Virtual Private Server or VPS Hosting has evolved into a preferred hosting type in recent years. It combines the benefits of a Dedicated server with the cost-efficiency of Shared Hosting and offers an amazing hosting option to websites. In this article, we will look at the role of virtualization in VPS Hosting.
What is Virtualization?
Virtualization is a process of creation of a virtual version of the hardware or software of a computer. This is done to separate any service from its physical delivery. Virtualization allows you to run several operating systems or applications on the same hardware.
We have known about virtualization for a long time – never by the name ‘virtualization’ though. Way back in the 90’s when desktop computers entered our homes, we had two drives on our computer – ‘C’ and ‘D’. They weren’t two separate drives, but one hard drive which was partitioned into two virtual drives.
Virtualization and VPS Hosting
In VPS Hosting, a website is hosted on a virtual server. This virtual server is created by using a server virtualization software called hypervisor. The hypervisor partitions the resources on a physical web server and creates multiple smaller virtual servers. This allows the server to optimally utilize its resources too.
The virtual servers are isolated from one another and work as exclusive physical devices with dedicated resources. Creating virtual servers offers many benefits:
- It helps in effective management of resources since the partition allows several users to use the same physical space without compromising on quality
- It offers features which are similar to a dedicated server but at a marginal cost. This is a blessing for small and medium-sized businesses.
- Backing up data is relatively easy.
Some of the benefits offered by VPS Hosting Plans are as follows:
- Stability – since the performance of other virtual servers does not impact the performance of your server
- Faster load times – since you have resources dedicated to your virtual server
- Flexibility – you can customize the hosting environment since you get full root access. With complete root access you can configure the server environment and install additional applications as per your requirement.
The hosting providers can provide these benefits because virtualization allows them to create virtual servers in a manner that they have dedicated resources, root access, and an isolated environment.
Summing Up
In simple words, without virtualization, hosting providers would be unable to offer VPS Hosting plans since they would not be able to create virtual servers. Virtual servers are environment-friendly since they reduce the number of physical machines used by us. We hope that this article helped you understand the process of virtualization without the technicalities involved. Do share your views with us in the comments below.
