Tag: web hosting guide

Short answer: You need a dedicated server when a measured, lasting limit can’t be fixed more cheaply. Examples are a database that saturates the largest VPS you can buy, sustained CPU steal from other tenants, software licensed per physical core, or a contract that requires single-tenant hardware. You probably don’t need one if your site is slow because of plugins or missing caching, if your traffic spikes and then falls...

Short answer: Setting up a new VPS takes about an hour of careful work. Make the decisions that are hard to undo before you order: managed or self-managed, operating system, control panel and data centre. Once the server is running, update it, create a named admin user with sudo, switch SSH to key-only logins, turn on a firewall that allows only the ports you use, add brute-force protection and automatic...

Short answer: A website backup strategy is only as good as your last successful restore. Decide how much data you can afford to lose and how long you can be offline. Back up the files and the database together, on a schedule that matches how often the site changes. Keep at least three copies, and make sure one of them sits outside your hosting account, ideally offline or impossible to...

Short answer: You need to upgrade your web hosting plan when your account keeps hitting its limits during normal use, not just once. The clearest signs are resource-limit faults in your control panel, 508, 503 or 500 errors at busy times, slow server response on uncached pages, storage, inode or mailbox caps you keep bumping into, and needs your plan can’t meet, such as SSH access or a current PHP...

Data Residency, PIPEDA Compliance, Performance & Practical Decision Framework Canadian web hosting means running your website on servers physically located in Canada, ideally with a Canadian-owned company that bills in CAD and provides support during Canadian business hours. In 2026 this matters for performance with Canadian visitors, practical compliance with PIPEDA and provincial rules, and simpler vendor due diligence. Many hosts that market to Canadians keep their origin servers in...