by Samuel

Created on: October 11, 2008   Last Updated: October 12, 2008

Different websites have different needs and plans. While a particular hosting type may favor the hosting plans of one website, it may not be the best for another. Dedicating Hosting and Shared Hosting are two hosting types designed to suit different needs and plans.

Dedicated hosting

Dedicated or unique hosting means that the hosting server is dedicated to one user or one website. Bandwidth, SSL support (HTTPS), file storage, email accounts, FTP, traffics, etc. are all controlled and managed by that single website.

Dedicated hosting mainly uses one unique IP address opposite the website address which visitors normally type in the address bar of their browsers. Dedicated hosting allows the ease to manage and make workable plans for a website, since the hosting server is not shared with another.

Major websites with huge databases may need dedicated hosting, since activities in their website will consume lots of bandwidth and file storage, a risk another party may not be ready to share. As a result of this, dedicated hosting, proportionally, costs more than shared hosting.

Dedicated hosting will also allow the installation and creation of software packages to run or monitor activities in the server. In shared hosting, this may not be allowed, as it can affect other websites/users on the same hosting server.

Shared Hosting

Shared hosting means more than one users/websites are hosted on one web server. As a result of this, they share most of the server features like file storage, bandwidth, email accounts, FTP, etc. While many potential buyers of hosting packages may not consider a shared hosting in the initial stage, a good number of them sometimes change their minds after being educated of its merits.

Its major merit is that is it cheaper and buyers may not need to worry about some administrative responsibilities that are handled by the web hosts or sellers.

SSL support is sometimes not included in shared hosting packages. This is another major concern and one demerit. Other demerits include the limitation involved in vouching for the activities carried out by other parties using the server. When a website is involved in "dangerous" activities like porn and scam, the server is mostly attacked. In a shared hosting, this can affect the websites of other parties using the same server.

Conclusion

Both hosting types are stable, and this stability depends on the company rendering the services. Big websites will definitely need a dedicated hosting server. For "growing" websites, starting with a shared hosting server from a reputable company poses no threat.

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