What is VPS hosting anyways?

Now if you go to our website you’ll notice a bunch of different packages, each created to serve  a different need. The most basic package, which is shared hosting is $1/month, while the most expensive, dedicated hosting is $175/month. Somewhere around the middle is VPS hosting, at $1.5 to $20/month.

Now, you might be wondering what VPS is, and what it actually helps you achieve. We believe, if you’re on a shared plan and can afford to spend a bit more, it’s worth upgrading Today we’ll show you why it’s worth upgrading.

1. What is VPS hosting?

VPS is a relatively new form of hosting which uses something called a Virtual Private Server. Essentially, a dedicated server that is built within a server environment.

So, while the data is housed in a shared physical hard drive, in a shared data center, you get your own dedicated space within that hard drive. Which means you get your own operating system, disc space, and bandwidth.

In other words you get almost the same level of customization at a fraction of the cost, kind of like the pool at the gym might have lanes for each swimmer. You’re still sharing the pool, but you get your own interruption free lane.

2. How is VPS hosting different?

Because it sits between shared and dedicated hosting, it gets the best of both worlds.

With dedicated servers you’re renting out the entire server. This can get expensive, and you have to buy space in blocks. Think of it as having your own private pool.

With shared hosting you’re getting parts of a server with other users, meaning there are limits the amount of CPU and memory you can use, as the server has to be useable by everyone. Think of it as the community swimming pool.

With VPS hosting, you have a single server that is partitioned into different pieces. It’s a bit like how your computer has a single physical hard disk, but if you go to “My Computer” or “This PC” you’ll probably see multiple drives. Because you’ve got your own drive, you’ve got a guarantee of a minimum level of resources (i.e. swim as fast as you want in your lane), with more available at a moment's notice if you get a traffic spike.

3. How does VPS hosting work?

You ever dual boot a computer? Install both linux and windows on it. Or maybe you’ve seen someone install windows onto their Macbook?

It’s similar to that. You take a single large server, and partition it by installing multiple versions of the OS, each with their own dedicated resources, all of them running simultaneously. So you’ve got multiple programs acting like independent servers all running from the same machine. Rent out one of these servers and you may as well have your own dedicated server. Almost.

4. Is there more than one kind of VPS?

Our VPS packages start from $1.5 and go up to $20. These prices are mostly based on the amount of resource you expect to consume. Beyond that there are 2 kinds of VPS servers - managed and unmanaged.

In a managed VPS we’ll take charge of configuring your server, doing routine maintenance, keeping your environment secure, and more. In an unmanaged one you’ll have to do all of that. What that means is with an unmanaged VPS you’ll need to have some technical chops.

5. What kind of software can I run on a VPS?

Pretty much any kind as long as it is compatible with the operating system you’ve chosen and your total memory allocation.

That means if you’ve got unique needs, or require a unique hosting setup, then you could almost always achieve that with a VPS server.

Because it’s operating independently, it’s also more secure.

6. So who should get VPS?

If you’re interested in having your website be atleast 20 times faster, need more control over your host space, and have a bit of technical knowledge then this is the option for you. Our VPS servers are cheaper than anything else out there and only a little more expensive than our shared servers, so it’s well worth the upgrade.

Take a look at our KVM VPS and OpenVZ VPS options to learn more.