Written by Michael Jordan
It is widely understood that a dedicated server is the by far the best option for most business hosting applications due to the superior performance, flexibility and security options that a dedicated server offers. But the level of technical knowledge needed to operate a dedicated server is often an obstacle for small businesses as if this knowledge is not available in-house the cost of hiring a dedicated technician on top of the hardware and running costs is not a feasible solution. But is it possible to run a dedicated server without any experience and what exactly makes a dedicated solution so desirable to businesses?
Well let’s first take a step back as to fully understand the benefits of a dedicated server we first need to talk a little about shared servers so we form a basis to build up on.
A shared server is a single server that is used by several users all working separately but sharing the hardware and resources of the server. It is a cost effective solution for hosting your website and services as many users sharing the same hardware enable the costs to be covered by the multiple users. But the main drawback of a shared server is multiple users all using the same hardware can cause the performance of the server to suffer. Functionality can also be limited by the provider and their configuration.
Shared servers are perfect for anyone wanting a cheap hosting solution but for the performance and flexibility your business needs a dedicated server is by far the better solution. This is because a dedicated server is a single server that is used by a single user and that user has full access to the hardware and resources of the server. However this makes a dedicated server is a more expensive option as only one user shoulders the cost of the hardware. The user also have the freedom to do exactly what they want with the server as they are the administrator of the server and are not restricted by the configuration of their provider, however this is what poses the biggest problem for many small companies.
The administrator is solely responsible for the setting up and maintaining the software and services on the server which includes the security and stability of the server which is especially important for business critical applications and where sensitive data is stored on the server. You would not want someone to easily gain access to your server and grab your customer’s data would you? Managing your own server is not necessarily an easy task and without the experience of a seasoned server administrator you could be putting your business at risk. In short, if you don’t know your IIS from your Apache you may have problems and it is probably best to leave server administration to the experts.
But could your business afford to shell out for a dedicated server administrator? Or would you have to sacrifice the performance of a dedicated server for a cost effective solution as you simply do not have the knowledge to manage a dedicated server in-house?
Over the years Webfusion has worked to overcome issues for our customers where security vulnerabilities or hacking attempts have caused major problems and we know how damaging it can be if servers are not adequately managed. A server in the hands of an inexperienced systems administrator could spell disaster for your business.
So to avoid the risk you can either choose a far simpler hosting solution or pay out to employ an experienced administrator. This would usually mean choosing between limited functionality or spending an extortionate amount to hire somebody qualified.
If you need the performance of a dedicated server by you do not have anyone with the required expertise then you really only have a couple of options.
- Employ someone with the skills you require
- Try and do it yourself.
Both of these options have their pitfalls, so let’s not beat around the bush. To employ someone else will cost a lot of money, if you are already paying upwards of £1200 a year for a dedicated server, is spending a minimum of £14,000 on top of that really an option? The prospect of paying a minimum of £15,200 just for a server and administrator might be out of the budget for some businesses.
The other option is to do it yourself and learn as you go, in theory you could learn the skills you need while operating your server. But could your business really afford to go offline for a few hours just because you pressed something wrong? Is trial and error really the best way to run your business?
But there is now a 3rd option! There is another way to have the dedicated power your business needs but without needing the knowledge to manage a server yourself. Hosting providers such as Webfusion are now starting to offer dedicated servers with a choice of self-managed or managed administrator options.
With the self-managed option you are responsible for managing your own server and are in full control of the security and operations of the server. Self-managed is recommended for experienced uses who want more control and is the one you should choose if you want your system administrator to manage the server. With a self-managed dedicated server you have the freedom you need to manage your server how you see fit. With full root and administrator access you have the freedom to do exactly what your business requires, in other words it’s the dedicated server we know and love.
The managed option on the other hand is the solution that bridges the gap between managing your own server and hiring a technician to do it for you. It takes a dedicated server and runs a simple control panel interface for you to run your web services and technicians manage the maintenance of the server. This enables you to benefit from the performance of a dedicated server without having to deal with the server technology itself.
What this means is your server is managed by someone else, all the technical stuff like installing software, applying critical security, OS and application updates, server hardware and network availability is taken care of by someone else. But you are not taken completely out of the loop; you are given a simple control panel interface where you can manage your websites and services without needing to know the inner workings of the server.
So anyone, even with limited technical ability can operate a dedicated server and experience all the benefits of a dedicated server but without the responsibilities managing your own server would entail. What’s more there is no need to spend money on an expensive technician as you are effectively outsourcing the majority of your server admin to a team of experts. The managed server option not only unlocks the full potential of a dedicated solution to the masses but it enables you to save time and money so you can concentrate on what matters.
Could your business benefit from a managed server solution? Or would you prefer to stay in the driving seat?
