How to choose the best web hosting server for Prestashop online stores

In this article we will explain how to choose the best high-performance web hosting server that can be optimized for Prestashop online stores.

After our extensive experience developing Prestashop online stores and providing technical support service to all our clients, we have found that in a generalized way and possibly caused by ignorance, online store owners do not usually choose correctly the best and most appropriate web hosting for your online business.

For this reason we see the need to publish this article in order to help and guide in the best choice of a web hosting server for Prestashop online stores.

First of all, we have to be aware that an online store, whatever its platform (Prestashop, Magento, Wocommerce, etc …) consumes more resources and needs a more specific configuration to be able to function with stability and reliability. Therefore, we should not confuse an online store with a blog type website, corporate website, etc… Also, in the case of online stores, good reliability and stability of the web server is a fundamental aspect to be taken into account, since incidents can lead to financial losses. for no sales.

The first thing we have to be very clear about is the type of server we have to hire. Currently, there are different types of web servers on the market, each with its own characteristics.

Shared web server (Shared Hosting)

These servers are the cheapest on the market and are usually the most hired by most website owners. Its main and only advantage is that its price is very affordable There are even websites that offer these web hosting services for free with very limited disk space.

Basically it is a single server where a multitude of websites are hosted , each with its own allocated disk space. It’s called Shared Web Hosting, because Server resources (Processor, RAM, etc …) are shared among all hosted websites . This means that if at any given time, a website is overusing any of the mentioned resources, the rest of the websites will be affected by the inability to make use of that resource.

On the other hand, they usually use the same IP address for all the websites hosted, therefore, if a website that is hosted on the server performs SPAM practices, the IP address can be included in a blacklist . This will have a negative impact on the rest of the websites and on their positioning in the main search engines such as Google

• Very economical price. Between 40€ – 70€ per year. There are free accommodations
• The same server resources are shared between all hosted websites.
• They usually use the same IP address for all hosted websites.
• Any changes or errors on the server will affect all websites.
• Possible SEO penalty if IP address is blacklisted.
• You cannot configure the server parameters to suit the website requirements.
• You cannot install extensions, modules, or extensions that are necessary to maintain the functionality and stability of the web platform.
• Limited access to functions in the hosting panel.
• Cannot have root access (administrative privileges) to control the server.

How you can see, The use of shared servers is not recommended for online stores . This type of server is ideal for Blogs, personal websites, professional corporate websites, websites dedicated to advertisements and promotions and landing pages.

Virtual private server (VPS Hosting)

These types of servers are the transition between a shared server and a dedicated server, which we will talk about later. A virtual private server (VPS) is nothing more than a server with its own operating system, where several virtual machines are enabled with their own operating system and independent of each other, and that behave as if they were physical machines. It is as it were, as if there were several independent servers within the same master server. So that it can be better understood, it is something similar to what we can do with our personal computer by installing several virtual machines with their own operating systems through the well-known software Virtual box from Oracle.

The main characteristic of these servers is that they assign part of the resources of the main server to each of the virtual machines created, so that resources are not shared and it is ensured that each virtualized space has its own resources of CPU, RAM memory, etc … So in these cases, master servers usually have a lot of RAM, a powerful CPU processor and a lot of hard disk space.

With this server system, we achieve that each client has a totally independent virtual machine (VPS), with its own resources, that acts in a similar way to a dedicated server, and also that it can be fully configurable and that the client can have root access with administrative privileges to be able to manage your machine.

• It works with the features similar to a dedicated server.
• You have root access with administrative privileges.
• It is fully configurable and modules and extensions can be installed, as well as modifying its parameters at the user’s convenience.
• You have the resources assigned exclusively.
• Possibility of using dedicated IP addresses.
• They are servers that support a high consumption of resources and have a quick response to user requests.
• The overuse of resources by other websites hosted in the other virtual machines does not negatively affect the websites of the other virtual machines.
• Regular backups of virtual machine content and hosted web spaces can be performed.
• The price is somewhat high, between about € 300 – € 800 a year approximately.
• You cannot install additional hardware such as hard drives, RAM, etc …

The use of this type of server is recommended for online stores of small and medium-sized companies. and that they have a considerable sales rate. It is also recommended for resource-intensive corporate websites with a lot of web content and lots of daily visits.

Dedicated server (Dedicated Hosting)

These types of servers are what their own name says, dedicated. That is, a whole server available and exclusively for the client. The customer decides which operating system he wants to have installed on the server, as well as the amount of resources and the possibilities to expand them later. The client is in possession of all the resources of the server and has total freedom to configure it to his liking and needs.

You also have the possibility of virtualizing the server by creating several virtual machines to be able to perform reselling , turning your dedicated server into several VPS servers, with the characteristics that we have mentioned above.

• You have all the server resources, full access to all your settings and full control.
• Server resources can be expanded without limitations.
• Possibility of virtualizing the server to convert it into several VPS servers and to be able to resell it to other clients.
• You have the resources assigned exclusively.
• Use of dedicated IP addresses.
• There are no limitations on the number of websites that can be hosted.
• All content and server settings can be backed up.
• The price is very high, from € 1200 a year (the most basic) to much higher prices.

This type of server, due to its high price, is not available to everyone. Therefore, the use of online stores of large companies would be recommended. They need to have all the server resources without limits and have a fairly high traffic flow. The most visited and important national and international websites are hosted on dedicated servers.

Cloud server

This system is somewhat complex to understand. It really is a virtual machine, like the ones we have explained above but with the difference of not being inside a physical server, but there are several servers in different unknown locations and that as a whole have created that virtual machine with their own resources .

The main characteristic is the redundancy and continuity of the service which maintains the functional integrity of the entire virtual system. This means that if one of these servers were to crash, the service would continue to operate because it would be assumed by the other servers that make up the system. Other characteristics is the possibility of scalability of its resources.

These types of servers are suitable to host files that are shared over the network, file sharing platforms, CDN (Content Delivery Network) or Content Delivery Network, and also to host API (Application Programming Interface) or Programming Interface Of applications.

We do not recommend the use for online stores because it is more appropriate for the treatment and storage of customer information to be within a locatable physical machine to comply with the RGPD (General Data Protection Regulation).

After reading our article, we hope that we have clarified your doubts about which web server you should hire to run your online store. As you have read, it is recommended that you look for a VPS server or a dedicated one depending on the size of the business and the resources you need to have. You can start with a VPS server while your business grows, and then end up hiring a fully dedicated server.

Finally, it is very important to find a good hosting provider that offers high-performance servers optimized for Prestashop online stores. Not all VPS and dedicated servers have the same performance and optimization. There are even more or less stable servers depending on the maintenance it is subjected to. For this reason, we recommend that before hiring a web server, you inform yourself of the resources they have, configuration possibilities, technical support service and popularity among users of online stores.