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What Is SSD Storage In Web Hosting & Why Is It So Important?

What Is SSD Storage In Web Hosting

A wrong choice in web hosting can result in slow load times and downtime. Therefore, you must go for the best web host for your business. And, part of a hosting provider’s performance depends on the type of storage they use.

SSDs and HDDs are the most commonly used storage options when looking at hosting packages.

SSDs (Solid-State Disk Drives) are a faster, more reliable, and more competent web hosting option than mechanical drives. They are essential in getting the fastest hosting speeds, particularly on dynamic sites.

However, many hosts do not provide SSD storage; thus, you must be vigilant… 

Below, you’ll find out about SSD storage, why it is integral for a website owner, and what to look for in web hosting providers.

What Is SSD In Web Hosting?

SSD stands for Solid State Drive. This hard drive does not encompass moving parts, unlike its counterpart, which has a spinning disc. Although more expensive than traditional drives, an SSD is much faster than its budget HDD (Hard Disk Drive) counterpart.

SSD

Since they do not have any moving parts, SSD drives are more resilient and reliable. Additionally, they have lower latency, meaning they can find and provide files to you and your visitors quickly and efficiently.

Why Is SSD important For Web Hosting?

Various web hosting companies have shifted their data centers from HDD to SSD drives because of SSD’s enhanced reliability and better disk reading speeds.

Nonetheless, does your business risk being uncompetitive if it does not embrace the best SSD hosting strategies? Below is a breakdown of the distinction between SSD drives and HDD.

Speed

Speed

An SSD drive’s enhanced disk read speed grants users faster access to stored data, and this quickness pays dividends in web hosting. Solid-State Drives can read data more than four times faster than Hard Disk Drives.

Faster speeds mean better user experience and SEO benefits.

Durability

There is no perfect time for your hard drive to glitch or fail, bearing in mind the value of the data it may contain. So it’s important to understand SSD storage’s merit in terms of durability.

Unlike hard drives that are typically reliable for 3-5 years, SSDs often function dependably for around four times longer.

Pushing HDDs and SSDs to their breaking points is not a wise idea. Nonetheless, an SSD will provide peace of mind for a more extended period.

Power

SSDs are more efficient in power consumption compared to HDDs. Hence this enables SSD hosting companies to lower their overhead costs.

SSD POWER CONSUMPTION

Whether working or idle, HDDs consume more power than SSDs. While inactive, an HDD may need a power input fifteen times greater than an SSD and even more when in operation.

By converting to SSD drives, hosting companies can cut their expenses and offer more attractive pricing packages for customers. So, why not embrace this modern data storage technology and stand out in the competition?

Eco-friendliness

As mentioned above, SSDs have lower power consumption, giving them an upper hand over HDDs regarding eco-friendliness.

It is important for hosting companies to consider their impact on the environment. Clients are more likely to appreciate a brand that values protecting the world’s resources.

By shifting to the best SSD storage, web hosting companies can reduce their carbon footprint and become successful in greener practices.

Is There Any Downside To SSD Hosting?

Now that you know the merits of an SSD over an HDD: more reliability, reduced power consumption, improved performance, and more site speed, let’s talk about the downside.

SSD hosting has one significant drawback: its cost.

Cost

While SSD driveshelps reduce operating costs by saving power in the long run, website hosting companies must fork out a premium price to shift to SSD.

The perks of SSDs are worth the financial investment, but it is undeniably worth considering HDDs as a reasonable cost-friendly alternative.

But if durability, money saved from reduced power consumption, speed, and lack of moving parts is essential to your and your business in the long run, then SSD is worth the extra price.

Do You Need SSD Web Hosting For Your Website?

Do you want the fastest loading site possible? Web pages hosted on an SSD dedicated server typically load faster than those hosted on HDD servers.

SSD dedicated server

The speed granted by SSD hosting is very crucial for e-commerce sites. When website traffic spikes, visitors can quickly notice the additional loading time.

The majority expect a page to load in five seconds or less, but when it takes longer, they hastily hit the ‘back’ button.

Considering your site’s traffic spikes, you need it to handle the traffic without slowing down. So, why go for HDD hosting when you can achieve more with SSD hosting?

