A VPS (Virtual Private Server) has become very popular among customers as a web hosting option. It’s guaranteed to save money on hardware, shares system resources, is very reliable and flexible, is easy to administer with full root access, rebooting and repairing/restoring online is possible anywhere from backups, it’s independent and costs a whole lot less than some dedicated web hosting package.
Managed VPS
The type of managed VPS hosting differs as per the provider. This is the most viable and suitable option in case you are not very tech-savvy. Here the host takes care of applications and system updates that you need. Managed VPS varies from provider to provider and is usually referred to as a partially-managed service that might assist you in upgrading the operating system core (e.g. Linux Kernel) but might not help in solving issues that shared hosts normally would (e.g. email problems). Some of the features of managed VPS include:
Inspite of these positives, managed VPS has certain drawbacks. First is the high cost involved. Second is the actual lack of control in hosting. Depending on the provider you choose, the host calls all the shots on equipment and software decisions once the site is live and running. Changing on demand is also not simple.
Unmanaged VPS
In this type of VPS hosting, the host only takes care of the physical server and its availability. To use unmanaged VPS, you need a lot of technical knowledge and familiarity with applications and operating systems you choose. The user is responsible for upgrades, maintenance and application installation. Technical support is usually limited to outages or hardware failures, and the backup is your responsibility as well. Unmanaged VPS offers the below features:
Managed vs. Unmanaged
Most moderately sized companies can save money by using an unmanaged VPS host if they possess the resources and technical knowledge required for sustained operation. On the other hand, larger companies are better off opting for managed VPS services as it will save them a lot of time. The factors that should influence your decision when choosing between these two types are,
This is a guest post written by Sathishkumar, who works for a Dedicated Hosting company, Nethosting.
This post was last modified on October 29, 2011 7:29 pm