With the way that the internet is growing and how important it is for a business to have a web presence these days, most people are aware of website hosting and why it is needed. For entrepreneurs and many small businesses, a shared web hosting service is usually sufficient and can keep hosting costs low. However, when an internet business reaches a certain level of traffic and size, a dedicated server is the best way to go for a website that is really taking off.

A dedicated server is simply a web hosting computer that is "dedicated" to one particular website or web business. When a server is "dedicated," it means that all of the computing resources of that server are solely allocated to one single client. In most instances, the dedicated hosting server is leased or purchased by the client who owns the website being hosted. Usually, these specialized servers are housed in a secure data center, which also provides extra services, such as environmental control, power backup systems, security and the needed connection to the internet.

A dedicated server hosting account is also used when the company has some unique requirements for its website, such as special security measures, additional resources or customized setup. When an internet business has these kinds of needs it is a good sign that they have outgrown an inexpensive shared web hosting plan and need to upgrade to a dedicated server.

A dedicated server is also a viable alternative to purchasing a powerful and scalable server in-house, and any additional software that might be necessary. The outright purchase of such powerful dedicated servers can be very capital intensive and the expense can be extreme for fledgling companies, even if they are planning for significant growth and expansion. Instead, dedicated servers provided by dedicated hosting services offer an alternative that provides the computing power needed for a thriving website that is in demand, at a cost that is easier to handle.

Another advantage to using a dedicated hosting service is that the server can be built to the specifications of the company that owns and operates the website. At that point, it is dedicated only for the use of that company, and the company is able to completely manage and control the server remotely, in terms of system administration and application use. At the same time, it is the dedicated hosting service provider, or web hosting service, that is responsible for maintaining the all of the hardware and the network connectivity. In most cases, this means that there are technicians available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to make sure that the web servers are always running.

Since the companies that offer these dedicated web hosting plan options are providing this equipment to a number of clients, the maintenance and staffing costs of the secure data center can be shared. This is one of the primary reasons why it is much more cost effective to have a managed dedicated server offsite and maintained by the hosting company, rather than having it done in-house.