Cloud VPS

A common uncertainty that the vast majority of clients have is choosing the right hosting package. This is not at all surprising, since in both the domestic and international markets, there is a multitude of solutions that often cause more confusion than clarity, due to "aggressive" marketing.

Essentially, there are three major types of web hosting (with a 4th represented by Cloud Hosting):

• Shared Hosting
• Virtual Private Server (VPS Hosting)
• Dedicated Server (Server Dedicat)

 

Regarding the question asked, we will only address the first two types of web hosting.

 

1. Shared hosting.

This service is the most widely used globally, due to low costs and ease of management. Shared hosting comes free with a control panel that facilitates the installation of certain applications and the management of content, making it suitable for those who want an affordable and easy-to-manage solution.
The flexibility of the service offered through the control panel and pre-installed applications makes this type of hosting especially suitable for individuals who are just starting with their website and do not want to necessarily pay large sums of money.

 

2. VPS Hosting

If shared hosting is recommended for beginners, VPS occupies the opposite spectrum in the online sphere, but this is not a general rule.
A virtual private server provides much greater memory resources and processing power compared to its "smaller brother," and can be configured according to the needs of the developed project.
Whether we are discussing websites, such as online stores with a large number of products, projects that feature vast databases, or simply resource-consuming sites, all will benefit from a virtual private server.
It is important to consider that VPSs are individually virtualized entities on the server, which means that licenses for panels and any applications may need to be purchased separately.

Regardless of the recommendations we can provide, there will always be exceptions to the rule, thus choosing the perfect package is not an exact science.
If we were to describe the purchasing process of a host in a few words, we could use the terms "trial and error": in the case where the chosen package is below the project's needs, an "upgrade" to a more powerful service can always be made, and if we notice that we are not using all the allocated resources, a "downgrade" to a lower package can be requested, the entire procedure being dynamic.

If you want to delve into the concepts of Shared Hosting and Virtual Private Servers, we provide you with the following articles:

 

Shared Hosting
VPS Hosting

VPS, or Virtual Private Server, represents an advanced hosting solution that uses virtualization technology to divide a physical server into multiple independent virtual servers. Each VPS operates like a mini dedicated server, having its own guaranteed resources such as CPU, RAM, storage space, and bandwidth, all isolated from the other users.

Compared to shared hosting, a VPS offers superior performance and a higher level of control, making it ideal for applications and websites that require:

• Larger resources and consistent performance, regardless of the activity of other users on the server.
• A customized working environment, with the possibility to install applications or services specific to needs.
• More security and stability, thanks to resource isolation between users.

This type of hosting is ideal for growing businesses, complex applications, high-traffic online stores, or for users who want complete control over their server configuration.

Hostico offers a wide range of VPS optimized for performance and security. The complete list of available VPS packages can be viewed here: VPS.

For more detailed information about VPS hosting, its features and advantages, we invite you to visit the dedicated page: about VPS.

SSD (Solid State Drives)

It is a hardware device that uses "solid-state" storage technology through flash memory.
Unlike traditional storage using hard disk drives (HDD), SSDs have no moving parts, resulting in a much higher data transfer speed.

 

NVMe (Non-Volatile Memory Express)

Similar to SSDs, it is a type of flash storage that contains no moving parts, additionally implementing non-volatile memory, a memory that can store your data even after the power is turned off.
NVMe is much faster than traditional flash storage, allowing for more efficient data transfer between storage systems and servers.
In terms of speeds, they are up to six times faster than SATA-based SSDs and 10 times faster than hard disks, which is especially noticeable when reading and writing large files, thus being recommended for projects that include this type of data.
Considering that it is a relatively new technology, the purchase cost will be somewhat higher, but the performance offered will be justified by the processing speeds.

 

Notable differences between the two technologies are:

• NVMe storage provides non-volatile memory for data storage;
• Transfer speeds in the case of large files are incomparable to SSDs;
• Considerable increase in read and write operations that can be run simultaneously.

If a client opts for self-management of the VPS, the only service provided by Hostico will be the provision of an SSH connection with root access to the ordered VPS. This option does not include the services mentioned on the Secured page.

Administration of a VPS by Hostico involves the installation of the operating system (Almalinux 8 or Ubuntu 22.04 depending on the panel), the installation of an administration panel (one chosen by the client from those offered by Hostico), the installation of optimization and monitoring scripts, technical support, and 24/7 service monitoring. In the case of this type of administration, the client will not receive SSH access at the root level and will have access to the command line only upon request and only at the user level without special rights. This option includes the services mentioned on the Secured page.

Advanced development in web hosting services has rapidly brought innovations both in terms of applications used in the Web industry, as well as in the equipment and technologies employed, thus one of the essential factors to consider is the type of web hosting solution you choose.
Until now, traditional hosting solutions represented by: shared servers, virtual private servers (VPS), and dedicated servers still dominate the web hosting market, however, with the new technologies developed, more and more people are opting for Cloud hosting services.

To understand the difference between traditional hosting and Cloud hosting, we first need to understand what traditional hosting represents.

 

Shared Hosting

Often found under the term shared hosting, it is represented by individual accounts colocated on a single physical server, having an installed management panel that facilitates usage.
With multiple websites on a single server, the CPU, RAM, and space resources are shared, thus shared hosting typically supports multiple small or low-traffic sites.

