If you are looking to grow your business, expanding in a digital environment may be a good solution to engage a wider range of users, automate your services, and improve business efficiency.
However, digitization comes with security challenges as it exposes the world to multiple attack surfaces. In fact, his 2023 Verizon report found that 83% of data breaches are caused by external actors.
Is there a solution to these digital security issues? Use a hosting product that minimizes your attack surface and provides a robust security infrastructure.
For example, instead of shared hosting with noisy neighbors, you can switch your entire infrastructure to a dedicated single-tenant server.
But which single tenant hosting option is best: bare metal or dedicated server?
This guide will help you find the answers and more.
Dedicated server 101
a dedicated server, or a dedicated physical server, is a type of hosting solution where an entire physical machine is dedicated to a single tenant or user. This means you have exclusive access to the physical server’s hardware, including RAM, CPU, storage, and bandwidth.
Dedicated servers do not share server resources with other tenants, providing the isolation needed to protect customer data and comply with relevant data security standards.
Additionally, because you have access to physical infrastructure, you can install and customize your own operating system (OS) and software applications without contacting a hosting provider.
That said, most hosting providers offer limited customization when it comes to physical infrastructure. For example, if you want a dedicated server with a certain cutting-edge Intel processor, you might not be able to get it, or you might have to wait a considerable amount of time.
Alternatively, you can choose a dedicated hosting provider such as Liquid Web, which offers dedicated servers built to your exact requirements.
a bare metal server is also a physical server that provides exclusive access to a single tenant and user without virtualization because it does not have a hypervisor installed.
However, bare metal servers are a modern take on traditional dedicated servers, and are also known as bare metal clouds because of their increased flexibility and customization.
For example, with access to instantly deployable resources from your hosting provider, you can leverage bare metal servers to provision additional resources when you need them without having to wait weeks or months.
Additionally, since bare metal servers are typically premium solutions, they also come equipped with the latest hardware specs, such as the latest Intel processors, NVMe SSDs (Non-Volatile Memory Express Solid State Drives), and DDR4 RAM.
Bare metal clouds and dedicated servers are both single-tenant physical servers, so there are no major configuration differences. Rather, the difference between the two lies in the way the hosting provider packages these two servers.
Provisioning time
The hardware resources required for your IT infrastructure are constantly changing. For example, a resource may be in high demand during the day and low at night. If you want to save on IT costs, your IT systems should only provision the computing resources they need.
However, such rapid provisioning is only an option for bare metal servers, as hosting providers provide instantly deployable resources on bare metal servers. In contrast, dedicated servers often require weeks to months of lead time to change configurations and cannot be used to provision resources on the fly.
customization
Bare metal server plans are typically highly customizable for CPU, RAM, storage, and networking requirements. Once you specify the exact specifications you want, your hosting provider will provide you with a custom plan.
By comparison, dedicated servers are also customizable, but a little more limited than what you get with bare metal servers. In most cases, there are some preconfigured setups available. Additionally, if a custom solution is required, the host must source the parts and set up a custom server.
Bare metal server plans, on the other hand, often offer a unique selection of different Intel processors and GPUs.
price model
Bare metal servers and dedicated servers often have different pricing models. Dedicated servers are most often offered as a subscription service with monthly or annual plans. In contrast, bare metal plans may come with a subscription plan or pay-as-you-go model.
In other words, dedicated server hosting is usually a long-term investment because you decide on the configuration and start paying a certain amount each month or year. In contrast, bare metal servers give you the option to temporarily scale up your computing services as needed without the need for long-term commitments.
hardware infrastructure
Although bare metal servers and dedicated servers have relatively similar server configurations, they come in different price ranges and use very different hardware.
As an affordable single-tenant solution, dedicated servers use inexpensive standard hardware. For example, you might choose a SATA SSD or HDD and an older Intel Xeon processor.
Bare metal servers, on the other hand, are typically premium offerings from hosting providers and come with a variety of high-end hardware choices, including NVMe SSDs, the latest Xeon Gold processors, and high-speed bandwidth connections.
Scalability
Both server configurations provide scalability in unique ways. Bare metal servers allow you to scale your servers vertically on demand by provisioning instantly deployable resources from your hosting provider. However, for dedicated servers, you will need to wait until your provider procures, configures, and sets up an upgraded dedicated server.
In other words, bare metal servers offer automated scalability, while dedicated servers require human input.
Why use a dedicated server?
Dedicated server hosting is an affordable hosting service, making it the perfect solution for businesses with high but predictable demands on computing resources. Additionally, it’s great for security isolation, as you can think of it as an isolated physical server located in a basement away from unsecured networks.
Additionally, dedicated server hosting comes with root access, allowing you to manage your server according to your organization’s requirements without having to go back and forth with customer support.
Dedicated server use case
Here are some applications of dedicated servers:
- resource intensive app— If you need a server to perform scientific calculations, render graphics, or run online games, you will need a dedicated server to maintain high resource requirements.
- Media streaming website — Delivering a Netflix-like experience requires powerful, dedicated servers that can encode, transmit, and deliver your media without interruption.
- video editing software — Web-based video editing platforms require support for high processing power and low-latency access to tools to ensure a smooth editing experience and encourage collaboration.
- data analysis platform : Data analytics platforms require advanced processor capabilities and custom hardware configurations suited to analytics workloads.
- Host multiple websites — A dedicated server simplifies web hosting for multiple websites by giving you full root access to install custom software and manage all your websites from a single dashboard .
Like dedicated servers, bare metal servers also offer high performance and robust security. However, the main advantage over dedicated servers is scalability and flexibility, as resources can be added or removed as needed to meet changing business needs.
Bare metal servers are usually best as supplemental hosting for dedicated servers. That way, you can rely on dedicated servers to meet average demand and add bare metal servers to your configuration as needed to accommodate increased seasonal resource requirements.
Bare metal server usage example
Bare metal servers are ideal for applications with flexible demands but high security requirements.
- big e-commerce shop —E-commerce stores often experience high volumes of unpredictable traffic during sale and holiday seasons, requiring more computing resources to serve shoppers without degrading the customer experience. It will be.
- Tax SaaS — If you manage a tax SaaS, the days and months leading up to the tax deadline can be stressful for your users.
- Payroll software — Resource demands on payroll software solutions are often unpredictable due to fluctuating payroll cycles, seasonal workforces, and regulatory changes.
Both bare metal servers and dedicated servers are excellent hosting solutions for any business that requires an air gap to comply with relevant security standards.
That said, the quality of your infrastructure is determined by the hosting provider that provides it. If you’re looking for a provider you can trust that’s available 24/7, puts your business first, has a performance-optimized data center, and can help you solve the complex problems of physical server management, look no further than Liquid. Consider the web.
