Can You Host A Website On A VPS?

  A question that users often ask “can I host a website on a VPS?”.  The answer is yes, but exactly how you do it depends on the VPS, the type of website, and the software you want to use. Multiple websites are also possible on the VPS. The first step is to clarify the definition of a VPS: A

VPS

is where a single or multiple virtual servers are hosted on a physical server. Each virtual server acts as an independent server, sharing the physical server’s resources. Each VPS installation can support an independent website or multiple websites.   Host A Website On VPS    

Is a VPS suitable for Web Hosting?

  Again, the answer to this is yes. In a single server VPS environment, hosting a website is a no-brainer, but multiple websites and virtual servers need more thought and planning.  

How to host your own VPS?

Host your VPS   Most VPS  based websites are hosted using a Managed Service Provider (“MSP”) who supplies the basic physical infrastructure and the VPS environment.  Some organisations implement a VPS server in their own data centre. A website needs an IP address so that users can reach it using a search engine or directly. That implies two things, first that the server is connected directly to the Internet, and that it has a network interface with that IP address. And that’s your first problem. Your Internet Service Provider probably doesn’t allow you to host a website over a permanent connection, so an external web server hosting service like

HostSailor

becomes essential. A few other technical complications are involved, so you need an MSP offering a website hosting service. Each server in a VPS environment can support web server software, and therefore a website. A VPS can be implemented in either Linux or Windows environments:

• Linux

VPS functionality is a part of the Linux operating system, including the KVM system that allows the user to manage the VPS environment. KVM provides the tools to create virtual servers, maintain users, implement the necessary security services and monitor performance. KVM can be installed during the initial Linux installation or added later.

• Windows

Unlike Linux, VPS is not a part of the core Windows Server operating system. The Microsoft equivalent to VPS, Virtual Machines is part of the Azure Cloud environment, most commonly found in hosting web service providers. The Azure VMs are usually hosted in a remote Microsoft data centre. An alternative is to install a standard Windows server and run a VPS application to create the VPS environment. On balance, unless you are a large corporate user, the Linux environment, quite apart from being freeware, is a better choice for a VPS web hosting environment. You will need a server, the latest Linux distribution, and the technical know-how to implement and manage it. An alternative is to use an MSP to provide the infrastructure at one of their data centres and connect to it remotely.  

How Many Websites Can I Host On A VPS?

    This is a question with several answers. The best answer is however many you need, but that will be qualified by the infrastructure and business needs. If you need multiple websites this can be done through subdomains. A second option is separate domains in different VPS servers, but this has some technical and infrastructure implications.  

Is AWS a VPS?

The answer is yes. AWS provide a VPS service using their LightSail service. If you are interested in VPS website hosting, please

contact us

for an informal chat about your options.