10
May
The Benefits of Managed Hosting for Businesses
Although much of the web hosting industry's attention has been focused on enterprises migrating to the cloud recently, a lot of businesses want firm control over their data and employ more traditional types of web hosting. Although they want control, this does not mean they are prepared to invest huge sums in dedicated IT departments or IT staff. For these companies, Managed Hosting still offers a range of benefits.
Simply put, Managed Hosting is a form of Dedicated Hosting where a provider (web host or ISP) owns servers which are leased to, and utilised by, a single customer. Whereas with Dedicated Hosting users are responsible for full server management, with Managed Hosting, providers manage hardware, operating system and application management on behalf of their customers. Companies can still utilise root or admin access to a server, but usually just concentrate on maintaining their websites and supporting their business activities rather than wasting time on IT.
So what are the benefits of Managed Hosting?
Cost Savings and Scalability are possibly the biggest advantages. Although more expensive than cloud hosting, not owning servers or having dedicated IT staff means cost savings for most companies. Dealing with a provider who can accurately assess and address your IT needs means that with Managed Hosting you only get the resources your company needs. Should your needs change, your provider can cater to your scalability requirements by changing the service it provides.
When a company manages its own IT, it often has to engage a number of partners for a number of different purposes. With Managed Hosting, a company engages a single partner, meaning a business can save time evaluating a string of partners, and can put more effort into finding a single partner that will meet all its needs.
Guaranteed Uptime With a provider on board, it is no longer a company's responsibility to fight against a range of issues to ensure system uptime - it is the provider's responsibility to ensure your company has the uptime it needs as part of a Service Level Agreement (SLA). Good providers manage advanced Internet network connections meaning alongside uptime, they offer the network speed a company needs.