Dedicated server VS Virtual Dedicated server vs VPC

[DanH]

Just when I thought I was getting used to the terminology...

Have been using physical and managed dedicated servers for years over a few well known hosts. Our latest dedicated server lease is coming to an end but we are paying £240 a month (£200 +VAT) for:

R230 Intel E3-1230v6 (3.5 GHz, 4 Core)
32GB RAM
2 x 512GB SSD RAID1
Daily Backup
Plesk
Firewall

I'm being quoted a similar price but for a VPC where the spec is 8 gigabytes of ram and 200 gigs of data. I've yet to talk to someone about how that is comparative to the existing physical setup, so I thought I'd ask here. We're running a couple of Woocommerce sites, one of them busy and plugin laden, the other one less busy traffic wise. I'm happy with the performance of the current server but a bit wary going from a physical server to a virtual/cloud base affair as I don't want to suffer in performance.

Thanks

Dan

 

[WebDesires]

If in doubt... stick with a dedicated.

I personally would never go cloud, ever.

 

[DanH]

Thanks, that's always been my thinking. They haven't quoted a dedicated server as I said an increase in price would make me look at offers elsewhere...it's OS is now end of life so I have to move to something else and there's no real incentive in sticking with them as I'll get charged a setup fee anyway.

 

[DontAsk]

I'm being quoted a similar price but for a VPC where the spec is 8 gigabytes of ram and 200 gigs of data.

I think there's something wrong if a virtual server of that spec is the same price as your physical server.

 

[DanH]

Well the existing lease is 3 years old so I'm guessing the equivalent dedicated server now might be a lot more pricier than the deal we got it on....

 

[antropy]

I think there's something wrong if a virtual server of that spec is the same price as your physical server.

Nope, VPSs get more expensive when they approach the specs of a dedicated.

As above, if the price is similar and the dedi has much higher specs, why would you consider switching?

Paul.

 

[DanH]

I'm being forced to it seems, the OS is EOL and they want another commitment to a lease from me...they haven't offered me anything on my existing server which tells me they they want me on another device. I thought I they might let me be 'out of contract' on some sort of pay as you go but I don't think it works like that...

 

[antropy]

Take a look at these: https://www.quickhost.uk/uk-dedicated-servers/

Paul.

 

[DanH]

Thanks Paul, some of the prices aren't too dissimilar to what we're paying now for similar architecture, I'll drop them an email.

 

[DanH]

..and these look OK too:

Affordable Plesk Dedicated Servers UK | Managed & Secure Hosting Solutions

Looking for reliable and secure Plesk Dedicated Servers in the UK? Hosting UK offers affordable, high-performance Plesk hosting with full management, security, and support. Perfect for businesses needing fast, secure, and easy-to-manage servers.

hostinguk.net

 

[dx3webs]

There has been a big move with a lot of the specialist ecommerce suppliers into cloud based hosting rather than dedicated server (eg in our space if you look at sonassi / nexcess). There is clearly a massive profit advantage to sharing hardware between users rather than offering actual servers. We tend to use vmware based VMs for lower end clients but still prefer bare metal boxes for more demanding sites.

 

[antropy]

There is clearly a massive profit advantage to sharing hardware between users rather than offering actual servers.

There are pros and cons.

It's usually faster to get a VPS back online from backups after a drastic failure.

Paul.

 

[DanH]

Just had an interesting chat with the existing hosts.

They reckon, based on what they can see that I use resources-wise, I hardly use 8 gigs of the 32 gigs I have in our DS. I find this interesting as, when I moved from a 16 gig DS with our last hosts to this 32 gig DS, the change in Wordpress/Woo with all its plugins was significant to the point I thought we had definitely made the right choice.

What I suspect actually happened is the better CPU coupled with SSD disks (rather than spinning platter ones) were the real performance gains here. Soooo, that would lead me to believe that the specs I actually need are a bit more basic e.g. 8 - 16 gigs and SSD. This does open up rather cheaper options both physical and virtual/cloud.

 

[dx3webs]

How much storage space do you need? Sometimes this also rules out VPS options.

 

[DanH]

I'm currently using about 120 odd gigs out of the 512 gigs I have available...

 

[dx3webs]

Yes, that will limit your choice. However, most providers can be flexible. (hint hint )

 

[webhostuk]

You are using plesk control panel , is it a windows server or Linux? Looking at the your price its quit competitive even we offer the same cost for your specs ( but its fully managed server ). Just one thing for your new server migration, I really dont think they should charge setup fee, infact a free migration and setup should be offered as you have been with them for 3 long years.

 

[DanH]

Thanks both. It's Linux.

I guess the price is competitive but I have found a couple of places I can get like for like at the same kind of price I'm paying now. They've told me if I were to keep similar but updated/different machine/current spec hardware I'd be paying double. So I don't think it is in my best interest to stay with them and they won't let me keep/update my existing server.

