A Dedicated Server is a server that provides its full power for only one specific function. In online marketing, this refers to offers in which a customer receives the exclusive right to use a single device in a data center.
As a rule, a customer rents server services from a provider in a data center. If this is a dedicated server, then this server with its complete hardware is only used by this one customer. When offering web hosting services, the term Dedicated Server is often used to certify to customers the special exclusivity of a sometimes complex and expensive offer.
Such offers should then stand out from those with virtual servers or shared servers. However, whether the performance is actually higher depends on the quality standard of the data center. In most cases, providers also offer a more comprehensive software support and hardware support service together with dedicated servers. For example, a managed server also includes functions such as updates or service monitoring.
Dedicated to a Customer or Dedicated to a Service?
Whoever uses a dedicated server of an operator as Dedicated to a Customer neither shares a server hard disk with other users nor is his user rights restricted. This is ideal for companies that do not want to store their sensitive data with other users on one server. In the event that a dedicated server is not used by a customer but only by a service, this server is referred to as a dedicated to a service.
Such a server processes tasks such as the provision of print, e-mail or VPN services or other administrative tasks within a network. Dedicated to a service servers are often used as database, game or web servers. Server operating systems that are incompatible with other systems or services are also hosted on such servers.
The variant: Virtual Dedicated Server
A virtual dedicated server combines the advantages of shared hosting and dedicated servers. In this form of hosting, a physical server is rented to several users with the special feature that this server emulates several individual servers.
In this way, selected resources such as RAM, CPU capacity and hard disk space can be allocated for each individual server. This means that certain physical resources are shared, but this does not exclude other important specifications such as an own IP address.
In addition, virtualization allows each virtual server to be assigned the required processor capacity. This is a feature that can only be realized without virtualization on a dedicated server. Even during a DDoS attack, when many pointless requests are to paralyze a server at the same time, the other virtual servers continue to run stably on this system.
By sharing a host system with several web projects in a virtual dedicated server, attractive cost models are created – without sacrificing the advantages of your own server. These servers have proven themselves particularly well for applications such as web shops, which require stable performance and SSL-secured data transmission at the same time when the frequency of visits changes.
Advantages of a Dedicated Server
A dedicated server is recommended whenever a certain application or function requires larger resources in the long term. Despite higher costs than a virtual server or shared hosting, it also offers many advantages: The main memory can be individually adapted to the required performance. In case of a positive development of a web project, for example traffic and database queries increase, the server performance can be adjusted at any time.
In addition, the customer can install the software required for his server in a tailor-made manner. A dedicated server prevents dangers that can arise from security gaps in other websites. In addition, all server data can only be viewed by the tenant himself and a website hosted on the dedicated server enjoys higher availability.
With regard to possible SEO measures, important and higher-value web projects should always be hosted on a dedicated server. Thus the webmaster sends a signal to Google and other search engines from the very beginning that his project is not a “dubious spam project”.
With a dedicated server, however, some additional tasks have to be considered. This includes, for example, regular data backup, as the provider usually has no access to the server. When concluding a contract, it should also be noted that the server is operated with unlimited bandwidth usage (traffic flat) and that in an emergency a support team is available around the clock.
Take into consideration all these things prior to you pick and afterwards ponder over them for a while. Before making your choice to switch over to a devoted server or to stick with a shared web server, make a decision whether or not you can risk any type of compromises in your internet site’s safety.
If safety is not an issue as long as lots of data transfer, after that perhaps you can upgrade your common web server. If you deal with credit report cards as well as other personal info on your site, you ought to actually take into consideration changing to a devoted web server holding strategy. It’s far better to be secure than sorry.