Alternately, two or more physical servers can be grouped together to form a single logical or 'virtual' server. This logical partitioning and grouping is common for example in the case of hard disc drives. Relative to a shared hosting environment, the reasons for electing to create a VDS by the partioning of a physical server into two or more logical or virtual dedicated servers include improved security, ease of administration, efficient utilisation of resources and cost savings when compared with using a separate physical server. VDS technology therefore combines the cost benefits of virtual hosting with the functional and security benefits of a dedicated server. All things being equal a physical dedicated server is only superior in terms of brute performance as the resourses of the entire machine are available at all times. However, it should be remembered that two or more physical servers may be configured as a single virtual server, providing superior performance when compared with a single physical server. So, Virtual Dedicated Server(VDS) technology creates an independent, secured, private, customer-unique server. Each Virtual Dedicated Server gives you the control, reliability and security of a dedicated server. VDS system resources (CPU, Memory, disk space) are guaranteed. Each VDS can be managed independently of the others on the same physical server, and appears as if it were on its own as a separate physical server. The VDS may even be running a different operating system from that of the host physical server, and can be re-booted independantly. You, as the VDS site owner, are able to perform all system configuration and administration tasks (except hardware management). The nearest comparsion in terms of administration would be with a Managed Dedicated Server. You may compile and install on your VDS any type of software, safe in the knowledge that it will not affect any other VDS on the physical machine. And more importantly, the activities of other VDS owners will never affect your server. So when you need the flexibility and privacy of a dedicated server, the comfort and security of a managed server, the easy of use of a pre-configured server, access to a full-featured control panel, but don't necessarily need 100% of the power of an entire dedicated physical server... ask for a Sphera VDS. In contrast, virtual hosting makes use of a single server and creates several sites all sharing the same memory space and making use of one set of facilities on that server. That server is often a single physical server but might be a logical (VDS) server. Your VDS includes private instances of installed and configured software, such as an http-server, dns-server, mail-server, Watchdog, DBMS and approximately thirty-five additional up-to-date and pre-tested applications which can each be easily installed via a simple option in your control panel. What is the difference between a Name-Based and an IP-Based Virtual Dedicated Server? One important feature of our VDSs is the option to create either a name-based or an IP-based VDS. The name-based VDS is a secure and yet cost efficient solution for most site owners. The main benefits of this feature are its low cost while delivering functional benefits superior to virtual hosting. However, a name-based VDS makes use of a single IP address which is shared with other servers and some software packages require that the server use a dedicated IP address, and would therefore require an IP-based VDS. These include:-
Also, a name-based VDS owner cannot administer sub-domains under their account. These must be administered by the host provider (us). An IP-based VDS can also have multiple IP addresses; making them suitable for IRC vhosts or shell account servers. Fortunately, a VDS can easily be migrated from name-based to IP-based (and back) at any time with only a few minutes of down-time; even if the migration involves separate physical servers. A VDS can also be easily upgraded to a physical dedicated server at any time. |