The Difference between a Dedicated Server and Colocation

Both dedicated servers and colocation web hosting will give you a server that’s all your own and that only holds your website or websites, but absolutely no others. Because of this similarity, people sometimes confuse the two and when talking about them, use them interchangeably. However, there are differences between these two types of hosting that clearly set them apart from each other.

When you choose to use a dedicated server, you find a web host that offers dedicated services (there are many), and rent a server from them. The server will in fact only host websites you create, but the server is not actually yours, as it will still belong to the web host. You will be able to access the server if you need to upgrade it or perform maintenance on it. This is usually done through a website that you will go to, enter a login name and password, and then be ‘behind the scenes’ of your server. Typically with a dedicated server, you will never have physical access to the server.

Colocation hosting on the other hand, is quite different. When you use colocation, you actually own the server and can have all the physical access to it that you need. You can also keep it wherever you’d like. However, many people find that they don’t have the room, or the need, to store their server at their home or their business. This is especially true for large corporations that for security reasons, need to own their own servers, but don’t have the storage space to house the racks and racks of them that are needed. Because of this, they look at colocation services.

Those are the services of a web host that will physically store the server or servers in their data centers, keeping them completely safe and secure. Unless you make another arrangement with your web host, they will typically never touch your server or perform any maintenance on it. You can however, usually visit the data center whenever you’d like to complete these tasks, or authorize an IT consultant to access the servers. Usually, colocation services also provide the same type of remote access to the server when you don’t want to go to the actual physical location.

Using either dedicated servers or colocation services can be very beneficial for many people and many businesses. Before you decide which one is right for you, you need to seriously consider what the needs are of your business, and your website. If you have limited IT knowledge, you might be more comfortable leaving the actual maintenance to the web host with a dedicated server. However, if you have highly confidential data or just want to own your own server, colocation might be a better choice.

Whichever one you decide on, know that while dedicated servers and colocation services will give your website a server all unto its own, there are significant differences between the two. And those differences will play a large part in which one you choose for your site.