Virtual private servers, abbreviated as VPS and also known as virtual dedicated server or VDS is a method of splitting or partitioning servers. So as a result you have a number of virtual servers, but there is actually only one server which is virtualized. The term virtualization means a method of partitioning or splitting physical servers. The resultant individual virtual private servers have the capabilities and appearance of their own dedicated server. Each individual virtual private server can be controlled and administered in a completely independent way and behaves as a full-fledged server. Also, another added advantage of virtual private servers is that they can be individually rebooted. In terms of cost, it is highly cost effective as there is only one physical server so you do not have to invest in your own private server to have a dedicated sever as with the help of this method virtual splitting of physical servers is possible. Virtualization is not a new method. it has existed since the time of main frame computers but has taken on an all new stance with the development and usage of virtualization software and similar technologies.
Each virtual private server is completely independent and therefore behaves in a way that a physical dedicated server is supposed to. Virtual private servers belonging to one physical server can all run their own operating systems. The physical server creates, destroys and manages the resources of virtual machines (guest operating systems) with the help of a hypervisor. Each of the guest operating systems is allotted its share of physical resources of the physical server in a way that the guest server is unaware of the presence of its other counterparts. The guest operating system cannot figure out that the physical nature of its resources and does not know that the physical resources are shared. Virtualization is of three types, full virtualization, para-virtualization, and a hybrid of these two. The hypervisor acts as the interface between the guest’s virtual requests and the server’s physical resources. Its basic function is translation, mapping and conversion the virtual private server’s requests. Some common hypervisors are Virtuozzo, Xen, OpenVZ and Vserver. Linux, BSD, OpenSolaris, Plan9 and a lot of other operating systems support paravirtualisation.
Having virtual private servers is highly beneficial as compared to having a dedicated physical server as the former are more cost effective. Other uses are that they bridge the gap between dedicated hosting services and shared web hosting services. They give the same independence to customers as dedicated servers do but at a lesser cost. Customers have a great access to the operating system and have the freedom to install any software they want to. Some virtual private servers are used to test software with deliberate security flaws and can be run without risking the security of the rest of the physical server. However, virtual private servers have their own limitations. Because one physical server hosts multiple virtualization clients, they have limited access to processor time, disk space and RAM. So there is a trade off between cost and efficiency by compromise on either of the two.
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ds.my is the author of this article on Dedicated Server.
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