Web Hosting - Virtual Private Servers (VPS) Explained

Shared hosting is a great option for a lot of websites as it brings the cost down considerably. It does have some disadvantages, however. Your site's CPU, disk space and bandwidth can be affected by other sites on the same server.

If your site is relatively small, these resource issues may not be a problem. Another downside to shared hosting is lack of system-level control. You may not have any control over things such as system software and scripts.

While many webmasters don't need to worry about these things, there are some that do. If you fall into that category, you might want to look at a Virtual Private Server (VPS) for your hosting.

A VPS is a single physical server that has been divided into a few "virtual machines" through software running on the server. The server's resources - RAM, disk space, etc. - are still shared, but each VPS gets its own allotment and operated completely independently from the others.

This independence lets you run scripts or software - even install a different operating system - without having any effect on the other virtual servers on the same machine.

One of the biggest advantages of a VPS is the fact that you get "root" level access to your server. This means you can install or delete any software you want, create any accounts you want, set permissions the way you want - effectively all the same things you can do on a dedicated server, only at a lower cost.

A VPS is also more secure than shared hosting. On a shared server, all the websites are running within the same operating system. If the server gets hacked, all the sites will be vulnerable.

With a VPS, because of the way the virtual servers are divided, if one of them gets hacked none of the others are visible to the hacker. They're effectively like different computers.

Virtual Private Servers can be configured in a number of ways so you should be sure that you find out how any particular host has set them up.

In most cases, the server's total resources are divided evenly by the number of VPS's on the machine. ie. If there are 10 virtual servers, the total RAM, disk space, etc. is simply divided by 10 and each VPS gets 10% of the total.

The disadvantages of a VPS are related to the same things as the advantages. Because you have complete control over the system, you can run into problems if you don't know what you're doing.

You can delete the wrong files, set permissions incorrectly, create security vulnerabilities and more if you're not careful.

If you aren't familiar with server administration and don't have time to learn, you should either hire someone to do it for you or find a host who manages the server for you.

John Lenaghan writes about web hosting and other related topics for the Hosting Report website. To find out more about hosting your website, visit http://www.hostingreport.org

Have A Big Website - Worried About Server Load

Have we ever thought how big websites could be configured to handle massive amount of traffic? How thousands of businesses worldwide are facing challenges everyday to make sure there are no connection failures due to heavy load or congestion of traffic at the website.

The answer is straight, every organization will have to monitor and baseline amount of traffic by going for stress test to find out if the current hardware could be supportive enough to handle a specific amount of load. One such great software is the ?Web Application Testing? or WAPT, which is a great utility for any website?s sustainability. This software is load, stress and performance testing tool for web sites and intranet applications with web interface. WAPT is designed for MS Windows 2000/XP/2003 and Windows 98/Me operating systems. The question that should be asked is why should we consider WAPT or why should the organization consider Load or stress testing? We certainly believe, major performance issues would arise if stress test has not been performed.

This could very well mean that after the server reaches a certain level of concurrent connection made by visitors, it would consume its hardware resources to process every visitor?s request. If there is a lot to process, the server might give priority to web application than its local resource ending up in a system crash.

Thus, the goal of WAPT is very simple; it helps the organization?s web servers to become active at every stage of stress, whether it?s a web development or website traffic processing power. WAPT can perform a stress test by simulating several thousands of concurrent connections to check the web server/website performance and if it finds any bottlenecks it would warn and suggest fixing this issue by recommending the very next thing.
There are lots of new features added in WAPT 4.0
- You can use multiple virtual profiles to test a single scenario
- There is support for IP spoofing where each virtual user can run with individual and unique IP address
- Each Virtual can be configured with different username and password and is compatible with Windows Integrated Authentication or Basic Configuration.
- You can see and configure the type of reports even a test run summary report is generated
- There is command line interface available
- There is a support for persistent cookies
- All the test scenario and profiles are stored in XML format The Main features of WAPT 4.0
- You can have the application run and understand multiple languages
- There is cool recording feature which you can use to record any configuration and stress test simulations for later review or demonstrations as it supports playback of HTTPS/SSL 2.0 & 3.0 pages. You can also record the user connection speed using the keep-alive connections to a HTTP 1.0 or HTTP 1.1 pages or even HTTPS/SSL pages.
- You can generate data for run-times on specific scheduled intervals by randomizing the delay between the page hits.
- It also has a support for proxy servers for HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS4 & 5 and supports cookies as well.
- All the authentication request can be handled using NTLM (windows Integrated Authentication) or using the basic authentication.
- If you would like to call the website by a different name, then you also have the facility to add custom host headers
- All this the scenarios can be configured using the user friendly Wizard
- You can choose the reports to be either graphical or in plain text along with full virtual server logs
A must tool for administrator or other user who would to maintain their website efficiently.

Ted Peterson writes for CoreDownload, a shareware archive where you can find utilities like WAPT to test your server.

Using dedicated servers has its advantages

A Dedicated Server is a server provided by a web host for you to rent.

