VPS or Shared Hosting

16 replies
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Hi All,

Currently running 6 live sites on A2 shared host. Two of which are eCommerce affiliate marketing sites and the others are portfolio sites and blogs. I've switched to A2 about 6 months ago from Hostgator because of their speed. However, I haven't been going anywhere. Every week I'll get hit with Malware on my sites and suspensions from A2. Currently A2 has suspended my sites and my developer cannon fit them due to the suspension. A2 wants to wipe out my entire cPanel and recreate my web sites from scratch but cannot use the current sites as they may contain malware.

My developer suggested that I switch to Inmotion Hosting and go with their VPS which will run my affiliate sites better and my sites faster. My thing is that I cannot justify the cost. While I am not making any money with my affiliate sites this could be due to all the suspensions I've had over the past 6 months. I can really use some advice on what to do here. Find a better shared host or go with VPS. All help appreciated.
#hosting #shared #vps
  • Profile picture of the author EvolveWebHosting
    Originally Posted by rollingsolo View Post

    Hi All,

    Currently running 6 live sites on A2 shared host. Two of which are eCommerce affiliate marketing sites and the others are portfolio sites and blogs. I've switched to A2 about 6 months ago from Hostgator because of their speed. However, I haven't been going anywhere. Every week I'll get hit with Malware on my sites and suspensions from A2. Currently A2 has suspended my sites and my developer cannon fit them due to the suspension. A2 wants to wipe out my entire cPanel and recreate my web sites from scratch but cannot use the current sites as they may contain malware.

    My developer suggested that I switch to Inmotion Hosting and go with their VPS which will run my affiliate sites better and my sites faster. My thing is that I cannot justify the cost. While I am not making any money with my affiliate sites this could be due to all the suspensions I've had over the past 6 months. I can really use some advice on what to do here. Find a better shared host or go with VPS. All help appreciated.
    Changing to a VPS or another provider isn't going to make a difference if you're using software that is vulnerable to hacks. What software are you using to run the sites?

    You would consider Sitelock or Sucuri to prevent these attacks but if it's outdated software, you need to get it updated.
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    • Profile picture of the author XSV1
      Originally Posted by EvolveWebHosting View Post

      Changing to a VPS or another provider isn't going to make a difference if you're using software that is vulnerable to hacks. What software are you using to run the sites?

      You would consider Sitelock or Sucuri to prevent these attacks but if it's outdated software, you need to get it updated.
      This is good advice, you need to fix the issue with the current sites before you move anywhere. You don't say specifically what sites have the problems, but it's key to make sure you keep all scripts up to date to help avoid this. I'd also go through any themes and plugins you've installed, especially if they were free, and scan them or disable/delete them. If you are on a managed plan, I'd ask the host to scan the account as well. Since it's Shared hosting, it should contain management and they should be scanning the whole server. You say this keeps happening, so make sure while cleaning up the hosted sites, you also run a scan on your local computer or any devices you use to manage these sites. I'd also then change all passwords as part of the process.
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      • Profile picture of the author rollingsolo
        Originally Posted by XSV1 View Post

        This is good advice, you need to fix the issue with the current sites before you move anywhere. You don't say specifically what sites have the problems, but it's key to make sure you keep all scripts up to date to help avoid this. I'd also go through any themes and plugins you've installed, especially if they were free, and scan them or disable/delete them. If you are on a managed plan, I'd ask the host to scan the account as well. Since it's Shared hosting, it should contain management and they should be scanning the whole server. You say this keeps happening, so make sure while cleaning up the hosted sites, you also run a scan on your local computer or any devices you use to manage these sites. I'd also then change all passwords as part of the process.
        Thank you for chiming in. My developer suggested I split up my sites on different host. For instance I have 6 live sites. Two of which are affiliate marketing sites. He suggest that run the affiliate sites on a separate host together and keep my other sites with A2 that are portfolio sites and blogs. He also recommended that I get a VPS host if not now later down the line.
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        • Profile picture of the author Sandakelum
          Originally Posted by rollingsolo View Post

