If you are looking into dedicated server hosting, then you are likely a business that is considering implementing some type of website. There are several important considerations that can help you decide if you need a dedicated server in the first place, and if so, how you can specify the server.
Dedicated server hosting is significantly more expensive than shared hosting because you are essentially reserving a machine for your own use. Shared hosting is very efficient for the hosting company. They can perform your workload along with that of other companies and make very efficient use of their hardware. With dedicated hardware, they are essentially maintaining a machine that no one else uses but you. It is less efficient, and it requires somewhat more maintenance.
The three reasons you would choose dedicated hosting are website size, security, and special requirements. If your website has a huge database, then it makes sense to reserve a machine for it. Some hosting companies will insist on it for websites above a certain size. In addition, if you have a high-reliability website, and you do not wish to risk a crash because of another company’s website code, then reserving the machine also makes sense. In addition, you may have some special program that needs to reside on your server, which the company does not normally support. This also calls for a dedicated server.
Once you decide on dedicated server hosting, then you need to decide on specifications. You will get a hefty charge each time you configure a server, so you want to avoid having to do it often. A good strategy is to predict resources one to three years ahead of time. An important first specification to examine is bandwidth. This is the number of transactions (sales, requests for information, etc.) that you expect. You must design for the peak use, not the average. The bandwidth will be your peak visitors per hour times your average transaction size (or peak size if you are being very conservative).
A second specification to examine is computing power. If the transactions require significant computing power, then you will have to choose a machine accordingly. A third specification is storage space. If you only store a small amount of information per transaction, then your needs will be modest. If you are distributing movies or other large pieces of data, then you may need significant storage space.
If you need to implement a large website database, a high-reliability site, or a special-needs site, then consider dedicated server hosting.
