Cloud Hosting vs. VPS (Virtual Private Server)

With more and more available web hosting providers eagerly ready to assist you with setting up and managing your hosting needs, for many non-technical gurus it’s a confusing and complicated decision to make. Usually the deciding factors revolve around personalized needs and allocated hosting budget. Among two popular and affordable hosting platforms include cloud hosting and Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting.

What is Cloud Hosting?

Cloud hosting is somewhat of a convoluted, yet misunderstood, web hosting infrastructure. Basically, in general terms cloud hosting is an extremely effective and efficient computing process that allows shared servers to deliver various services such as data storage, on-demand data sharing and software downloads from an independent location and without the need of a mainframe computer.

Consider cloud hosting as a complex and ever-changing visualization of web hosting. The process in itself defies traditional models. Cloud hosting is independent as far as physical location; however, it’s not autonomous when it comes to self-management. While routine maintenance is relatively an easy task, it still demands devoted time and effort.

The “cloud” concept is visualized by the computing process being initialized in the proverbial “clouds” with the precise initial processing location unknown or not confided to one specific server. Customers may purchase services from a third-party provider, which results in significant cost savings.

Cloud hosting offers numerous other benefits including: device independence, convenience of location and device independence, enhanced security provided by the servers’ unknown location, energy efficient, financially appealing to small and mid-size companies, effective re-provision of IT resources, accessible programming interface, scalability, pay-as-you-grow, electricity recycling and routine metering.

What is VPS Hosting?

If you’re interested in securing a private server to support your web hosting needs, then a VPS, or Virtual Private Server, may prove to be an ideal solution. VPS hosting accommodates needs on an individual basis, offering the same privacy features of a physically separate computer, and may be configured to manage server software. Also, VPS are capable of running a fully functional operating system and may be rebooted independently.

Perhaps the greatest advantage of a VPS is that it bridges the gap between shared hosting and dedicated hosting services, which grants independence in terms of vying for software usage among other customers, and cheaper than a dedicated host.

A seemingly misconception of VPS hosting is associated cost; the truth is a basic VPS hosting platform package ranges around $20 per month. Overall, users find VPS hosting favorable as it delivers customers increased privacy, connection speeds, personal dedicated server, and convenience and versatility. VPS also provides complete administrator access to the server.

A couple of buyer caveats before opting for a VPS hosting service – expect to pay more if your hosting needs require more storage space than what’s offered in your basic monthly plan. Other disadvantages include some anti-virus and firewall software doesn’t function properly in virtualized environments and often, there’s a limit on disk space, processor time, and RAM.

Perhaps even more alarming, VPS vendor reliability is questionable. Many VPS hosting providers disappear only after doing business for a couple of months. If you do opt for VPS hosting, do your homework first, research the provider’s track record and available company profile, then select a VPS hosting provider that guarantees reliability.

Conclusion

Cloud hosting is likely to be an industry favorite into the future as its dynamic solutions offers users the convenience of on-demand data storage services at lower costs in large part due to the pooling of resources, and the savings are passed on to customers. While VPS hosting is still a favorite among some users, more tech savvy gurus are jumping on the cloud bandwagon.

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