Cloud technology is gaining ground among all industry verticals. Enterprises that were using traditional servers until recently are choosing to host on the cloud.
If a recent study by Logic Monitor is to be believed, 83% of the enterprises will be on the cloud by 2020.
At present, two hosting options are immensely popular: cloud server and dedicated server. Cloud servers offer a powerful virtual infrastructure to facilitate seamless running of websites, eliminating the need for installing and maintaining in-house equipment.
In contrast, dedicated servers are physical servers reserved for client’s exclusive use. They allow a great deal of customization and control over the server.
Both cloud and dedicated server hosting offer tremendous computing power, adequate space and superior performance. As a result, decision-makers are often stuck between choosing a dedicated server and a cloud server.
To help you pick the hosting solution that suits your needs, we have discussed the features of both cloud and dedicated servers and elaborated the advantages of a cloud server over a dedicated server.
Cloud Server
A cloud server is a virtualized server built, hosted and delivered through a cloud computing platform and accessed remotely. Small-and-medium sized organizations with variable workloads often find cloud servers an ideal fit.
Dedicated Server
A dedicated server is a physical server rented by an organization for their exclusive use. Dedicated servers are typically used by large organizations that prioritize a high level of data security. Heavy applications such as big data platforms warrant the use of dedicated servers. Unmanaged dedicated servers require the client to have technical know-how regarding server management.
Advantages of Cloud Server over Dedicated Server
Businesses transitioning to the cloud from a dedicated server need to transfer data, software and applications to the cloud server after which they can access it from any part of the world.
Cloud offers a congenial hosting environment that fulfills the dynamic needs of any business. A dedicated server has many limitations which can be overcome by using a cloud server.
Let us discuss the major advantages of a cloud server over a dedicated server.
1) Scalability
A cloud server allows you to ramp up resources such as CPU, RAM and storage instantaneously whenever needed. So, if there is a sudden surge in demand or a new functionality has been added, you can easily add resources.
In a dedicated server, you are constrained by the limitations of your physical server as you cannot scale immediately as demand soars or cut back when the demand slackens. This is both inconvenient and expensive as you have to pay for additional resources in advance even though you may not use them.
2) Uptime and Availability
The performance of your website depends on the availability of your server. If your website faces downtime quite often, it can affect your reputation and make you lose business. A cloud does not have a single point of failure and, therefore, ensures high uptime for your business.
As your website is using resources from many servers, if one server goes down, the other servers keep the website up and running. With the cloud’s unique ability to scale seamlessly, your website does not experience downtime during a traffic spike.
In contrast, a dedicated server has a single point of failure. If your physical server goes offline, so does your website.
3) Flexible Pricing Structure
A cloud server follows a flexible pricing model where you pay only for the resources you use. So, if you are expecting heavy traffic in the days to come, no need to upgrade your current plan. All you have to do is to scale up resources during the spike and cut them down as the demand subsides.
In a dedicated server, on the contrary, you have to pay a monthly fee regardless of whether you use all the resources or not.
4) Enhanced Security
In a cloud server, your website remains immune to issues that commonly afflict dedicated servers such as hardware failure, theft, hacking or overload. Most of the cloud hosting providers house their servers in professionally-managed data centers that are well-guarded with multiple tiers of security. Such an arrangement wards off unsolicited intrusion.
5) Better Website Speed and Performance
A cloud server is a virtualized server that distributes the workload over multiple physical servers. This prevents undue strain on the resources of a single server allowing your website to load with blazing speed. Improvement in website load time enhances user experience; enhanced user experience reduces bounce rate and improves conversion rate for your website.
Now that Google considers page speed as one of the ranking factors, reduction in load speed will up your website’s ranking and this will further bring up conversion rate.
6) Disaster Recovery
Cloud servers help in quick recovery of data in case of a power outage or a natural disaster. Cloud being a multi-server setup creates several copies of your data across multiple locations. So, if a disaster strikes, you can immediately restore your server without requiring to back up everything manually. This way your website does not experience downtime.
Dedicated servers also have provision for disaster recovery but they are not as efficient. As a result, you need to spend a lot of time to get everything back on track in the event of a mishap.
The Bottom Line
Cloud servers offer benefits that businesses seeking to expand operations often look for. For organizations that demand flexibility, scalability, security and performance at budget-friendly prices, a cloud server is the option to go for.