Besides the benefits of SSD hosting, choosing an SSD drive comes with perks:

  • A2 Hosting gives clients SSD speed and 24-hour support and offers a free SSL certificate.
  • GreenGeeks throw in tons of features with its SSD web host plans: website builder, SSL certificates, and cPanel. Their shared hosting plans offer a free domain name for the first year.
  • InMotion Hosting focuses on business hosting with an affordable entry-level plan and full SSH access. The shared hosting plans and VPS hosting utilize solid-state storage.

When Are SSDs Essential?

SSDs are essential for websites that:

  • Generate a lot of traffic
  • Are naturally dynamic
  • Serve up large files like those for videos or podcasts
  • Depend heavily on database returns
  • Are e-commerce oriented

How Does SSD Affect Web Development?

Servers utilizing SSDs and customers using mobile devices are changing the balance of resources online.

Mobile Phones

An SSD drive has a massive speed boost on web servers. However, they often communicate with devices with slow processors and data rates, affecting web development’s future.

  • SSDs do not solve all issues. Their speed should not warrant delivering bloated pages with several big image files as they need to travel at internet speeds to the device.

The real triumph in SSD web hosting comes from server-side performance. Web applications load much faster, and database access is quicker.

Sites with SSD hosting and VPS dedicated servers can rapidly process vast volumes of data.

  • Solid State Drives are better at reading than writing in terms of speed and drive operation. Application developers are embracing new techniques to take the best advantage of SSD performance.

There is fierce competition to develop denser, faster, and more resilient SSD technology.

  • SSDs do not make HDDs archaic. HDDs are suitable for archival purposes since inactive SSDs may experience gradual data decay.

However, once they experience price equality, spinning drives will become a even less popular…

FAQs About SSD Hosting

How Much SSD Storage Space Does A Website Need?

The volume of transfer bandwidth required in hosting plans depends on the site’s size and the number of visitors expected.

3-5 GB SSD storage capacity is enough for small business sites with text and some images. If users are expected to download sizeable multimedia content, or more visitors use your site, consider SSD hosting plans with more transfer bandwidth.

3-5 GB SSD storage capacity

Do Web Servers Use SSD?

Figuring out whether a web hosting company uses SSD or HDD storage can be challenging, especially regarding shared hosting. However, since SSD drives are faster, web hosts that utilize solid-state technology often mention it.

Are SSDs Better Than HDDs?

SSD drives are ideal for web hosting since they are an efficient disk storage option.

They have faster access times, lower overheating, and higher power efficiency.

Additionally, they are more resistant to physical shock, do not need defragmentation, run almost silently, and are less susceptible to mechanical failure.

Are SSDs Better Than HDDs

What Are The Alternatives To SSDs?

The chief alternative to SSDs is hard disk drives.

HDDs are a traditional data storage option. They are cheaper, slower, more susceptible to breaking, and less reliable.

However, you should note that not all SSD drives are similar.

Types such as M.s and Optane from Intel are considered premium SSDs and more efficient than standard SSD.

Do I Need To Install An SSD On My Server?

SSD hosting plans run on servers that store data on solid-state drives.

Considering the perks it comes with, you may want to migrate.

What Is An SSHD?

SSHD (Solid-State Hybrid Drive) is a combination of a solid-state drive and a hard disk drive.

The SSD acts as the HDD cache. SSDs work very well as they are much faster. However, they are costly and not widely available in web hosting plans.

SSHD vs SSD

How To Find The Fastest Web Hosting Service

The hosting provider you select significantly impacts your website, especially if you want to soar high in search engine rankings.

Like any other storage option that embodies online success, your web hosting provider should be seamlessly optimized for your objectives.

Choosing an impeccable and friendly web hosting service is not as easy as it seems.

However, we’ve put together a list of the fastest web hosting providers available to help you in your search for a quick and reliable hosting service…

We put hundreds of hosting providers to the test, and list the winners and what kind of online business they are best suited for.

 

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Article by

Matt Diggity

Matt is the founder of Diggity Marketing, LeadSpring, The Search Initiative, The Affiliate Lab, and the Chiang Mai SEO Conference. He actually does SEO too.

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