          Thank you for chiming in. My developer suggested I split up my sites on different host. For instance I have 6 live sites. Two of which are affiliate marketing sites. He suggest that run the affiliate sites on a separate host together and keep my other sites with A2 that are portfolio sites and blogs. He also recommended that I get a VPS host if not now later down the line.
          If you're concerned about the cost, you could use a service like this,
          https://tjosm.com/product/optimized-...osting-webmin/

          But you should answer malware issues before moving anywhere, because you'll be suspended again. You can always hire someone to clean it up.
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    • Profile picture of the author rollingsolo
      Originally Posted by EvolveWebHosting View Post

      Changing to a VPS or another provider isn't going to make a difference if you're using software that is vulnerable to hacks. What software are you using to run the sites?

      You would consider Sitelock or Sucuri to prevent these attacks but if it's outdated software, you need to get it updated.
      Thanks everyone. I'm using Wordpress software on the sites. My host A2 just cleared all security vulnerabilities from my cPanel. I have to look into my sites and reupload them once cleared of any Malware or viruses.
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  • Profile picture of the author Vilvop
    [DELETED]
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    • Profile picture of the author davismiller097
      Originally Posted by Vilvop View Post

      In any case you may use services from time-tested companies, I mean A2hosting.com or Qhoster.com. They offer quality different services which will meet the needs of any discriminating webmaster.
      What is your opinion on reliability? We have been using GoDaddy for a long time and have been very happy with their products and services
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  • Profile picture of the author PeterB206
    I would recommend these guys knownhost.com it is not the first VPS I have used but their back up and service is second to none and of course you get speed.I use the VPS-2 there is currently a 15% off offer available and if you can pay for a year giving you further savings.

    Why VPS the long winded version is here: What is a VPS and how is it different from shared hosting?
    A VPS or Virtual Private Server is pretty much like having a standalone or dedicated server but at a lower cost. It is called virtual because it doesn’t have any real hardware on its own but it is sharing resources from a bigger server. Imagine that the main server is the whole bread with each bread slice representing one Virtual server.
    Websites running on the VPS are taking advantage of all the available server resources without ‘sharing’ resources with other websites.
    On the other hand in a shared hosting environment your website is running with other websites on the same virtual server, sharing resources and IP. In a shared hosting environment it is very common to have interruptions in service because of an issue or problem in one of the websites that affects the other websites hosted in the same server.
    VPS Hosting Advantages for WordPress
    We have said in the beginning that every serious blogger or online business that is using wordpress should consider moving from shared hosting to VPS and this is true because the advantages are much more important than the extra monthly cost.
    First for all the difference in cost is as low as $20 per month (or even less). A typical shared hosting package costs $10 per month (and that includes the hidden expenses most shared hosting companies don’t tell you from the beginning) while for a managed VPS package you need $25 per month. In other words, if you consider your website important for your business then $20 more per month is not a showstopper amount.
    What are the advantage for VPS especially for wordpress websites?
    Better security
    Security is of great importance these days and you don’t want your website to be compromised for any reason. On a shared hosting environment many websites share the same security settings and this makes it easier for hackers and bots (that’s computer software) to find security holes and break in. In addition the fact that al websites are in the same virtual space makes them more vulnerable to viruses and malware.
    Greater performance
    Having a fast website is necessary not only for a good user experience but also for SEO and ranking purposes. When on a shared hosting environment a website has memory leak problems or other performance issues your website is affected as well. The even more difficult part is to try and explain to support that your website is slow (or not accessible) and it’s not your fault.

    Google likes users to have a good experience and sites that load slowly do not give users a good experience and will be penalized by showing up on page 2 or more.
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    • Profile picture of the author rollingsolo
      Originally Posted by PeterB206 View Post

      I would recommend these guys knownhost.com it is not the first VPS I have used but their back up and service is second to none and of course you get speed.I use the VPS-2 there is currently a 15% off offer available and if you can pay for a year giving you further savings.

