Internet, Services

Pros and Cons of Shared Hosting and Dedicated Hosting

hosting-roomWeb hosting is a service required by individuals or business firms to make their website accessible on the World Wide Web (www). There are different internet service providers offering this service for a fee which depends on the type of website and the client's requirements. For individuals and other smaller companies, these services are rather cheap but for bigger companies and businesses they are expensive.

Primarily, there are two types of internet hosting; dedicated web hosting and shared web hosting. The slight difference between the two types must be taken in to account when making any decision because it will have a great impact on your business. This article basically compares the two types and lays down the pros and cons of both.

SHARED HOSTING:

When you share the server and its resources with other systems, it is termed as shared web hosting where you have to share things like disc capacity, databases, traffic etc.

DEDICATED HOSTING:

Dedicated hosting means using a separate server, without having to share its resources with anyone else. You have full control over everything unlike in shared hosting.

If you are wondering which one to opt for out of the two, this blog will prove very helpful for you. In the following paragraphs you will find listed down all the important things you need to know about web hosting, so you can make a smart choice.

SHARED HOSTING (PROS & CONS):

Pros:

  1. Probably, the biggest advantage of shared web hosting is its low cost as compared to dedicated web hosting. Because many systems have to share the total cost of getting the server and its resources, the price becomes low. It's suitable for individual or small companies' subscribers.
  2. The second main advantage of this type of web hosting which makes it highly attractive is that you do not have to worry about the maintenance and administration of the server. Not having to worry about the technical maintenance is indeed a huge relief.
  3. Another related advantage is that you do not have to learn any special knowledge to administer this type of server. You do not need to be familiar with Linux administration and related stuff.
  4. Also, you can have multiple email addresses, can administer more than one database and will have PHP and MySQL support.

Cons:

  1. Moving on to the disadvantages, the biggest downside of shared web hosting is that it is relatively insecure. Because a lot of other systems are connected to the same server, the web space becomes vulnerable to viruses or any other malicious activity.
  2. Another limitation of this type of web hosting is that you can only run that software which has been provided by the host server. As a result you cannot use any software of your own choice.
  3. Also, as a lot of other systems are using the limited resources, it can become a problem.
  4. Another problem reported with shared hosting is that its connectivity can go low at times.

DEDICATED HOSTING (PROS & CONS):

Pros:

  1. A major advantage of dedicated web hosting compared to share web hosting is that you have more data storage space, as it is being used only by you.
  2. Dedicated hosting has faster connectivity and because the server is being used only by you, data trafficking is faster.
  3. Dedicated hosting gives you the liberty to install and operate applications and software of your own choice unlike in shared hosting. This is one of the major reasons why people go for dedicated hosting.
  4. You have more features in the control panel which gives you the flexibility to customize.
  5. Dedicated web hosting is more secure. As it is being used only by you, there is less threat of a virus or hacking for that matter.

Cons:

  1. Dedicated web hosting being more expensive makes it a little less favorable. And if you do not know how to manage the server, it can become very costly for you.
  2. The other major disadvantage is that in case of any problem, diagnosing and solving the problem is much more difficult as compared to problem solving in shared hosting.

The above analysis shows that both dedicated and shared web hosting have their pros and cons, and opting for any one entirely depends on your needs. If you are a smaller entity or an individual then shared web hosting will suit you best but if you are a multi-national, then dedicated web hosting is perfect for you.

Published on behalf of Mr. Michael Sheldon-a MIT Graduate and internet service blogger. This article has been written with the intention to educate people about internet hosting. The author has 15 years of experience in the field of IT and web services. He has written this article on the basis of his experience and what he learnt during his job.

3 Comments

  1. Which type of hosting is good for a normal technology blog, i am using freedom plan from wpwebhost.

  2. Root Level Access is the best part of a dedicated server. You can use your server the way you want and can host unlimited websites which otherwise not possible with shared hosting.

  3. I am big fan of dedicated hosting because I can manage everything at my own and can add more features anytime.

    Although I am using shared hosting for many of my sites but still my votes goes for dedicated. (Y)

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