Suppose you have decided to bring up your website live, hmm sounds fantastic! But along with it, you might have also thought about how smooth & steady the process will be before and after, infact trust us we too believe, it will not be as easy as putting cherries on the cake. Many questions comes in your mind. One such question is which is the best hosting solutions for your business model?

You know that you need hosting, but do not know where to start. You start by doing your research and soon get overwhelmed by the amount of information available.

Linux, Unix, Pop3, Colo, Dedicated, VPS. Most, if not all of it makes absolutely no sense and the only thing you want is to have your website online!

Well the good news is, you don’t need to learn everything about hosting. You do however need to learn what the different types of hosting are and their pros & cons. This information will surely lead you to choose the best hosting solutions as per your needs.

Everyone has different needs, only you can decide what is best for your Business. Of course you will have to flush out extra cash, but this decision will be fruitful in the long term. Invest today & gain tomorrow, that’s the policy all the leading companies have applied.

Let’s start with the basics. Web Hosting refers to a service that hosts web pages on servers that are web accessible. These servers are placed in top-notch data centers with multiple backbones for maximum redundancy and speeds.

Generally, there are four different types of web hosting: Shared, Virtual Private Server (VPS), Dedicated, and Colocation Hosting.

While all types of hosting servers will act as a storage centre for your website, they differ in the amount of storage capacity, control, technical knowledge requirement, server speed, and reliability.

Let’s dig in and look at the main differences between a shared, VPS, dedicated, and colocation hosting. We are sure at the end of this article, you will have your answer, for which is the best hosting solutions for you.

In the conclusion, we will list down some of the questions which you should always ask your web hosting provider.

VIRTUAL PRIVATE HOSTING

A virtual private server is one that is partitioned so that it has its own operating system, disc space, and bandwidth. VPS hosting is a good bridge between shared hosting and dedicated hosting.

The server is divided into various spaces that create its own virtual server. The account holder who is put on the virtual server sees only their virtual environment and can reboot their server or use it as if it was their own dedicated server.

The space acts just like a dedicated server but it is in actuality a part of one physical server. Because it acts as a dedicated server this is a good interim solution for sites that may need a dedicated server in the future but are not yet ready for it.  

PROS :

• A VPS hosting account is less expensive than a full dedicated hosting plan that uses a physical server.

• Many VPS plans can be customized to meet your needs so you pay for what you want but you do not need to deal with any features you will never need.

• Many VPS hosting plans are easily scalable. You can start off in your virtual environment with the minimum amount of resources you need and then as you grow gradually increase your hosting plan to accommodate your needs. 

• You have a lot more control over your virtual server than you do with shared hosting. You will likely have root access and the ability to use scripts that may not be allowed in the shared hosting environment.

CONS :

• It is more expensive than shared hosting. For sites that do not need a dedicated hosting service, the cost may be prohibitive. While it is not as expensive as dedicated, it is also typically a lot more expensive than shared.

• From a services standpoint, though, the issue can be a lot greater. Some web hosts offer VPS hosting but do not allocate the resources appropriately. This may cause problems down the line if a particular site uses its resources at peak levels.

DEDICATED SERVER

Dedicated services allow you to host your site and only your site on one server. Typically the web host maintains the server hardware and leases the space to the client. Certain software may be included in this package.

The client can install applications as needed and can have as much traffic to the web site as the server itself can handle without worrying that it will bog down other websites on the same server. Security is not a concern in a dedicated environment than a shared.

Many companies start off with dedicated servers and upgrade to co-location once they expand. This is very cost-effective and provides you with the opportunity to benefit from the latest hardware available in the hosting industry.

PROS :

• Flexibility – You can choose to use your server for as many of your needs as you wish as long as it remains within your allotted bandwidth, memory and hard drive space.

• Control – Because you are not sharing the server with other sites you have a greatly increased amount of control over the server than you do with shared hosting. 

• Features – Each web host has different features that come included with the hosting package. 

• Stability – Because you are not sharing resources you don’t have to worry about others’ practices affecting your site.  

CONS :

• This solution eventually ends up costing more in the long run but less in the short run.

SHARED HOSTING

In shared hosting, one’s web site is placed on the same server as many other sites, ranging from a few to hundreds or thousands. Typically, all domains may share a common pool of server resources, such as RAM and the CPU.

As cost is extremely low, most websites with moderate traffic levels running standard software are hosted on this type of server. Shared hosting is also widely accepted as the entry level option as it requires minimum technical knowledge.

PROS : 

• Shared hosting is cheap.

• Best to host just one regular sized website or a few smaller sites.

• You don’t have to worry about any problems the server has.

• You don’t need to be knowledgeable in maintaining a server as the web host will maintain it.

CONS :

• No root access, limited ability to handle high traffic levels or spikes, site performance can be affected by other sites on the same server.

• You will not be in a position to modify the server you are on.

• When the server goes down all the users would get affected at the same time.

• Your webpage can load slowly if one of the websites on the server happens to use too many resources.

COLOCATION HOSTING

In colocation hosting, space and bandwidth are rented. This means businesses are able to use and maintain their own equipment such as servers, but share the cost of power, cooling, physical security and data centre floor space with other tenants. 

Server colocation can be an attractive option for companies that are looking for a more efficient way to operate their data center. It can have significant benefits, particularly for larger businesses with in-house IT staff.

PROS :-

• Ownership and control – Businesses retain full ownership of the equipment, meaning IT managers can control technology life cycles. 

• Security and compliance – Colocation provides a dedicated environment for your server infrastructure, overcoming the security pitfalls of a shared environment.

• Provider expertise – One of the benefits of buying IT services is gaining the expertise of skilled individuals who specialize in providing that service. 

• Choice of hardware and software – Colocation hosting can be the perfect solution for those companies that don’t have the resources needed to build their own on-site data center.

CONS :- 

• Cost of equipment – Being able to control the hardware you use comes at a price. Colocation involves housing your own equipment in a secure and resilient facility.

• Maintenance and monitoring – Although expertise is on hand, it doesn’t come as standard with colocation, meaning businesses either have to personally monitor their own hardware or pay extra to get their provider to do it.

• Agility and growth – Data centres, like in-house provisions, need to plan in advance for expansion and additional capacity.

• Convenience and location – Cloud can generally be managed online while in-house infrastructure can be maintained simply by walking down the corridor. 

As stated earlier, here are some questions which you should definitely ask your web hosting companies.

1. What is their uptime guarantee? (Anything less than 99.9 percent is unacceptable)

2. What is the average monthly uptime? best hosting solutions

3. If you are looking at a tangible data center/ service model, where are your servers physically located? Are you given a choice in location?

4. What level of customer/ technical support do they offer? Online only? Phone? Email? Etc.?

5. What are their customer service/ technical support hours by method? If online chat is available 24/7, what are their phone support hours?

6. What type of set-up assistance is included at no additional cost?

7. What types of e-commerce features are included with the plan that you are considering

8. What payment plans are available?

9. What are the renewal terms and fees?What type of scalability potential is there?

We hope now you are smart enough & sure in choosing the best hosting services for your website !!!