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Server Upgrade: When will your Online Shop need one?

By Caio Nogueira October 16, 2019

Summary (TL;DR)

Choosing a suitable server is crucial for the success of an online store.

A dedicated server can solve common problems like slowness and lack of security by offering more performance, stability, and exclusive resource control.

Although many start with shared servers, business growth may require an upgrade to a more powerful server, such as a VPS or a dedicated server.

This investment improves the user experience, protects sensitive data, and ensures better performance during peak access times, increasing the chances of the online store's success.

Server upgrade

Server Upgrade: Accessing the internet has become an increasingly common habit. Through this network, it's possible to find all the information we need about a certain product or service, and with just one click, it appears right in the palm of our hand.

However, the fact that we access a website doesn't mean we'll spend a lot of time browsing it or even that we'll return other times. This depends on what has conventionally come to be called user experience (UX) and it can be positive or negative.

Issues involving responsive websites or poor page quality, for example, can cause people to lose interest in completing the task that directed them to the site. This is very bad because, when it comes to an online store, problems like these impact sales and indicate losses.

The root of this could be on the server. You've probably heard this word, but do you know exactly what it means? A server is a set of computers responsible for storing a website's information, as well as for its functioning.

It must run all day, every day, in order to keep photos, videos, and all materials accessible to users online.

Many companies opt for server sharing services, which is understandable, especially when considering cost-related aspects. However, over time, this choice may no longer prove to be the best option.

In this article, we will list the signs that may indicate the need for a server upgrade. Keep reading!

What signs indicate the need for an e-commerce server upgrade?

For people to have a good experience when accessing a page, it is important for companies to be concerned with offering them a quality website.

Although many pages operate normally in shared hosting, there is a group of companies that lead the way when it comes to user experience: these are the ones that upgraded their virtual store's server, increasing their numbers, or opted for a dedicated server.

And there's a reason why they have a better chance of succeeding: with the upgrade of the online store's server, performance and management efficiency increase, causing the website's reliability to follow suit, benefiting it.

If your page's results aren't growing or are in decline, something is wrong. You'll need to make an effort to find the problem and fix it. To help you, check below for 2 signs that it might be time to replace your online store's server:

Slowness

Nobody has patience for a slow website, do they? Waiting for your upload for too long makes any user angry.

There are a few reasons why this might be happening. The most common ones are a large number of people accessing the page at the same time, or the use of the same shared server by a large number of users.

What you need to know is that in either case, you are already being harmed, as both Google and Facebook have already established measures that take this metric into consideration, because they know that such an aspect is relevant to the user.

This means that someone with a slow website will hardly be on the first page of search results or have a post on the world's largest social network with the desired organic reach.

It is essential to avoid this type of occurrence because it can lead to the loss of business opportunities. And then, a large investment in digital marketing strategy is useless if, when the customer reaches you, they have difficulty accessing the website.

One way to solve the problem is to look for a dedicated server. With it, you increase your processing capacity and say goodbye to slowness once and for all.

2. Security

Due to transactions carried out, many websites request confidential information from customers, such as credit card numbers, addresses, and various other personal data. These companies must fully guarantee the security of this data.

If this doesn't happen and the information is leaked or stolen, serious problems could be generated for users. And that's not all: with the approval of the General Data Protection Law (LGPD), the company could face multi-million dollar fines.

All of this affects your credibility and leads to lost business opportunities. In this regard, it is essential to do everything possible to prevent security failures.

One of them could be the use of shared servers, as with them, you share resources with other clients on the same server, which can facilitate security vulnerabilities.

However, if you opt for a dedicated server, the security of users accessing your online store will be guaranteed, as the server's resources are exclusively for you and your store.

So, what is a dedicated server?

O dedicated server is one of the types of website hosting. It is a private service that offers the customer more storage and data processing resources.

In situations where shared hosting can no longer support the online store, this type of server becomes necessary because it is more powerful, offering more security, speed, and exclusivity.

What are the advantages of a dedicated server?

A dedicated server offers more resources and stability. Relying on it guarantees a stable website even during peak access times.
The dedicated server is also more secure and efficient. Below are other advantages of it:

  1.  Performance: it has the best performance compared to other types;
  2.  Autonomy: The client has full control of the server, allowing them to configure it as they wish. This means they can install custom databases, PHP extensions, etc.;
  3. Dedicated resources: resources are directed only to the user's equipment;
  4. Stability: Since all resources are exclusively for your company, you won't have to worry about situations with large access spikes, as the dedicated server will withstand them.

What type of hosting should I use?

Before anything else, it's important to understand that each website has its own needs, so it's crucial to understand yours before looking for the ideal server.

We've already talked about dedicated and shared servers here, but even though these options are popular for different reasons, there are others to consider.

The VPS is an option that falls between shared and dedicated. It is a physical server with shared resources, but it is divided into individual servers and also has disk space, RAM, and other very interesting functions entirely dedicated to the page.

Therefore, analyze your real needs before making a E-commerce server upgrade. Furthermore, consider conducting a survey among the Best website hosting and make a choice aligned with your growth expectations.

What we mean is that a dedicated server is definitely a more powerful alternative that will fully support your online store, but it comes at a higher cost.

If your business started small and has been growing steadily, it might be time for an upgrade, especially if you notice the signs we discussed in this post.

Understand what is The ideal for your online store is crucial. Do extensive research before making your decision. If you have any questions, leave your comment here and we will try to help you.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is a dedicated server?

A dedicated server is a type of website hosting where all resources, such as storage and processing, are exclusive to a single client, offering more security, speed, and stability compared to a shared server.

What are the signs that my online store needs a server upgrade?

The two main signs are website slowness, which harms the user experience, and security flaws, which can expose sensitive data and compromise the store's credibility.

What are the advantages of a dedicated server?

The advantages include better performance, full autonomy to customize the server, exclusive features, increased security and stability, especially during peak access times.

What is VPS and how does it differ from other types of servers?

A VPS (Virtual Private Server) is a physical server with shared resources, but divided into individual servers. It offers more control and performance than shared hosting, but with lower cost and power than dedicated hosting.

Caio Nogueira

Caio Nogueira is co-founder of UpSites and a reference in website development and SEO consultancy. With over 10 years' experience and more than 900 projects completed for brands such as KaBuM, UNIMED, USP and Nestlé, Caio stands out for his competence in digital project management.Caio has also been a guest author on influential digital marketing websites such as Neil Patel, Rock Content, Hostinger, Duda, Hostgator and Locaweb, where he has shared his expertise in SEO and content marketing.

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