Pros and Cons of a Virtual Private Server (VPS)
A Virtual Private Server (VPS) is one of the newer and most popular forms of web hosting today and it’s a hybrid of shared and dedicated hosting that offers the best of both worlds to users. If you are looking to buy a VPS then we look at the pros and cons of owning your own virtual private server in this article.
What is VPS?
A virtual private server (VPS) is a popular hosting service that you can select for your website. It leverages virtualization technology to mimic dedicated server environments within a shared server. If you buy a VPS then it is a more secure and stable solution compared to shared hosting where you don’t have a dedicated server for your website. Even an expensive VPS is smaller in scale and more affordable than renting an entire server. A virtual private server is a perfect solution for those website owners who don’t have high traffic and have exceeded the limitations of a shared hosting plan but don’t require the sources of a dedicated server. At IndSoft Systems, we offer six unique VPS hosting plans that are designed to offer a stable, secure and reliable hosting experience on the most robust networks, at the fraction of the cost of dedicated servers.
Pros of VPS
- Cost-Effective
A virtual private server is more affordable compared to a dedicated server thanks to the shared hardware resources and lower costs to cool and power the server. This is in addition to savings from not buying software licenses, paying employees or contractors to build and maintain the servers.
- Improved Performance
One of the biggest advantages of using VPS is its improved performance. It offers a larger set of resources such as more bandwidth and storage and even better technology in some cases. This ensures that your website has faster page loading speeds and the visitors to your website have a smooth and lag-free experience which results in lower bounce rates.
- Improved Reliability
On a shared server, if another website gets an increase in traffic then your website would experience performance issues due to the shared resources. Buying a VPS from a reputed hosting provider such as IndSoft guarantees the highest uptime possible for your website and a virtual private server provides you with a dedicated environment and resources so other websites won’t have an effect on the experience of your visitors.
- Easy to scale
The goal of any business is to grow bigger. Some grow at a slower pace compared to others who grow exponentially within a short period of time. As your business continues to grow, so will your website and it will need an upgrade eventually. A virtual private server allows you to scale up your allotted resources if you experience an increase or decrease in traffic as per your requirements of resources such as CPU, memory and disk space. This is not possible with traditional dedicated servers where you face long delays and downtime while the hardware is upgraded and potential issues with your website if data migration is required.
- Install only the Operating System and Software that you require
There are limitations related to configuring your server when you choose a shared hosting plan. Since the web host has total command and chooses the OS and applications that they want to use and you have to agree with it because you have no choice. VPS offers you various operating systems to choose from and an auto-installer for some common development applications.
- Choose the services as per your requirement
A shared hosting plan has little to offer other than some space to run and store your website. Whereas VPS offers you the flexibility to choose any plan that suits your needs so you don’t have to overpay for features that you don’t need. A VPS plan also comes in two options — managed and unmanaged. An unmanaged plan offers you the full freedom for configuring and maintaining your server. You can also opt for a managed plan where a web host takes care of everything for you so you can focus on your business.
Cons of VPS
- Less powerful than dedicated servers
A virtual private server might be perfect for personal websites or applications but if you plan to run a huge website for your business and an application that uses a lot of resources, then you will require a dedicated server that won’t be shared with anyone else.
- Hardware limitations
There may be multiple VPS servers running at the same time and competing for resources on a physical server so if even one server is utilizing the bulk of the CPU or ram power then it can slow down the entire server which will increase the server response time for your website. Although software mitigates this problem up to some extent, it is still possible for short periods of time.
- Increased responsibility
It costs lower than a dedicated server but buying a VPS comes with great responsibility. Under a managed plan the web host will take care of your website but if you opt for an unmanaged plan then every facet related to software installations, site maintenance and site security among many others will be your responsibility. A shared plan works similar to a managed plan in this aspect but you will need more technical knowledge to manage and maintain a virtual private server.
- Reduced control
Some VPS platform’s users share software components. This could possibly result in an inability to configure settings independently of clients that are hosting on the same VPS.
- Disk I/O
If you are running applications that are heavy users of disk I/O and require large transfers of data to and from the physical disk then a physical dedicated server would serve you better than a VPS.
- Increased Risks
Owning a virtual private server has its set of advantages and challenges that come with it. One such challenge is you share your IP address with other users on the same server. Websites that are hosted on the same IP address are sometimes grouped together which could result in your website being banned from search engines that are looking to ban unwanted websites. So it is necessary that you have your own IP address when you buy a VPS.
Conclusion
VPS plans by IndSoft
There are many pros and cons associated with a virtual private server that you must weigh while choosing a hosting plan that will aid in helping you achieve your goals according to your budget and target audience. If you decide that VPS is what you’re looking for then consider an established and reputed such as IndSoft Systems to host your website. IndSoft Systems is a leading internet infrastructure company offering ground-breaking solutions built specifically to power the real-time internet economy. Our team comprises industry experts across various areas of expertise such as web design, app development, SEO, and other tech-related professionals. IndSoft has been the torch-bearer of innovation and digital transformation in the industry for over two decades and offers ground-breaking solutions from web to cloud hosting which are tailored fit according to your organization’s needs. We guarantee the use of the best technology, robust infrastructure and high-tech support to deliver clients with the most satisfactory cloud experience and you can visit indsoft.net to avail yourself services from the industry leaders at the most competitive rates.