 

[fisicx]

I’ve got a fully managed dedicated server with a whole stack of specs that costs a lot less that your current setup.

cPanel Dedicated Servers UK | Managed & Secure Hosting Solutions

Need secure and reliable cPanel Dedicated Servers in the UK? Hosting UK offers cost-effective, high-performance cPanel hosting with full management, security, and expert support. Ideal for businesses seeking easy-to-manage, secure servers.

hostinguk.net

 

[DanH]

I’ve got a fully managed dedicated server with a whole stack of specs that costs a lot less that your current setup.

cPanel Dedicated Servers UK | Managed & Secure Hosting Solutions

Need secure and reliable cPanel Dedicated Servers in the UK? Hosting UK offers cost-effective, high-performance cPanel hosting with full management, security, and expert support. Ideal for businesses seeking easy-to-manage, secure servers.

hostinguk.net

Showoff...thanks Graham!

 

[webhostuk]

Thanks both. It's Linux.

I guess the price is competitive but I have found a couple of places I can get like for like at the same kind of price I'm paying now. They've told me if I were to keep similar but updated/different machine/current spec hardware I'd be paying double. So I don't think it is in my best interest to stay with them and they won't let me keep/update my existing server.

Ok.. just make sure you ask the new provider about data migration, you can get free migration. Also a personal suggestion if its Linux and Plesk.. as you are switching over to new server would suggest to go with Cpanel /WHM control panel, much better to manage and optimize.

 

[dx3webs]

Also, As you are an ecommerce site make sure they are a certified PCI service provider (as to see their AOC)
In short.. you current provider is taking the Micky. Our entry level server has the same specs a you current server for significantly less.. with plesk.. and management.. free migration.. plesk...and PCI compliance.
I dropped you a PM if you want to dig deeper.

 

[DanH]

Thanks again. I'm kind of used to Plesk although open to options. I found the last migration significantly easier than previous migrations because of the Plesk migration tool.

 

[antropy]

They reckon, based on what they can see that I use resources-wise, I hardly use 8 gigs of the 32 gigs I have in our DS.

Or they're just saying what you need to hear to get you on a VPS.

Paul.

 

[dx3webs]

Thanks again. I'm kind of used to Plesk although open to options. I found the last migration significantly easier than previous migrations because of the Plesk migration tool.

arghh. what ever you do dont start a Plesk / CPanel war

Plesk migration tool has evolved to the point where it works 99.9% of the time.

 

[antropy]

arghh. what ever you do dont start a Plesk / CPanel war

Neither, try this: https://www.virtualmin.com/

Paul.

 

[Elliott Coleman]

IONOS do a VPS for £36/month (£18/month for the first 6 months)

8 Cores
24Gb RAM
240GB SSD (Do you really need 1Tb)

Or if you don't need that extra RAM then they also do for £24/month (£12 for the first 6)

6 Cores
12Gb RAM
240Gb SSD


Both Includes Plesk and Firewall.
Daily backups are extra but don't cost much at all.

 

[DanH]

Thanks Elliot.

 

[HostXNow]

Can get cheap low-spec unmanaged dedicated servers all day long. It's the higher-spec fully managed ones that cost more. Higher-spec servers cost more and admin time (fully managed) increases the cost too.

A lot of the providers are offering very slow/old CPUs and overcharging.

Look at the difference

Intel Xeon E-2136 vs Xeon E3-1230 v6 [cpubenchmark.net] by PassMark Software

AMD Ryzen 9 5900X vs Intel Xeon E-2136: What is the difference?

What is the difference between AMD Ryzen 9 5900X and Intel Xeon E-2136? Find out which is better and their overall performance in the CPU ranking.

versus.com

It isn't just about the cost.

The lowers-spec servers usually have

• SSD instead of NVMe SSD (faster)
• 100MB/s port speed instead of 1GB/s port speed
• Non-ECC memory instead of ECC memory - ECC = Error correction code memory to help avoid data corruption
• Slower CPU speed i.e 2.4 GHz to 3.0 GHz instead of 4 GHz plus
• 2400 MHz/2666 MHz memory instead of the newer 3200 MHz now available with AMD Ryzen 9 5900X
• AMD Ryzen 9 5900X also has one of the fastest single-core right now which helps load single-threaded apps load much much faster i.e WordPress/Opencart etc.

Also, many use VPS/Dedicated servers when they are not needed. Can get much better performance from Shared/Reseller services with the right web host making it more cost-effective in most cases. I try to push clients to shared/reseller if possible. VPS/Dedicated server is usually only needed if root SSH access is needed or something custom needs to be installed that is not available on Shared/Reseller service. But with web hosts using cPanel, CloudLinux, Imunify360, LiteSpeed, MailChannels etc on Shared/Reseller services VPS/Dedicated are becoming less popular and unnecessary these days.

Speeds for AMD 9 Ryzen 5900X = https://report.wpbenchmark.io/tGt9ngiI2b/
Speeds for AMD 9 Ryzen 5950X = https://report.wpbenchmark.io/rAyJkWwwsz/

The WPBenchmark is not the be all and end all but a good guide on how the server performs. You may test the WPBenchmark plugin on your own installs and it will show you some interesting information.

There is a lot more to it than just price. Many do not know/understand these things until I explain it them to them.