What You Need to Know About VPS Hosting

There are several ways to host your website but one of the most popular as of late is through a Virtual Private Server system. Virtual Private Servers (VPSs) allow web administrators full control over their hosting environment, providing high levels of configuration options and maximum security. Hosting you website on a VPS rather than a traditional shared hosting plan allows you many benefits and involves a slightly different process for some tasks. Read on to discover everything you need to know about VPS web hosting and determine if it’s the right kind of hosting for you. 

How VPS Web Hosting Works 

VPS web hosting is similar to other forms of web hosting like shared hosting and cloud hosting in terms of how you use the service. You will be able to install and operate Content Management Systems and other software as you would with any other professional hosting environment on your VPS server. The difference you’ll find most noticeable when hosting with a VPS provider, however, is the increased level of control and server access you get with Virtual Private Servers. 

Many VPS hosts allow you root access to your virtual server through VPS hosting packages. This means you can configure things that you wouldn’t be able to adjust with shared and cloud hosting plans. Included in this extra set of configuration options are PHP options, rules for time-out responses, advanced email settings, and other fine-tuning that will help you tailor your server environment to your liking. 

Virtual Private Servers are virtualized instances of complete, physical web servers that keep your data and website content separate from other websites and files on the larger physical server on which they all reside. This provides more security than shared hosting servers where your data could potentially be compromised by breaches to other websites on the server. 

The Types of VPS Web Hosting 

There are several types of VPS web hosting to choose from. The main two categories of VPS web hosting include managed and unmanaged servers. With a managed VPS server, your hosting provider will take care of software updates and tasks as well as control some of your settings and configuration options. 

Managed servers typically cost more, often running between $60 and $200 per month. Unmanaged servers allow you to do your own updates and maintenance as needed. You should expect to spend around $20 per month or more on an unmanaged server if running a medium to large-sized website. 

You may also run into cloud VPS servers and green VPS web hosting. With cloud VPS systems you will get a VPS as described above but on a cloud infrastructure. Sometimes the billing for these mixed-types servers is on a per-usage basis while many companies offer a flat rate for such hosting. 

Green VPS servers run on energy-efficient hardware which is great for the environment and can save you money through lower overhead and operating expenses for the provider. Green VPS web hosting providers often maintain cutting-edge technology to ensure speed and quality of service and use less electricity while recycling old equipment and implementing other waste-reducing business protocols. 

The Benefits of VPS Hosting 

Aside from the added level of administrator control, configuration options, and security that VPS offers, you will notice many other benefits at most VPS providers due to the unique nature of the hosting infrastructure. 

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) benefits are one of the best reasons to use a VPS. Having more control over your server environment allows you to set it up in a way that works better for your website. This can lead to faster loading times and more efficient transmission of media. 

Not having to share a server or IP address with other websites, as you would on a shared hosting server or some cloud hosting systems allows you to bypass any negative SEO factors that those sites may have brought to your business. This is especially true if one of the websites on your shared server happens to get the server’s IP block blacklisted by search engines or other web indexers. 

Another benefit of some VPS plans is that they come per-configured for specific Content Management Systems like WordPress and Drupal. These hosting packages are often marketed as Drupal or WordPress-optimized hosting plans and can save you a lot of time and effort if you’re sure you’ll be using one of the CMSs for your website. 

Many web administrators like to choose the operating system that their server runs. This can help if you’re already comfortable with a specific operating system or if you use web applications that only run on either Linux or Windows-based servers. This is often an option with VPS packages whereas it is rarely available with other types of hosting. 

There are many compelling reasons to use VPS website hosting. It works similarly to other types of web hosting but allows for more control over hosting configuration, added security, and better SEO. VPS plans cost about the same as shared and cloud hosting plans, depending on which company you choose and how much of the server’s resources you’ll require. Determine how much room and bandwidth your current or planned website will use and look for VPS plans that meet your requirements, leaving a little room for growth if you’re going to be implementing improved SEO methods.