 

Virtual Private Servers (VPS)

A piece of equipment used for VPS will host multiple sites; however, unlike shared hosting, it offers much greater memory resources and processing power.
Although the websites are shared, each website has its own virtual server (virtualized through different methods) providing complete server isolation, thus the resources being dedicated to the purchased website.

 

Dedicated servers

They are the hosting solutions for large-scale projects or those with high traffic, thus requiring considerable processing and memory resources. Compared to the two types of hosting presented earlier, dedicated servers involve the highest costs, making it a niche service typically for companies.

Regardless of which traditional hosting option we choose, data storage will be done on a single physical server, this aspect being a limitation in terms of redundancy of stored information, which is not present in the case of Cloud hosting services.

 

Cloud Hosting

Presenting cutting-edge technology, the cloud service will store files not on one, but on multiple servers simultaneously, thus providing maximum data redundancy, security, and performance compared to traditional hosting solutions. Additionally, since the resources needed for the website's database storage are distributed across multiple servers, the unique cloud hosting architecture ensures maximum reliability.

Another important aspect to mention is that, through easy scalability and advanced caching, hosted sites will have high performance and costs will be lower compared to a dedicated server (or even a VPS).

In conclusion, the choice of the right solution for the developed project is closely related to the needs of the website. If it is a small website, where spontaneous growth is not anticipated, then traditional hosting services may be helpful, but if the website gains popularity, it will require more resources and scalability to efficiently manage the growing traffic, which is provided through Cloud hosting services.

KVM (short for Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is a virtualization technology based on the Linux kernel functioning as a hypervisor, which provides the capability to create and manage virtual machines with different operating systems.
The created virtual machines offer typical functions of physical systems, including virtual BIOS, as well as virtual hardware represented by processor (CPU), memory (RAM), storage, network cards, etc., thus completely simulating a physical process.
The technology is used for isolating, developing, and testing applications in different environments. However, we will find it very frequently in web hosting companies, within VPS (virtual private server) packages.

Unlike virtualization performed at the operating system level (OpenVZ - level 2 hypervisor), KVM (even though it is also a level 2 hypervisor, works as a level 1 hypervisor) will provide an experience very close to that of a physical server.

 

Here are some of the advantages of using KVM virtualization:

 

• high performance in data processing;
• automatic scaling of resources to respond to heavy loads, once the number of virtual machines on a device increases;
• enhanced security due to direct implementation of KVM in the Linux kernel source code;
• full access to the equipment.

Some hosting packages offer SSH access, either for a normal user or for the root user, depending on the table below:

 

 

 

Package Type	SSH Access	User Type
Shared (Start Packages)	No	-
Shared (Business Packages)	No	Normal user (non-root), with access via the cPanel Terminal application
Shared (Reseller Packages)	No	Normal user (non-root), with access through the cPanel Terminal application, strictly on the main account of the reseller package
VPS Packages (managed by Hostico)	Yes	Normal user (non-root)
Unmanaged VPS packages (client-managed)	Yes	Root user

 

 

To receive SSH access on managed VPS packages (administered by Hostico), you will need to send an email to tehnic@hostico.ro with the following information:

• an SSH public key
• an IP from which the SSH connection will be made.

To gain SSH access on shared packages, you will need to make a Terminal activation request in cPanel. On this type of package, external access is only provided through the cPanel Terminal application.

Once the request is received, the technical department will make the necessary configurations to grant you access.

In the case of unmanaged VPS (client-managed), the SSH login details will be sent to the email address associated with your Hostico account, and you do not need to send us the above details.

 

Each payment received is manually verified for the correct issuance of the tax invoice, and after this verification, the actual activation of the service will take place.
Depending on the service ordered, the time required for its activation may vary as follows:

• for shared hosting services, the time can vary between 5 - 15 minutes
• for VPSs between 5 - 25 minutes
• for SSL certificates - between 5 - 15 minutes
• for domain registrations between 5 - 15 minutes

It may be necessary for additional information from the client in order to activate the ordered service and therefore the time required for activation will increase.
In the case of certain domain extensions, although the order is placed by us, their activation may take a few days. For more details, visit Domain Terms.

The Unmanaged VPS (client-managed) provides full server access via SSH, using the root user. This setup allows total control over the server, but it also comes with the responsibility of ensuring its security.

Default connection details:

• User: root
• Password: The default password, which can be found in the welcome email with the VPS administration details.
• Port: 22 (implicit)

How to connect to the server:

Connecting to the server is done using an SSH client, such as PuTTY (for Windows) or the native SSH terminal (for Linux and macOS). Follow the steps below:

1. Open the SSH client (e.g., PuTTY).
2. Enter the server's IP address in the Host Name (or IP address) field.
3. Set the port to 22 (or to the configured one if you have changed it).
4. Click on Open to initiate the connection.
5. Enter root as the user, followed by the associated password.

After logging in, you will have full access to your server, allowing you to configure and manage its resources.

Essential security recommendations:

1. Changing the SSH port

The use of the default port 22 for SSH is more vulnerable to brute force attacks. We recommend changing it to a custom port. To do this:

1. Edit the SSH configuration file with the command:

   nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config

2. Find the line:

   #Port 22