Dedicated Server Hosting is a type of web hosting where users have an entire server to themselves. This includes all the server resources, including storage, RAM, and all of the CPU cores. In most other types of hosting, the resources of a server, in one way or another, are shared between multiple websites. However, in Dedicated Hosting, one server, with all its resources, is allocated to one user only.
It’s important to note that small, new websites with little traffic have no need for Dedicated Hosting. However, a website that has grown and has to deal with a lot of traffic will benefit immensely from Dedicated Hosting.
For starters, you don’t have to share the resources of the server, meaning you get more storage and performance. Also, a big website has a lot of customer data, which means security is a real concern.
Dedicated Hosting is very secure, given that there are no other vulnerable websites on the server. Also, because you’re the only one using the server, you can configure the server however you want. This means that there are many steps that you can take to enhance security. For example, you can prevent applications accessing the internet unless they absolutely have to, reducing your exposure, thus increasing the safety of your website.
What is Unmanaged Dedicated Hosting?
Unmanaged hosting is the ‘default’ type of hosting plan, so to say. When you buy a Dedicated Hosting plan, unless they mention otherwise, what you’re getting is Unmanaged Dedicated Hosting.
As the name suggests, the hosting company doesn’t get involved here in terms of ‘management’. You get server resources and an operating system, and that’s about it. It is your responsibility to keep your website updated and secure. It’s important to note that you are also responsible for installing and maintaining base software like PHP and Apache.
What is Managed Dedicated Hosting?
Managed hosting is a feature that hosting companies offer where they will actively ‘manage’ your web hosting plan. There are several things that the company will handle for you.
1. Backups
Backups are crucial for your website. In case of data loss, they are your only way out. So, you need a strong backup and recovery strategy. If you opt for managed hosting, your web hosting company will manage these backups for you. They will create backups, maintain them securely, and in case of a data loss, use your backups to restore your website.
2. Security
Security, obviously, is crucial for websites, especially big websites that have a lot of customer data with them. When you opt for a managed hosting plan, security experts from your web hosting provider are in charge of the security of your website.
Regular malware scans are conducted, and all identified problems are dealt with by these experts. Additionally, the company’s experts will also optimise configurations to ensure that maximum security is achieved.
3. Support
Now, even with unmanaged hosting, you get customer support, and some companies do it brilliantly. However, not everyone offers great customer support. When you have a managed hosting plan, you get better customer support, given that you’re paying additional costs to the company.
Here, it’s important to note that this may not be the case with all hosting companies. Some companies offer great support irrespective of what plan you’re using. However, having a managed hosting plan puts you ahead of the line.
Managed vs Unmanaged Dedicated Server Hosting: Which one is best for you?
Reasons to opt for Unmanaged Dedicated Hosting:
- Unmanaged hosting, if you haven’t guessed it already, is the cheaper option here. But that’s not the only reason some people opt for it. Unmanaged Dedicated Hosting gives you complete freedom to set up your website exactly the way you want it. In managed hosting solutions, there is always someone from your hosting provider’s company involved. With unmanaged hosting, you get full freedom.
- Also, some companies have an in-house tech team. If you have access to a tech-team or if you’re an expert yourself, managed hosting makes little sense.
Reasons to opt for Managed Dedicated Hosting:
- Managed hosting has always had many takers. This is because managed hosting is all about making your life easier. You entrust the duties of maintaining your server to experts and leave it at that. The company, for a fee, takes care of everything.
- You don’t have to worry if your website is secure or if malware scans are happening regularly or if your website is really as secure as it could be, or if all the important applications are updated, or anything else, really.
- For people who aren’t experts on hosting, managed hosting plans simply make so much more sense. It would cost them more to hire expertise on their own. So, they pay a small fee to the web hosting company and spend their time concentrating on their business.
| Parameters | Managed | Unmanaged |
| Freedom | Lower. The company has a say in things, to an extent | High. You control everything. |
| Price | High. The company is offering added services for overall management and upkeep. | Lower. The provider only offers server and basic management. |
| Your involvement | Low. You don’t really have to be involved at all. The company takes care of pretty much everything. | High. There are a lot of things that need to be done on a regular basis, and you or your team have to do it all. |
| Your responsibility | Low. You’re not really held responsible for anything, in terms of backups, safety, etc.
You pay the company to do all that for you. |
High. The onus of keeping your website secure and updated is on you. |
*Just a quick disclaimer here. Things vary from company to company and customer to customer. The point of the table is to just give you a quick idea about what differentiates managed and unmanaged hosting.
Conclusion
So, there you have it. If you want a hassle-free, but slightly more expensive hosting solution where all troubles are dealt with by professionals in the hosting company, Managed Dedicated Hosting is for you. However, if you have an in-house tech team or if you’re an expert yourself, Unmanaged Dedicated Hosting might be a better solution for you.
Whichever option you choose, it’s important to understand that the web hosting company matters a lot when it comes to Dedicated Hosting. When you’re spending money on crucial things like hosting, especially managed hosting, it’s always better to hire reputed, well-established companies that can offer safe and reliable hosting services for your website. The fine print of a managed hosting plan varies from one company to another. Therefore, it is vital to assess all the aspects of the provider and the plan before selecting a Dedicated Server plan.
HostGator offers robust and feature-rich Dedicated Hosting plans. We offer SSD-based storage, full root access, server administration panel, WHM control panel, DDoS protection and instant server provisioning. Enjoy 24×7 dedicated support from our in-house server experts. You can contact us for more details regarding our Dedicated Server plans.
To know more about the other web hosting categories and to choose the right option for your business, visit our Hosting Blogs Category.
