In this article I want to focus on the decision criteria for hosting a dedicated server versus hosting in a shared environment. As the power and security of the shared environment has improved the lines have become somewhat blurred as to when to make this transition.

With ever more powerful servers and server operating systems it is now possible to host many complex web applications in a shared hosting environment. There may also be beneficial licensing advantages to a shared environment. For example there are applications such as email servers that are purposely priced to be used in a shared environment to spread the costs over a large number of users. Microsoft SPLA pricing may also make software more affordable in a shared environment.

Unfortunately, many shared hosting firms are more interested in offering a low price to attract customers and leave server performance as an afterthought. They will price a shared service based on attracting hundreds or even thousands of users. Depending on the program merely going from four to eight customers could mean the difference between a well responding application and one that responds sluggishly. We also see doubling up applications on the same server, for example, running an email server on the application server – a sure fire way to run into problems.

So why go dedicated?

A good analogy may be to think of it as taking the bus or owning your own car. Yes they both get you to your destination but the car gives you greater flexibility to adjust your schedule. You can also customize your car to make it go faster and handle better.

A dedicated server provides the following benefits:

• More security. The dedicated server provides isolation from other customers and their applications.
• It’s dedicated to your application. You are in control which applications run on your server. This can be especially important when it comes to upgrading software levels that might impact your application.
• Configured server components. You determine items such as disk space and redundant configuration such as disk RAID standard, processor type and memory.

Rules of thumb for using a dedicated server:

• Websites using large databases for serving dynamic content.
• Forums or BBS sites that process a lot of data in a short time.
• Ecommerce web sites running online shopping cart systems.
• Corporate websites that can’t afford any downtime.
• Websites that requires custom server configurations such as clustering or special firewall considerations.

Of course, you must also pay close attention to the hosting service you use. Your hosting provider must have enough bandwidth capacity and an appropriately redundant facility to make sure your server is optimized. On a final note, make sure you can upgrade your server after your initial contract term to take advantage of the latest technology.

Filed under: Business Articles on December 9th, 2007 |