A dedicated server is a kind of hosting where you as a client get the whole server reserved for your business exclusively. As it is confined absolutely for your use and is not shared with any other client service or application, hence it costs a little higher than other server hosting plans. There are several dedicated server plans to select from, and many of them provide almost identical functionality. However, it’s critical that you choose a specialized hosting plan for your business needs. This is important since each dedicated server plan has its own set of features and price choices. There are also several more aspects to consider, such as multiple OS alternatives, high-traffic optimization, backups, and installation add-ons, to name a few. It’s also important that you select a hosting company that can give excellent customer experience; after all, they’re assisting you with your business operations 24 hours a day, seven days a week! Further, below are some of the points to keep in mind when you wish to reduce the cost of your dedicated server.
1. Be clear with your needs and strategy
A clear vision and strategy to run a business are essential to keep all the futile server expenses at bay. Dedicate enough time to create a plan of action for exactly how you want to take your business forward. Changing servers or getting them customized repeatedly will drain more and more money. So, Once you are clear with your needs, you can easily elaborate them to your provider and get exactly the required servers for your business eliminating superfluous expenditure.
2. Take professional advice
Taking professional advice before you finalize the server for your business can impact your short as well as long-term savings. As in your specialized domain, you help your customers by providing them with precious expert knowledge. Similarly, getting professional advice for tools and software required in your server will help you get a clear picture of your spending rather than ending up paying for something less desirable or not needed at all. Experienced professionals can help you choose perfect options for your firm’s servers in a well-detailed manner.
3. Optimize and consolidate your database
Optimizing and consolidating your databases is just a different technique to lower your server costs. With the boost in digitalization and usage of the internet, most businesses generate huge amounts of data and end up paying plenty of money to maintain their records. So, if you optimize your database, that is, if you sort and eliminate all the duplicate and unnecessary data then you can save on the cost of maintaining various servers.
4. Assort your content
Assorting your data is equally important as any other measure to reduce your server cost. You can assort your organization’s data into categories like important, critical, backup, and others. This categorization will help your server administrators to handle all the data in the most cost-effective way.
5. Plan for long-term
Preparing ahead of time helps you save money. What will your company look like in three, five, or ten years? “Bargain” hardware and/or software may save you money in the present, but it is unlikely to stay. Eventually, you’ll pay more since you’ll have to replace it sooner than intended. Finally, knowing how many resources your firm needs is a far better guide for server selections than bargains that appear to be too good to be true. Companies who prepare ahead of time may save thousands (if not millions) of dollars by designing their servers to survive, from the start.
6. Shift to Cloud/Hosting Providers
When deciding between on-premise and cloud hosting, the cost is a major consideration. You might be amazed how much money you can save by moving all of your infrastructures to the cloud and outsourcing it to professionals, which is often underestimated. When considering a cloud migration, consider what would cost more in the long run, adjustments as your organization grows or scales, or ongoing maintenance expenses. Associating yourself with a reliable and proven hosting provider saves you money upfront and provides superior support.
7. Opt for unmanaged dedicated servers
Unmanaged dedicated servers can also reduce expenses on servers to some extent. With unmanaged dedicated hosting, you have to take the responsibilities of managing the server, power, security, networking, etc, ofn your own. But this helps you save enough cash to use it somewhere else for the business instead of paying for managed services.
8. Server Virtualization
Although the cloud is on everyone’s radar these days, many small companies are still hesitant to use it. Many business owners are unsure where to begin with cloud computing, whether it’s due to a lack of internal IT support or the investment cost. On this point, a lot of hosting firms have begun to provide virtual servers in order to better serve their increasing consumer base and provide more cost-efficient service. There’s no need for actual server hardware or operating systems because you can create a full-fledged virtual machine with a single click, allowing you to perform all necessary operations online.