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Setting up your web server

17/04/2025, by Ivan

Most websites built with Drupal are hosted on shared hosting, with fewer sites on virtual private servers (VPS) or dedicated servers. You may currently be using shared hosting but considering a move to a server due to site growth or hosting multiple Drupal websites. Let's look at the key differences between shared hosting, VPS, and dedicated servers.

Shared Hosting

With shared hosting, your server resources are shared with other users. It’s a good starting point. As long as your site is small and doesn’t require a lot of resources, shared hosting works fine for hosting Drupal. It’s suitable for a company website, a small portal, or even an online store. However, shared hosting has very limited resources. For example, while your home PC might have 4 GB of RAM, your hosting provider might allocate only 128 MB, 64 MB, or even 32 MB for your account. With such limitations, Drupal may only run at a basic level, especially since Drupal CMS tends to grow with many modules.

What to consider when choosing shared hosting for Drupal:

  • Disk space: Hosting providers might offer as little as 300 MB, which may not be enough even for one site. Ensure there is enough storage space for your needs.
  • PHP memory limit: Look for the memory limit available to PHP scripts (memory_limit). Drupal requires at least 128 MB for optimal performance, especially when using modules like Views, CCK, and ImageCache. Some shared plans only offer 64 MB, which will eventually result in memory errors like:

Fatal error: Allowed memory size of 33554432 bytes exhausted (tried to allocate 227682 bytes)...

When this happens, you may need to upgrade your hosting plan or move to a VPS.

Control panel: Prefer standard panels like cPanel, DirectAdmin, or ISPmanager. Custom panels can be harder to work with.

If your site outgrows shared hosting due to traffic or complexity, it’s time to consider switching to a server.

Dedicated Server

A dedicated server is a physical machine reserved exclusively for your hosting needs. It includes an operating system, web server, and full administrative access. Dedicated servers come in two types:

  • Managed: The hosting provider maintains the server, performs updates, backups, and support.
  • Unmanaged: You are responsible for all server maintenance and configuration. This option is best for experienced users who want full control.

Both types come with root access and complete control over the server environment.

Virtual Private Server (VPS)

A VPS is a virtualized portion of a physical server that acts like a standalone server. Each VPS has its own configuration, memory allocation, IP addresses, user accounts, and can be rebooted independently of others on the same physical machine.

The key benefit of a VPS is control. You can configure the web server, email server, and other services to suit your needs. You also have the freedom to install custom software required by your Drupal site.

Advantages of VPS hosting:

  • Greater control over software installation and server configurations.
  • Lower cost compared to a dedicated server.
  • Scalable as your website grows.

When choosing a VPS plan, evaluate your needs similarly to shared hosting: disk space, bandwidth, projected traffic, email account requirements, and site complexity. Larger or rapidly growing sites will require more robust plans.