Linux cloud servers have many names depending on the marketing trends at any given time: self-managed VPS, cloud VPS, unmanaged (by the hosting provider) VPS. It’s a type of platform as a service (PaaS), usually built within a highly available (HA) infrastructure for top speed and uptime. What sets cloud server hosting apart from Managed VPS Hosting:
- Lack of server management software – usually cPanel with WebHost Manager (WHM)
- Flexibility to install different Linux operating systems (OSs) as you desire
- No free technical support due to the complexity of each individual server environment
The web hosting provider maintains the hardware, virtualization, and base OS installation. You maintain everything else:
- OS configuration
- Backups and snapshots for disaster recovery (DR)
- Web server preference and customization (e.g. Apache, Nginx, Lighttpd)
- Security measures – firewall, antivirus (AV) scanner, distributed denial of service (DDoS) protection
- Server analytics and log analysis for performance baselines
This requires strong knowledge of, or willingness to learn, the Linux command-line interface (CLI). Because of all this, base cloud servers are only recommended for users willing to resolve their own issues. Those willing to take the challenge gain:
- Greater control over system resources and customization
- Lower costs since you’re not offered technical support or software with licensing fees
We should also quickly mention virtual private cloud (VPC) hosting. The differences between a VPS and VPC are minimal but important for niche use cases:
- Resource elasticity to meet peaking usage
- Pay per usage in seconds/hours that the server is online instead of weekly/monthly subscriptions
System administrators (sysadmins) and developers like VPCs for the low costs of intermittent testing.