Virtual private servers have become a useful tool especially for freelance web designers. Freelance web design is a particularly competitive field, a web designer who can give customers access to features that before were only available to those with a dedicated server with unbeatable prices will definitely profit. That’s all fine and dandy to for someone who understands “web talk” but what about anyone else who doesn’t understand the mambo jambo language of the Internet world?

If you’re confused from the get go about all the server discussion, let’s cut to the chase.

What is a server?

In layman terms, a server is just another computer, it’s just a technical word to describe a function that computer is doing. Web servers is another technical term which basically means software, a computer equipped with software is a server that can provide service to hundreds or millions more.

What is a dedicated server?

A dedicated server doesn’t share, unless the webmaster says it can. The webmaster has complete control of every single process the dedicated server will perform from choosing an operating system to accepting or installing 3rd party software for security, e-mail or whatever the webmaster would need a 3rd party for.

So, that’s the server and dedicated server in a nutshell. Five years ago everyone wanted the versatility of a dedicated server but the prices were anywhere from $500 and upwards. Then a few years later they became “more” affordable, not necessarily affordable and that’s where virtual private hosting comes into the ballgame.

What is a virtual private server?

According to the Google web dictionary there are two definitions.

A virtual private server utilizes a software platform that permits a hosting vendor to use a single dedicated server as multiple virtual machines. It allows multiple customers to share the expense of hardware and network connections, without sacrificing privacy, performance or preference. VPS is therefore considered one of the most sophisticated modes of automation available for provisioning small to mid-sized business web hosting.

In computing, Virtual private servers are a means of splitting a single physical server into multiple virtual servers. Virtual private servers are sometimes called virtual dedicated servers. The practice of partitioning a single server so that it appeared as multiple servers was common practice in the days of mainframe computers, but has seen resurgence lately.

Maybe that clears up what a virtual private server is, but how is it beneficial for a consumer, freelance web designer or any webmaster?

The benefits of virtual private hosting…

Just some of the comparable services that come along with both a dedicated and a virtual private server are:

File system

Bandwidth

CPU

Memory allocations

Disk space

User space

Those are some of the important features offered along with a dedicated server that you can also get with a virtual private server. One of the biggest differences is price! Dedicated server hosting accounts are on average $250 a month, while the average price for virtual private server hosting is about $50 a month. Large websites with lots of traffic and user features may need a dedicated server while other sites, even those with high traffic may be able to utilize the resources available with a virtual private server and save some cash. A virtual private server could be your alternative.