Dedicated vs shared web hosting
Another thing with shared hosting is slower server responses. When the server receives requests for files, it brings up those files in the order of when the responses were received. So the queue lines may get pretty thick. It is a good idea to ask the host about the amount of traffic the sites get. Sharing a server with many other web sites is okay as long as they aren’t all busy sites. More server crashes are also known with shared hosting.
Dedicated hosting, on the other hand, offers more features and benefits. With dedicated hosting companies, you are the only one on the server and you have your own IP address. You are also offered more control. There are no worries about someone’s bad script slowing down or crashing the server. If this occurs, it can only be a result of your own fault. Dedicated hosting also offers faster response times during high traffic loads. Since requests are only coming from your web site, visitors of your site won’t have to wait in long queue lines for results of web pages and images.
There are also easier setups. Setting up anonymous FTP and SSL encryptions on the server is simple as long as the server has a dedicated IP address. The same can be done with shared hosting, but it is more difficult. Some shared hosts don’t offer this and other’s may charge a premium. It would be best to have the shared host set it up for you, so that you can avoid complications.
Unlike with shared hosting, dedicated hosting companies don’t have any bandwidth penalties. With dedicated hosting, there is no charge for going over the allotted bandwidth. They don’t hold such restrictions because they assume that you will need a lot of bandwidth if you require your own server.
Depending on how big your web site is and the needs you have (and budget) will determine which type of hosting to go with: shared hosting (virtual hosting) or dedicated hosting.