It is a different from normal virtual (shared) hosting. In fact, having a dedicated server is completely the opposite, every aspect of that server, as well as the network connection is dedicated only to your website.

Of course, a semi dedicated server is one which is shared by few clients.

A dedicated server is the next step up from a shared hosting environment and is used for many business, management and development purposes.

It is usually needed for a website (or set of related company sites) that may develop a considerable amount of traffic or when they expect considerable amount of visitors.

A dedicated server is yours to use exclusively, so you have 100% of the processor and 100% of the available disk space working for you.

Being like your own server, you do not have any restriction on the bandwidth or the CPU utilization.

So it's ideal for advanced users who want maximum freedom and flexibility.

One advantage in having a dedicated server is that, you can create customized control panels for managing your server.

Furthermore, the certificate services are the backbone of your organization's security.

In the Web hosting business, a dedicated server is typically a rented service, leased from a hosting company.

Although it's more expensive than a virtual one, the cost to set up your own dedicated server is still quite low.

Getting started is always a little laborious and tandard setup time for a dedicated server is usually 24-48 hours after your order has been verified.

Lim Zheng Yang has compiled the latest news and resources at his sites: http://best-dish-network-guide.info/ , http://best-internet-service-guide.info/ and http://dedicated-server-guide.info

Dedicated Web Server Hosting

Web hosting is one of the revolutionary breakthroughs brought to us by the advent of cyber technology. Now you can learn, play, interact, make friends, draw, or compose music on the Net. Dedicated hosting means creating a site and making it available on the internet. Nonetheless, Websites with multiple numbers of pages, or Websites which are commercial and business oriented, are hosted at various prices. Obviously, for that there has to be a registered domain name to run the related Website. Dedicated servers are meant for faster processing and more disk space and RAM than shared hosting. A dedicated server not only allows an individual to customize and individualize server settings for his unique requirements, but also augments all kinds of Web-based works with faster delivery and maximum performance. Service Level Agreements (SLA's) are another important part of the dedicated Web hosting server requirement systems.

A combination of highly technical characteristics contributes a lot to the optimal performance of a dedicated Web hosting server, to exercise total control over the Web and its other affiliated programs and other things.

A few of the most desirable features for the ideal dedicated Web-hosting server are:

a) High availability of data processing units

b) High performance data centers for maximum output in minimum time

c) Multiple backup generators along with battery backup

d) Fiber entry on two sides of the facilities

e) Superfluous path fiber to upstream providers through multiple transport providers

f) Total of more than twenty-five gigabyte Internet connections

g) Redundant network cores and total of 30 backbone routers for optimal output mode

h) Two network operations centers staffed twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

Dedicated Hosting provides detailed information on Dedicated Hosting, Dedicated Web Hosting, Dedicated Hosting Servers, Dedicated Web Server Hosting and more. Dedicated Hosting is affiliated with FTP Site Hosting.

Advantages Of A Dedicated Server

 

Many websites are hosted on a shared web hosting server. The main reason is the cost. A shared web hosting server costs a great deal less than a dedicated server. The number of sites on a shared web hosting server can be anywhere from 1500 to 2000 sites. The number of sites on the shared web hosting server will vary due to availability of disk space, allowed bandwidth per site and overall speed. Although shared web hosting is reliable and has minimal problems, there are advantages to host your site(s) on a dedicated server.

A dedicated server for your web hosting allows you to have a server solely dedicated to your site(s). In addition, a dedicated server will allow you complete authority to control and administer your server. When and if you decide on a dedicated server for your web hosting, you should have a fair understanding of dedicated servers. Although most dedicated server web hosting providers will provide technical support, you will find it a lot easier if you have the technical expertise to manage the server yourself. However, if you find that you will not be able to manage your server by yourself, opt for a managed dedicated server hosting. This option is especially for those who want to have dedicated web hosting but do not have the required expertise to manage it. This service allows you to have an entire server managed by a specialized hosting company. The cost of a managed dedicated server is quite expensive. Therefore, if you think that you can run and manage your website server by yourself, you should opt for an unmanaged dedicated server web hosting rather than a managed dedicated server.

You should consider a dedicated server web hosting when you find that the traffic to your site has increased substantially and your site is taking too much time to load. An analysis of the traffic to your site will tell you whether you should go to a dedicated server. The main thing to understand is that when you have many users working concurrently on your website, you should replace your shared web hosting with a dedicated server web hosting.

Since a dedicated server web hosting does not share its server with other websites (like shared web hosting), you will find that you have a lot more command over your server operation and its bandwidth. One of the advantageous features of dedicated server web hosting is that it can also be remotely configured and operated. The only obstacle is the cost. You are required to pay a lot more for your dedicated server web hosting as compared to your shared web hosting. Nevertheless, the facilities more than compensate for the cost.

When you choose a dedicated server web hosting provider, you should keep in mind that it should provide you good network stability, reliable operation, and the ease of operation of sophisticated applications. A dedicated server web hosting provider can be the perfect solution for anyone who is serious about his online presence.: For more information about a dedicated server and web hosting, visit http://www.dedicatedserveranswers.com and http://www.webhostinginfoguide.com