Founders Series: Which is the right hosting solution for your business type?

Welcome to our Founders Series, where we aim to give advice, answer questions and provide solutions for people starting their own businesses. If this sounds like you, read on! We've got plenty of content on a wide range of topics, all to help you grow and succeed as a founder.

Is your current hosting solution fit for purpose? If your business has grown, evolved or changed since you implemented your previous hosting solution, then the answer could well be no and this could be holding you back…

Having the right solution for your unique needs isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s imperative to ensure you can perform online in the way you want to ultimately grow your business. On the other hand, a bad-fit solution can be damaging – both operationally and financially…

How to decide what’s right for you

From your website and projects to your internal digital operations, your hosting solution stores, manages, and powers it all. Naturally, solutions come with varying levels of performance, security, scalability, flexibility and more. 

Each business – depending on its size, budget, resources and future plans – will have different requirements, but as a busy founder it can be difficult to see the wood for the trees with so many options out there. So here’s a quick guide to help you decide.

Shared hosting: for SMEs

Shared hosting is a service where your website is hosted on a physical server that is shared with other websites. It’s a great starting point for brand new businesses who want to get online quickly or SMEs that don’t expect heavy web traffic – mainly because it’s the most affordable option and requires little-to-no management on your end.

Pros

• Flexible – many providers allow you to upgrade or downgrade your plan 
• Easy to use – a built-in control panel allows you to see the data in one place
• Managed for you – technical maintenance is taken care of by the provider

Cons

• Shared – other websites with high traffic can lead to performance issues
• Security – the shared nature increases the risk of certain cybersecurity issues
• Limitations – minimal customisation options can hold your website back

If your business is already up and running, there’s a good chance you started with shared hosting. But if your website, budget and demands have grown considerably since then, you might need to upgrade to ensure your web performance and user experience isn’t affected. 

VPS hosting: for scaling startups

A virtual private server (VPS) is also hosted from a physical server, but instead of sharing its resources with others, the server is split up into several virtual machines – one of which is your own. It packs the same resources that the main server had, but with no interference from others. Some might say it’s a happy medium between shared and dedicated hosting.

Pros

• Dedicated resources – all the resources are your own, improving performance
• More affordable – the same resources as a dedicated server at a fraction of the price
• Full control – you get complete admin control with full root access to your server
• Secure – better privacy as files and data are locked from other users
• Scalable – easily scale up or down depending on website growth or traffic spikes 

Cons

• Pricier than shared hosting – but cheaper than a dedicated server
• Requires technical knowledge – needed for proper set up 
• Potential security risks – incorrect set up can lead to vulnerabilities
• Needs management – it’s more demanding than shared hosting

If your business, website traffic or resource demands have grown, you’re running specific programs that require optimum performance, you want more security, control and customisation, or you want to customise CPU/RAM to guarantee performance for specific events, then a VPS could be for you. 

Dedicated hosting: for established businesses

A dedicated server does what it says on the tin – a whole server dedicated to you. No sharing or virtual machines, just one server for your needs with all the power and resources you require. 

Pros

• Performance – this is the most powerful hosting option available 
• Security – zero interference from other users guaranteed
• Control – full root access means you can install and update software at will

Cons

• Cost – more expensive but worth the money if you’re in a position that requires it
• Difficulty – technical assistance is needed for server management 
• Responsibility – server maintenance, like updating and installing patches is on you

If you’ve got the technical team to handle it, your business has outgrown SME status, and your projects and website demands have grown exponentially, then a dedicated server is the best way to guarantee performance, keep visitors happy and drive your operations.

Cloud hosting: for seasonal businesses

Instead of a physical server, cloud hosting is run entirely by virtual means on a cloud computing network over the internet. It’s built, delivered and accessed without a physical server in sight. 

