Advantages of a Dedicated Server

August 1st, 2009

Purchasing a dedicated server for your business website or online shop is probably one of the best things you could ever do for it as it will allow you to increase the reliability of your website as well as promise higher levels of security to your customers. The advantages of dedicated server hosting are able to benefit businesses massively, and although the cost may be off-putting to some the advantages do make it easy to justify the amount that you are expected to pay; it is a good idea to take into consideration that the higher the specification of your dedicated server, the more you will have to pay for it. However, regardless of whether you choose to go for a Windows dedicated server or a Linux dedicated server you will need to decide on how you wish for your server to be managed; if you are experienced with managing the server operating system that you have chosen to use then you can choose an unmanaged dedicated server and save yourself some money, but if you are a complete novice then managed dedicated server web hosting is recommended.

How can I check how good a web hosting provider’s customer service is?

If you are going to go for a fully managed dedicated servers then it would be best for you if you try and find out just how good the level of support that a web hosting provider has to offer is; you will be paying extra in order to receive full support, and if the level of customer service offered isn’t that good then it will be wasted money. The main and most pain free way to check how good the customer service offered by a web hosting provider is by checking the many third-party web hosting reviews websites that are available; if customers have had a bad experience with the support offered by a particular web hosting provider then most will feel compelled to leave a negative review. The second way to do this is by opening a pre-sales ticket with any web hosting provider that you may be considering so that you can see if you receive a response; if you do receive a response then you can see just how friendly and helpful it is – if a web hosting provider isn’t going to put any effort into pre-sales tickets then they aren’t likely to be better when it comes to customer support tickets.

Is there any way in which I can learn to manage my own server?

If you require dedicated server hosting but don’t have the skills to manage a dedicated server properly and can’t afford a managed dedicated server then the only route for you to go is to purchase an unmanaged dedicated server and then learn the necessary management skills yourself. By using search engines you will be able to find a large number of third-party websites that should be able to offer you the information that you need on how to achieve certain tasks with your dedicated server. However, you should be careful in all cases because one wrong move could have a bad effect on your dedicated server which could result in your dedicated server needing an OS reload; because of the fact that a dedicated server is a physical server, you will have to pay for that server reload. Likewise, depending on the size of your web hosting provider they may be able to offer you some guidance through their knowledgebase if they have one; some also have video tutorials available as well for customers.

In conclusion, dedicated server hosting can offer you benefits regardless of whether you go for a managed dedicated server or an unmanaged dedicated server; you will just need to remember that if you do choose an unmanaged dedicated server, you will have to learn the necessary management skills that are needed to keep it in good order. Paying extra for full support isn’t always up everyone’s street, meaning that you may find it beneficial in terms of cost and experience to choose an unmanaged dedicated server; the skills you do learn can then be applied to any future servers that you find yourself managing.

Dedicated Server

July 24th, 2009

What is a dedicated server?

Dedicated server hosting services are able to meet the needs of everyone who requires web hosting services in one way or another – it is highly unlikely that you won’t be able a dedicated server that isn’t able to meet your requirements, especially considering that you can configure a dedicated server to meet your needs specifically in most cases. Dedicated server hosting is the only form of web hosting for you to consider if you want physical web hosting in which you have full use of your assigned resources; all other forms of web hosting, including VPS server hosting, are virtual meaning that you are only paying for virtual resources on a physical server which is being shared with many other users. Dedicated servers often come with large amounts of resource including hard disk space and bandwidth, which makes it important for you to only consider a dedicated server if absolutely needed – the resources that you are provided with are often too much for your average user to make the most of alone. If you feel that dedicated server hosting is for you then you should first consult a web hosting provider to see if they can offer you a deal which is good value for money.

How do I go about managing a dedicated server?

How you manage a dedicated server will depend on your chosen server operating system as well as whether you have opted to have a web hosting control panel installed on your dedicated server or not. Regardless of the Linux distribution which you may have chosen for your Linux dedicated server, you will be able to manage your Linux server via SSH; although this will provide you with root access to the command line, it is important that you are aware of the various Linux commands that you will need to be able to manage your dedicated server properly. Windows dedicated servers are much easier to manage; regardless of the version of the Windows server operating system you choose, you will be able to manage your dedicated server via Remote Desktop which will allow you direct access to the Windows GUI – something that is a lot more familiar to most users. In either case it is a good idea to do your research so you can be sure that what you are doing is correct, and that if you do face any problems then you’ll be able to fix them yourself.

How do I find the best dedicated server deal?

There are many different web hosting providers with different dedicated server deals available, some of which are likely to meet your requirements in one way or another; this can make choosing the right dedicated server hosting deal for your needs rather hard. It isn’t always a case of going for the dedicated server that can offer you the largest hard drive and biggest assignment of bandwidth for your money as you also need to consider the power of the CPU that will come with your dedicated server as well as the amount of RAM that you will have available. You will also need to take into consideration the web hosting provider itself that is offering a dedicated server deal that may appeal to you; by reading unbiased web hosting reviews you will be able to form an informed opinion about a web hosting provider that you may be considering. All in all, the best way to find the best dedicated server deal for your needs is to first find a range of dedicated server deals that are in your price range and suit your requirements; from there you can then compare web hosting providers based on web hosting reviews, and using them you should be able to choose a reputable web hosting provider that can offer you what you need.

In conclusion, you can find the best dedicated server deal that meets your requirements by first searching for the web hosting packages that suit your needs and then comparing the web hosting providers that are able to meet your requirements. Although managing a dedicated server will be hard for some people, if you find that reputable web hosting provider that can meet your requirements in all areas then you should be able to purchase a fully managed dedicated server which will then mean that you won’t have to worry about any aspects of the management of your dedicated server.