So many people are under the impression that if they have an e-commerce or business website that dedicated hosting is the only way to go. The main reason cited is that shared hosting is more prone to crashing. However, that's not necessarily true. Here's why:
- Shared servers are typically more robust than dedicated ones. This is for the same reason a 747 is more robust than a small 4-seater plane, it has to be; it must be able to handle much greater loads. Also, when a 747 crashes many more people are affected and this would be devastating to an airline. However, when a small plane crashes the result is usually less catastrophic. I know, it's morbid but it's true.
- Shared servers are typically backed up nightly. This is expensive with dedicated servers.
- Shared servers are administered by experts. A dedicated server is administered by you (unless you go for fully-managed hosting which is VERY expensive).
So, you are probably thinking: "Why would anyone choose dedicated then?". Here are some reasons:
- Security - In a shared environment, if one site is vulnerable to a hacking attempt, they all may be to some degree. A hacker could gain access to one site and, using sophisticated methods, break through and affect others on the same machine. This is not to say shared hosting is not safe, and with the measures good hosts take nowadays the chances of this happening are slim, but, still, a risk is a risk when it comes to highly sensitive data.
- Enhanced Control - For the reasons stated above, many accommodations can't be met with shared plans so if a customer requires special software of plugins to run their site they may choose to go dedicated.
- Expandability - With dedicated hosting, a large site can continue to expand by adding additional dedicated servers.
My advice: Don't jump into anything beyond your needs, instead start small and expand as your needs dictate, your money is probably better spent on attracting new customers and supporting the ones you already have.
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