365hosts offers a number of web hosting products that will allow users to leverage multiple IP addresses and the benefits of SSL encryption. In this knowledgebase article, we are going to take a look at why having a dedicated IP address can be beneficial.
A Shared IP Address and its Limitations
As standard, both our shared hosting and reseller hosting plans use a shared IP address. This means that every site (under a shared hosting plan) and every one of your clients (under a reseller hosting plan) is sharing the same IP address. There is nothing wrong with this setup per se. However, it does have some disadvantages.
For example, if you rely heavily on organic traffic from search engines such as Google or Bing, if one site on the IP is blacklisted, your site could suffer. Also, if one user of the IP address performs actions such as sending bulk SPAM email, the IP address could find its way on to one or more mail blacklists. Furthermore, if you wish to leverage SSL encryption to keep your site secure and build trust, you will be unable to use a shared IP address.
Getting a Dedicated IP Address
It is possible to add one or more dedicated IP addresses to either your shared hosting plan or your reseller hosting plan. This means that you will overcome all of the problems mentioned above, and you will also be able to add SSL certificates to your domains.
Many people like to use a separate IP address for each of their domains, and sometimes even their subdomains. This is a great way to segregate sites. However, adding a dedicated IP address to your shared or reseller hosting plan means that you will still be sharing the physical hardware with others.
Taking the Next Step with VPS Hosting
If you prefer to have your websites running on their own hardware, which means that site performance will be consistent, the next step up from shared or reseller hosting, is VPS hosting.
VPS stands for Virtual Private Server. With a VPS, a physical server is used to create multiple virtual servers, all sharing the same hardware. This is extremely effective. It means you can gain access to pseudo-dedicated resources at a much lower cost of ownership than running your sites on dedicated hardware. The virtualisation platform used ensures that no VPS can access more resources (CPU, RAM, disk/SSD space) than they have been allocated. For many people, is the perfect balance between cost and performance, and the best way to gain access to multiple dedicated IP addresses.
Furthermore, a VPS allows you to set up the reverse DNS (rDNS) for your domain properly. This stops your email looks like spam and proves the authenticity of your website, as well as any SSL certificates you have installed.
A Dedicated Server is the Next Step Up
For real power users, who want their site to be as reliable as possible, and as fast as possible, a dedicated server is the perfect thing. You will have your own hardware, that you share with nobody else. The ultimate in performance and security.
A Note on VPN
If you intend to set up your own private VPN using software such as OpenVPN etc., then you will need both a dedicated IP address and also dedicated resources. You cannot run a VPN on a shared or reseller hosting plan (although you could set up a web proxy).
We recommend you use one of our VPS packages, with enough monthly bandwidth allowance to let you use your private VPN as often as you need.
Useful links:
A beginner guide to SSL certificates published by Symantec
The official OpenVPN how-to guide
365Hosts offers both VPS and dedicated servers to people who need a dedicated UIP address, and want to ensure that their sites are as quick and reliable as can be. We can assist you in procuring and setting up SSL certificates on your dedicated server or VPS.
