Article  Pros and Cons of a Dedicated Web Server Many web hosting companies and other service providers for online businesses will recommend you have a dedicated web server for your website. However, this subject is one that you should be sure you know more about than simply someone's recommendation before you decide. Otherwise you are at risk of being very unhappy with your website hosting plan. A dedicated web server is just what it sounds like, a server that has just your website (or websites) on it. It is also known as managed hosting, because it is basically a setup where you have your own server, even though someone else manages it for you. This differs from regular hosting, known as shared hosting, because normally people with smaller accounts are set up on the same server, with partitions to separate their websites from one another. In a shared server situation, all the clients on that server have limits on the amount of data they store on the server, and the amount of bandwidth, or traffic, their sites get. These limits enable everyone to share a server and keep their costs lower than they would otherwise. Although it would immediately seem that this would make a dedicated web server a much smarter choice, there are both pros and cons of having your own server. Below are the reasons both for and against having your own server. Pro: More storage space. A server has a lot of storage space on it, most of which you will never even know is there if you have a shared hosting plan. That's because there are many clients on the same server, with partitions to separate your files from everyone else's. Having your own server means freeing up all that space for your use alone. Con: Higher overall costs. A server costs money to buy, maintain, and run. The server has to have secure and usually redundant (meaning more than one, in case one fails) power sources and connections to the Internet. Since you don't have anyone to share the costs with, that means your expenses are considerably higher when the server is all your own. Pro: Faster page loading times. Since the server isn't clogged up with everybody else's stuff, your pages will load much faster. Faster loading pages means happier visitors and potential customers. Con: The difference in load times isn't incredibly huge. The difference in load times between a page on a shared server and a page on a dedicated server is measured in tiny increments, too small for most customers to notice. Unless you have really large files, chances are your visitors will never know the difference. Pro: More control over your server. Not only do you not have to worry about what someone else is doing with their partition on the server, you have more say over what operating software the server runs. Obviously there are good reasons why you should have your own dedicated server, but there are also many reasons why you shouldn't spend the extra money. Your decision ought to be based on your unique situation. What kind of business are you running? Do you need lots of storage space, or can you benefit from faster page load times? If so, a dedicated web server might be the right choice for you. But you also will need to consider whether you can afford the additional cost of having your own server. Weigh these factors carefully before making a decision you might regret. Category Internet Author Anonymous Add To Favorites Print This Article Email Article To A Friend Post Comments   Rate This Article (0) 1 - Poor2345 - Good678910 - Excellent Added On 01-21-2010