What is Cloud Hosting: How It Works, Pros & Cons, Who Should Use

Cloud hosting is a type of web hosting that uses a network of interconnected servers, “the Cloud,” to host websites and applications. Unlike traditional hosting that relies on a single physical server, cloud hosting distributes resources dynamically across multiple servers. This allows for greater scalability, reliability, and performance. It is available either as managed or unmanaged cloud hosting.

Cloud hosting works through virtualization, where physical servers are divided into virtual machines (VMs) to efficiently allocate resources like CPU, RAM, and storage. Its 4 advantages include dynamic scalability, flexibility, reliability, and cost efficiency. Its 2 drawbacks are cost unpredictability and technical complexity on unmanaged cloud hosting plans. Businesses requiring scalability and eCommerce sites with fluctuating traffic benefit most from cloud hosting. Ensure you choose the right cloud hosting plan by evaluating CPU, RAM, storage, and auto-scaling features. 5 alternative hosting types include shared, WordPress, VPS, dedicated, and colocation hosting.

What is the definition of Cloud Hosting?

Cloud hosting is defined as a type of web hosting that makes use of cloud technology to store the files of your website or web application. It utilizes a network of virtual servers to distribute its resources on-demand. This means that your website or web application data is spread across multiple servers that are maintained by the provider. This is in contrast to traditional hosting which relies on a single physical server.

Cloud hosting allocates resources dynamically based on demand. Cloud hosting is purchased as in both managed and unmanaged forms, with managed cloud hosting targeting non-technical users.

What is the Provider’s Role in Managed Cloud Hosting?

The provider’s role in managed cloud hosting is to handle all server maintenance, updates, and security. The provider therefore monitors infrastructure and maintains performance by optimizing server configurations and keeping everything up to date. The user is freed from such technical complexities and has easy access to the provider’s technical support team if they need expert advice.

How Does Cloud Hosting Work?

Cloud hosting works by pooling resources from a network of interconnected physical servers, often located in multiple remote data centers. This network, referred to as “The Cloud,” ensures resources like CPU, RAM, and storage are distributed efficiently to host websites and applications. Virtual machines (VMs) are widely used to divide these physical servers into isolated environments. Each VM acts as an independent system with its own operating system and resources, enabling flexibility and scalability. The network ensures that if one server fails, workloads are automatically shifted to others.

However, not all cloud hosting relies on VMs. Containerization offers an alternative where applications run in lightweight containers that share the host operating system. This allows for faster deployment with minimal overhead. For users needing maximum performance, bare metal cloud provides direct access to physical servers without virtualization.

What Are the Advantages of Cloud Hosting?

The 4 advantages of cloud hosting are dynamic scalability, flexibility, reliability and cost efficiency. Dynamic scalability means resources adjust automatically to traffic fluctuations, preventing downtime during traffic peaks. Flexibility allows you to easily add CPU cores, RAM, or storage space to your plan with just a few clicks. Reliability comes from high redundancy because data is distributed across multiple servers. If one server fails, another takes over and this means high uptime of the website or application is ensured. Lastly, cost efficiency is achieved through pay-as-you-go pricing models, where you only pay for the resources you actually use and this avoids unnecessary costs.

What Are the Disadvantages of Cloud Hosting?

The 2 disadvantages of cloud hosting are potential cost unpredictability and technical complexity. Cost unpredictability applies to cloud hosting plans utilizing the pay-as-you-go model. It’s possible for unexpected traffic surges to lead to surprisingly higher expenses. The second is technical complexity, particularly for users of unmanaged cloud hosting. Such plans require server management skills and are difficult for beginners to use.

Who Should Use Cloud Hosting?

Businesses needing scalability and eCommerce sites with variable traffic should use cloud hosting. For businesses requiring scalability, cloud hosting allows easy upgrades of CPU, RAM, and storage. For eCommerce sites with variable traffic, cloud hosting handles sudden traffic surges efficiently by scaling resources on demand. This is important during sales events or seasonal peaks and helps prevent revenue loss caused by downtime.

Who Should Not Use Cloud Hosting?

Low-traffic websites, websites needing complete control, and those requiring fixed costs should not use cloud hosting. For low-traffic websites, the powerful scalability of cloud hosting is unnecessary since cheaper options like shared hosting provide sufficient resources at a lower cost. Websites needing complete control over hardware and configurations are better suited by dedicated or colocation hosting where users have exclusive access to physical servers. For those requiring fixed costs, cloud hosting’s pay-as-you-go pricing is too unpredictable.

How Do I Choose a Cloud Hosting Plan?

Choose a cloud hosting plan by evaluating 4 things: CPU, RAM, storage, and auto-scaling features. Firstly, check the number of provided virtual CPUs (vCPUs) as this affects how efficiently tasks are processed. Secondly, ensure sufficient RAM to handle simultaneous workloads and traffic spikes. Thirdly, confirm the storage type and capacity. SSDs (Solid State Drives) provide faster performance. Finally, check for autoscaling, which dynamically allocates resources during traffic surges to maintain performance. 3 popular cloud hosting providers to choose from are Hostinger, Cloudways, DigitalOcean, and SiteGround.

What Are the Alternatives to Cloud Hosting?

Alternatives to cloud hosting refer to different types of hosting that address specific limitations of cloud hosting, such as cost, complexity or control. 5 popular cloud hosting alternatives are shared, WordPress, VPS, dedicated, and colocation hosting

Shared Hosting

Shared hosting is an alternate type of hosting where multiple websites share a single server’s resources. It’s better suited for beginners than cloud hosting since it’s more basic and affordable.

WordPress Hosting

WordPress hosting is an alternate type of hosting that specializes in supporting WordPress sites. Cloud hosting is great for WordPress but supports a variety of CMS as well as larger-scale, multi-platform environments.

VPS Hosting

VPS hosting is an alternate type of hosting that virtualizes a single physical server to allocate dedicated resources to users. Unlike cloud hosting, resources in VPS hosting are limited to the physical server’s capacity. Cloud hosting offers better scalability.

Dedicated Server Hosting

Dedicated hosting is an alternate type of hosting that offers exclusive use of a physical server. It ensures full control and security but lacks the dynamic scalability of cloud hosting.

Colocation Hosting

Colocation hosting is an alternate type of hosting that involves renting space in a host’s data center to house user-owned servers. Colocation suits organisations needing strict hardware control but cloud hosting excels in scalability and low upfront costs.