Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting definitely seems to be the future of the web hosting world. An unmanaged VPS hosting service is a solution that is completely under the control of the customer. Web hosting providers do not recommend such a service to people who don’t know how to establish, manage, and function a web server; in such a case, managed VPS hosting provides a better solution.
In this case, providers do not offer any help in case any problems are faced with unmanaged VPS accounts. The customers should therefore have a thorough knowledge of Linux operating system and ways to control the VPS so as to ensure uptime, reliability, and server stability. There may be problems related to resources, software, performance, or configuration- all of them have to be handled by the clients themselves. The web host will only look into problems related to network or hardware.
When I was new to the hosting world, and I signed up with GoDaddy for an unmanaged hosting account for the first time, I realized that it wasn’t too easy to deal with it, but in a matter of couple of weeks, I learned how to manage things with great ease. But, at the same time, I hadn’t really purchased a web hosting package for the first time!
Before taking an unmanaged hosting account, I used to do everything using tools like Fantastico and MySQL wizard in my shared hosting account, but when I needed to install custom web apps, and my hosting needs grew bigger, I had to look at a VPS.
Advantages of Unmanaged VPS Hosting
Unmanaged VPS hosting is advantageous when compared to managed VPS hosting in several ways, and some of them are listed below –
• The first and foremost advantage of unmanaged VPS is the autonomous control that it offers in terms of bandwidth, memory, software installation, usage, and storage space.
• The server can be customized to meet the needs of the clients precisely.
• It is a cost-effective solution since there is no need to buy, accommodate, secure or power the server.
• The hosting clients can be provided with standard as well as non-standard applications.
• Software or programs that are usually not offered with shared hosting services can be used with an unmanaged hosting account since everything is in your hands.
• There is no need to rely on unresponsive support.
• Unmanaged VPS servers are more suitable for businesses with the need for high bandwidths.
Thinking from Providers’ Perspective
The other significant advantage for the unmanaged VPS hosting service providers is that they can save quite a lot of money on customer support, since customer service is not needed as they don’t have to offer account and software support. This justifies the lower cost of unmanaged hosting services.
If you’ve a start-up hosting company, and don’t have enough staff in customer/tech support department, then it’s a fantastic way to kick off a VPS hosting division, without really having to expand, and recruit a lot of members as such.
Who Should Consider Unmanaged Hosting?
In a nutshell, unmanaged VPS or dedicated hosting service is an ideal option to install and configure the application software and operating system of your choice and to control the daily management and monitoring of server configuration and functioning, giving the ability to customize the server environment in the preferred way.
On the other hand, it’s not at all recommended for beginner level users, and as a host, you must always advise your customers to look at managed hosting services, if they’re taking VPS hosting for the first time.