As a site owner, you might be wondering whether to opt for the cloud or a dedicated server. Perhaps you’re looking to upgrade, or perhaps you’re completely new to the game. In any case, at this point, it’s important to assess your requirements.
For example, if your traffic has just risen dramatically or you are anticipating this happening very soon, you may want to consider a dedicated server. They’re able to handle this scenario and maintain high page load speeds, as typically, you already have spare capacity waiting in the server.
If you’re looking for something super flexible and scalable because your demands vary, then the cloud might be the right solution.
Let’s deep-dive into the differences between cloud and dedicated servers.
Cloud Servers
Typically called ‘cloud hosting’, with a cloud server your data resides in a virtual segmented partition of a shared physical infrastructure.
Cloud hosting is increasingly becoming a vital aspect of many popular sites and apps, and one reason for this is its flexibility, providing higher levels of web traffic support if needed.
One of the most significant advantages is that you pay only for the exact amount of resources used, and you can scale up or down depending on demand. For this reason, businesses with variable requirements and workloads may find this the perfect solution.
The cloud comes with a lot of supporting services to get an entire stack up and running quickly – from load balancers to CDNs and object storage. While these items were traditionally only available as additional hardware (at a high additional cost), the good news is that they’re now integrated into SaaS models as part of cloud setups. This provides a fantastic opportunity to smaller businesses and startups, allowing them to access enterprise-grade infrastructure designs at much lower entry points.
Cloud servers also benefit from effective automatic failover; if the parent server goes down, no information is lost and it is moved over to another server seamlessly. With this increased server uptime, everything can keep running smoothly and your data remains accessible – which is ultimately a top priority!
While some people worry about the security risks of cloud computing, cloud hosting is actually incredibly secure. With multiple-layer security, encryption, and the option to isolate and separate data, you can rely on cloud hosting to keep your data safe.
Dedicated Servers
A dedicated server is typically the more traditional mode of hosting – but keep in mind that traditional doesn’t mean outdated!
It involves a physical server being purchased or rented purely for your business’s needs. You’ll have a fixed allocation of RAM, CPU, and SSD/HDD storage, with only your data hosted on it.
Businesses that will benefit most from dedicated servers include those with steady and high demands for server capacity. Having a dedicated server guarantees the resources required for fast page loading times are available, increasing your engagement metrics and lowering bounce rates.
While the cloud often provides a cheaper solution for smaller requirements, if your business has high resource and/or performance requirements, a dedicated server is often the best option. On the higher end, dedicated servers can be much more cost-effective, outperforming most cloud setups. As resource and performance requirements go up, the price gap between cloud and dedicated servers steadily widens.
A common misconception is that dedicated servers are inflexible, but the opposite can be true. If you’d like more control over your server, for example, Vinters can set up a custom server with you that ticks all of your boxes. Not only that, but we hold stock of a broad range of components, so upgrades can be performed swiftly – often within hours.
Servers with Vinters
Here at Vinters, we can help you decide whether a dedicated server (custom or otherwise) or cloud hosting is right for you.
We’re proud to offer a server service like no other, integrating with your team to manage every aspect of your server from deployment to upgrades. With over fifteen years of experience and hundreds of clients helped around the globe, we’re a partner you can trust.
Focus on the daily running of your business with our fully-managed server plans. Whether it’s cloud or dedicated, we know you might not have the time to take it on yourself – we’ve got you covered.
Find out more about our dedicated servers and our cloud services. Don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions – we’re always happy to help.
By Luke Germano on October 15th, 2021
