Virtual Private Servers are the next best thing to having a dedicated server. You get the features of a dedicated server but need not pay the price of a dedicated server.

Virtual Private Servers, also known as VPS, are one step up from a regular shared hosting plan. A regular hosting plan entails putting a Web site on a shared server where there are hundreds or even a thousand Web sites sharing the same server.

A Virtual Private Server plan provides for the Web site to be placed on a shared server where there are 20, 50, or perhaps 80 other VPS sharing the same server. What makes the difference is this - each Virtual Private Server is completely partitioned from another. Therefore, each VPS acts as a sort of dedicated server, with its own root, applications and RAM. So, if another VPS on the same physical server fails, the VPS is not affected. VPS plans have guaranteed system resources (CPU, memory & disk space) which let you use your server to the fullest.

Also, if root access is enabled, the Web site owner can install whatever applications needed, just like in a real dedicated server. There is that element of security in that no other VPS on the same server can access the Web site owner's VPS.

Each VPS has its own Web server, BIND (for domain management), POP3 & IMAP e-mail servers and mySQL server (for database), in addition to other applications. There is full httpd.conf control. Look specially for included features, such as RAID 5 diskspace and regular backups.

With root access, the Web site owner can SSH into the VPS and make modifications easily. Telnet, which is not secure because the transactions are not encrypted, is nowadays not allowed on many VPS or dedicated servers.
There are a few VPS systems on the market currently. They are:
- HSP Complete (Virtuozzo) (sw-soft.com)
- Ensim (ensim.com)

Virtual Private Servers are relatively new in the market, and prices have yet to come down significantly. However, more and more Web hosts are starting to test-drive and then introduce VPS plans and, hopefully, in the near future, prices should drop significantly.

A word of caution though, newbies should not dabble with VPS. Only those comfortable with handling the Apache server and like applications should take up VPS plans. A Web site owner with at least two years of experience running Web sites can take the plunge into VPS systems rather comfortably.

However, be careful with the upgrade options. If you upgrade your VPS to a higher-end VPS, you could come into some trouble when the system automatically upgrades your plan. The upgrade may not be seamless. So, our advice is this - think carefully about your needs. Order a plan and stick to it. If you find you need a higher-end VPS plan, change to another host and upload everything again. It's worth the hassle, really.

Prices of VPS plans range from USD29.99 to USD39.99 for some hosts. You should be able to get around 125 GB monthly data transfer and 10 GB diskspace for the lower-end plans. Shop around. Look for free set-ups. Don't pay for set-ups as everything is automated and your account is activated the instant you pay using your credit card. However, if you are paying via cheque, the activation will only take place when the cheque has cleared. That could mean many days of waiting.

Top hosts, such as verio.com, may charge anything from USD109.95 to as much as USD299.95, which is much more than what a dedicated server plan costs at a regular Web host.

For VPS systems, support is important as things tend to go wrong more often. Make sure your Web host includes such support in the plan without you having to pay a cent more. Read the terms and conditions and FAQs carefully. If something goes wrong and you then find out that the host has the right to charge you for reinstating the VPS system, you will find yourself having to pay, perhaps, a hundred or more dollars for them to set things right for you. Our suggestion - if something indeed goes wrong, abandon the system and change to another host immediately. This way, you get a brand new VPS system and you can keep your cash too. The only thing is - you need to do more work, transferring your files to the new host's server.