Pros

• Virtual – no need for onsite hardware or capital expenses
• Highly flexible – control everything, upgrade at will and only pay for what you need
• Easy backup – can be done from anywhere on a device of your choice in seconds
• Secure – losing data is highly unlikely, but you can often restore it anyway 
• Pay as you go – you only need to pay for the resources you actually use

Cons

• Cost – might not be cost-effective if scalability and instant data recovery isn’t needed
• Potential limitations – there are limits to storage upgrades and they can be costly
• Reliant on connection – no internet access means no access to your information

Cloud hosting can be as expensive or cheap as you want it to be, so it’s vital you assess your resources, figure out what you need and determine whether the pros outweigh the cons. As well as seasonal businesses, it’s also popular with scalers for its flexibility and agility. 

Managed server hosting: for tech companies

If you want quality features such as performance, security and scalability but don’t possess the technical means to set up or manage your chosen level of server, then a managed server hosting solution may be ideal for you. Rather than a standalone hosting type, think of this as a modified version of whichever web hosting server you choose – but server maintenance and updates are taken care of by your hosting provider.

Pros

• Less knowledge – no need to worry about any of the technical maintenance 
• Secure location – you're using someone else's servers, meaning they’re kept secure
• Some flexibility – some providers let you easily scale your packages up or down
• Security covered – security patching and other account-level features are dealt with

Cons 

• Expensive – you have to pay more on top of the server cost for the extra work 
• Limited access – you don’t own your server, so you can’t always instantly access it
• Need a trusted provider – control is with your provider, so they need to be reliable 

Ironically, managed server hosting is popular among tech companies – not because they don’t have the in-house skills, but because they want their IT staff to concentrate on other tasks. Generally, if you need enhanced features and you have the money, but you don’t have the time or technical ability, managed hosting is for you. 

Colocated server hosting: for large business

Colocated server hosting is where your server is housed in a third party data centre that your provider has access to, and is able to maintain, manage and monitor it. It’s an alternative to managed hosting, and means neither you or the provider needs to create the space or pay for the overheads of housing the server yourself.

Pros

• Top-of-the-line hardware – access to premium equipment to increase reliability
• Scalability – scale up or down easily and pay only for the resources you need
• Robust – data spikes are distributed across users, keeping bandwidth costs low
• Always maintained – third-party ensures your server is always at optimum capacity
• Secure – off-site data centres have security and backups to maintain operations

Cons

• High initial costs – start-up costs are expensive compared to renting servers
• Uncommon – it can be difficult to find a hosting provider that offers this service

Colocated servers are often described as the middle-ground between a dedicated server and cloud server. This is because you get the power without the need for maintenance, so they can be popular with large businesses whose IT teams are better placed elsewhere. If you can afford the start up costs, then this is the ultimate lightweight combination of performance, security and scalability.

Storage server hosting: for huge conglomerates

Finally, storage servers are essentially dedicated servers that have been optimised to handle huge amounts of files and data, with numerous HDD or SSD disk drives. They’re also optimised with elevated data privacy, with huge data backups also available to protect your site.

Pros

• Storage space – huge storage capacity available for massive data and backups 
• Performance – ultra high performance with dedicated resources
• Control – full root access for you to customise according to your needs
• Data privacy – data is stored securely on your own private network. 

Cons 

• Expensive – very pricey, consider whether you need it before purchasing
• More technical expertise required – complex management and control is on you
• More responsibility – server maintenance can be labour intensive

Unless you’re a huge conglomerate or a large business with extremely sensitive data – such as those in medical, legal or financial sectors – then you probably don’t need the huge data storage requirements and elevated data privacy of storage hosting equipment. But if this is where your business is heading, then it’s good to keep this hosting solution in mind for the future as the stakes grow on your data and your projects expand. 

Fasthosts: for the right partner

By making the right choice for your unique position, you can elevate your online operations, boost your capabilities and keep costs affordable to ensure you the right conditions are set for your growth journey. But you need the right partner to keep up with you.

Fasthosts offers an array of hosting solutions, with various packages to choose from, 24/7 real human support and a fully sustainable UK-based data centre. Get in touch to discuss your needs today – your server is in safe hands with Fasthosts.