What are the Main Uses of Virtual Private Servers?

Depositphotos_16508925_LWhen an organization or individual doesn’t have their own server, they usually need to outsource it in some way. This includes dedicated hosting, shared hosting, and virtual private server (or VPS hosting). In this blog, we’ll be covering what a virtual private server is, and the common uses for them.

What is a Virtual Private Server?

Simply put, a VPS is a physical server in an offsite location that multiple users are able to utilize. Each user has their own dedicated server and resources they can tap into, which is rented out by the hosting company. Virtualization, which is the use of VPS, has become widely popular in the business landscape as they cut down on costs, reduce hardware, and improve efficiency.

Now that we’ve covered what a VPS is, let’s go over its uses.

Web Hosting

One of the most common VPS uses is web hosting. While most people use shared hosting, many companies find they outgrow the limitations of this hosting model and need more resources, but not their own dedicated server infrastructure. This is where VPS comes in. VPS is essentially the middle ground between shared hosting and dedicated hosting.

VPS offers exceptional loading time, which is ideal for businesses with online traffic. VPS can limit bounce rate on websites, which is crucial to retain customers.

Backing up Data

Organizations acquire a lot of data every day. It’s also important that data stays secure and their infrastructure can handle it. VPS are commonly used for backing up data, and many use a cloud infrastructure. It’s also a very secure choice as they are heavily monitored for threats.

Testing New Applications

If you regularly test new web applications, you’ll need your own server environment to do so. But an entire dedicated server may be too expensive for simple testing. A VPS will definitely do the trick, and will give you the environment to test applications without incurring high monthly costs.

Setting up a Mail Server

Virtually every business pays to host emails. With a VPS, you can avoid these costs by hosting your company’s own email server. Basic VPS options can easily handle self-hosted open-source email servers. They do require a bit of technical expertise, but if you have the resources and IT staff to help out it can be a beneficial asset.

Utilizing a virtual private server really takes your infrastructure to the next level and reduces limitations. It provides a wide array of resources to tap into, and is beneficial for businesses of all kind. While there can be a bit of a learning curve, once it’s up and running a VPS can be utilized for any of the above reasons.

VPS at Cloudsmart

Here at Cloudsmart, our fortified Virtual Private Servers are hosted on high availability compute and storage. Our private cloud allows elastic scale and hybrid integration which reduces upfront capital expenses while allowing your IT staff to focus on innovation.
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