cloud Hosting will be the solution for you.
If you are a big corporate house that is already a household name and can have a high budget but have zero compromises on the features, Dedicated Web Server Hosting will be ideally suited for you.
Sunday, August 30, 2020