10 reasons why your business needs a bare metal server

If you’re launching a new website, there are several different types of servers that you might be considering for your business. Cloud servers, dedicated servers, bare metal, or hypervisors – they each come with their own pros and cons.

Bare metal servers are similar to dedicated servers in the way that they are both physical rather than virtual entities. While similar, they are not exactly the same, as the concept of bare metal servers actually rose as a response to some of the negative associations with dedicated servers and hosting.

While cloud servers and traditional dedicated servers have their place globally and help run plenty of big businesses effectively, there are several benefits to choosing the bare metal option instead. In this article, we’re looking at some of the key advantages, so here are ten reasons why your business needs a bare metal server.

1. You get more bang for your buck

Bare metal servers are cost-effective and can offer more for your money than other hosting solutions. The billing is based on per-hour usage, rather than the monthly or yearly terms we associate with more traditional dedicated server hosting. This means you only pay for what you actually use, down to the minute.

Bare metal servers can usually also be paused at any time, with no upfront costs or contract periods – so this can potentially save you more money if anything happens to change in your business.

It’s by no means the “cheap” option, but the payment terms and corresponding performance often proves significantly more cost-effective than others.

2. They’re top quality

If performance is your top priority, which it probably is, then bare metal servers are undoubtedly the right choice for your business. Bare metal servers tend to have more advanced hardware than their traditional alternatives, and they use the very best in storage technology.

If you’re looking for a high-quality server that will deliver maximum performance, the newest generation processors, top of the range RAM, and lightning-fast SSDs load times – then look no further than a bare metal server.

3. You can customize it to your specific requirements

Bare metal servers are like clean slates, without any operating systems or software pre-installed. Full root access enables you to choose an underlying database, operating system, RAM, network ports, and more to design a powerful, single-tenant solution that is tailored to your needs and meets your business’s specific requirements.

4. Improved security gives you peace of mind

Because bare metal servers provide you with complete access to the hardware, the security and control you gain are unparalleled with other servers.

By stripping back the hardware to its minimum components and removing any software overlays, you also remove any attack points. Although hypervisors and cloud servers can also be very secure, nothing beats the security of bare metal.

5. You have better control of your traffic spikes

A bare-metal server can be run for as long or as short a time as you want without being locked into any contract. This means that they are an excellent choice for sites or apps that experience traffic spikes at specific times, such as during sales or on certain holidays.

Some companies host their main website on a cloud server and reroute traffic through a dedicated server when their main hosting can’t handle it. In these cases, a bare metal server is the best option.

Compared to virtual and cloud hosting, bare-metal servers can handle extremely high visitor numbers and transaction processing, making it the right choice for big businesses.

6. Set up is quick and easy with fast provisioning

If you need to quickly ramp up computer power and improve response time to meet shifting business priorities, the smooth and fully automated provisioning process allows you to commission a pre-configured bare metal server in just a few minutes.

7. Avoid noisy neighbors with a single-tenant environment

A bare-metal server is dedicated to a single tenant, meaning it belongs to you and only you. This allows you to avoid the “noisy neighbor” effect associated with cloud servers, and you won’t have to worry about any disruptions or strain on resources by your co-tenants.

With a single-tenant environment, you don’t have to compete with other users, and you have complete control, flexibility, and security with your server.

8. There’s plenty of room to grow

As your business grows, you may find you need a more powerful server to keep up with demand. Both virtual servers and physical servers can expand and scale up as your business develops.

To do this with a bare metal server, you can consider changing to a more powerful server or adding capacity (e.g., extra RAM) to your existing server, or simply adding additional servers. No problem.

9. You could experience more significant customer support

Dedicated servers such as bare metal servers are a premium product. Because of this, you may find web hosting companies consider you a priority for customer support, as you’re paying for it after all. Good customer support is vital for ensuring your website runs smoothly and to minimize any concerns you have.

10. Managing your server is easy

There is a general perception that operating bare metal servers requires a large team of IT professionals. While this might be the case for some solutions, it’s not necessarily true when it comes to colocation and leasing.

There are plenty of platforms like Heficed, who will provide a full variety of services to help you run your online business with ease. This means you can simplify your hosting admin tasks by outsourcing your IT work to a service company, so you can spend your time focusing on building your business.

Choosing the right server for your business is challenging. You don’t want to go over budget and purchase a big and powerful server that your company doesn’t need, but you don’t want to skimp out on a server that will not be fit for purpose when the business grows again in a year’s time either.

As you can see, there are many advantages to choosing bare metal hosting servers for your business. With no hypervisor overheads or noisy neighbors to worry about, you can benefit from the unmatched performance, robust security, and advanced customization of bare metal – turning your tailored IT infrastructure into a competitive advantage.