      Why VPS the long winded version is here: What is a VPS and how is it different from shared hosting?
      A VPS or Virtual Private Server is pretty much like having a standalone or dedicated server but at a lower cost. It is called virtual because it doesn't have any real hardware on its own but it is sharing resources from a bigger server. Imagine that the main server is the whole bread with each bread slice representing one Virtual server.
      Websites running on the VPS are taking advantage of all the available server resources without 'sharing' resources with other websites.
      On the other hand in a shared hosting environment your website is running with other websites on the same virtual server, sharing resources and IP. In a shared hosting environment it is very common to have interruptions in service because of an issue or problem in one of the websites that affects the other websites hosted in the same server.
      VPS Hosting Advantages for WordPress
      We have said in the beginning that every serious blogger or online business that is using wordpress should consider moving from shared hosting to VPS and this is true because the advantages are much more important than the extra monthly cost.
      First for all the difference in cost is as low as $20 per month (or even less). A typical shared hosting package costs $10 per month (and that includes the hidden expenses most shared hosting companies don't tell you from the beginning) while for a managed VPS package you need $25 per month. In other words, if you consider your website important for your business then $20 more per month is not a showstopper amount.
      What are the advantage for VPS especially for wordpress websites?
      Better security
      Security is of great importance these days and you don't want your website to be compromised for any reason. On a shared hosting environment many websites share the same security settings and this makes it easier for hackers and bots (that's computer software) to find security holes and break in. In addition the fact that al websites are in the same virtual space makes them more vulnerable to viruses and malware.
      Greater performance
      Having a fast website is necessary not only for a good user experience but also for SEO and ranking purposes. When on a shared hosting environment a website has memory leak problems or other performance issues your website is affected as well. The even more difficult part is to try and explain to support that your website is slow (or not accessible) and it's not your fault.

      Google likes users to have a good experience and sites that load slowly do not give users a good experience and will be penalized by showing up on page 2 or more.
      Thanks for this man! Big help. Question, do you use the SSD VPS on Knownhost?
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      • Profile picture of the author PeterB206
        No I just use the managed VPS
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  • Profile picture of the author riztechpro
    I think if you don't have any speed issues with your site and those sites are not really heavy then you should remain on shared hosting if you are running out with your payments and put some security on it. But in my opinion, I would definitely transfer my site to a vps because these would get much traffic and it would cause much trouble.
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  • Profile picture of the author johnmike1
    Thanks! This is a great overview of the differences between share vs VPS hosting. My travel blog has outgrown its shared environment and I’m keen on now upgrading to VPS. I can do so confidently after reading this post.
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  • Profile picture of the author zcrafts
    A better VPS hosting is what you should look at as it would offer root access to make sure your website runs smooth on shared hosting you will get lots of restrictions. Incase you are looking for reliable managed VPS hosting solution you should try : https://www.webhost.uk.net/vps-hosting.html
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  • Profile picture of the author rollingsolo
    Thanks everyone. I ended up going with Knownhost and using their VPS SSD1 Package. My eCommerce sites have significant increase in speed and page load times. I've noticed it right out the gate. So far Knownhost support has been great communicating via email. Looking forward to my experience here. Major thanks to @PeterB206 for the recommendation.
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  • Profile picture of the author Radium
    A VPS is just so much faster than shared hosting. Especially if you are using LiteSpeed instead of Apache. The downside is that it adds about $20/mo to the bill. An Nginx is another great choice and cheaper, but trickier to configure.
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    Web Design & Digital Marketing || I am not afraid of failure. I fail every day. My goal is simply to have more wins than failures. Failure is often one of the first parts of success.
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    • Profile picture of the author Slym
      You can find much cheaper VPS severs, less than 20$/mo, and my personal opinion is that VPS is the best, having full control over everything!
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  • Profile picture of the author marythompson
    Well to be honest most people don't need VPS hosting right from the start. You can star with with good shared hosting plan and if things pick up you might upgrade to VPS or dedicated. You sound quite sure that things will pick up in couple of months so if this is the case go with the Procurepod it will save you the hustle of upgrading. This is choice you have to make yourself
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