Published on January 1st, 2019 | by Sunit Nandi

Indian VPS Versus USA-Based VPS

Which is the better option for Indian VPS users?

As a reader of this TechnoFaq, I’m going to make two safe assumptions:

1) You know what a database center is
2) You know about Virtual Private Servers (VPS)

On the off-chance that you are not well-versed in the world of servers and web hosting, read on for a quick initiation.

Building your website involves a lot of clarity over many important questions. Once you’ve finished brainstorming over the basics like domain names, web content and developing your website, it is now time to get it online.

Getting your website online simply means that all the content that you’ve spent so long in designing be it your homepage or pop-ups or cart options or anything else is now going to be stored in a place where any visitor of your website can retrieve this information from.

Now this ‘place’ where all the content relating to your website resides is called a server. There’s an actual physical place in India and elsewhere in the world where ‘datacenters’ exist. These data centers are repositories of hundreds of servers, which function actively and diligently to transfer information to your user in the click of a second. These are details handled by your web hosting provider.

Typically, your web hosting provider will offer three options- a shared server, a VPS and your very own dedicated server.

A shared server, as the name suggests, is shared among other users. So the bandwidth and disk space allotted to you is limited, which translates to a slow website. This is useful for those of you who are just starting off with their website, and the incoming traffic is low, to the tune of a hundred or so a month.

A Virtual Private Server (VPS) offers you your own virtual server, shared amongst other people who cannot intrude upon your virtual presence. Think of it as a real-life island, where each man is allocated a sea view and thinks that he has his very own beach house- but in reality, he is on an island teeming with people having similar houses. It’s different from shared hosting in that your web host will offer the exact specifications you need, and the activities of different users of the virtual server will not affect you.

A dedicated server is an island unto itself. If your website generates a lot of traffic or needs a specific type of software, it is a good idea to opt for dedicated servers as it is yours to do as you wish. Therefore, it is fully customizable.

A Virtual Private Server offers almost all the benefits of a dedicated server at much lesser costs. Also, depending on what your web host offers and the amount you’re willing to invest, you can make it almost as good as a dedicated server.

Data centers exist all over the world. Website owners across the world have a shared, dedicated or VPS servers locked away in a data center somewhere across the world that caters to their needs. So where should the residence of your VPS be?

This depends on a lot of questions, starting from:

a) Who is your target audience?
b) How quickly do you want your page to load (latency)
c) Are your users going to need support in regional languages?
d) Does your website need grievance address mechanisms 24 hours a day?
e) Is your website going to be affected by a potential server breakdown in the middle of the day?
f) How much does price matter to you?
g) Is the data center Tier 4 (more security) or Tier 3 (comparatively less secure)?

In answer to the above questions, let’s understand why choosing an Indian VPS hosting center can be of use to you.

As a website originating in India, your first audience, and most likely your target audience, are more likely to be based on your immediate contacts. Especially for those websites that plan to cater to Indian audience specifically, an Indian based VPS center will help provide valuable information about your target audience and how best to cater to them. For example, let’s say you have a website that specializes in teaching Vedic Maths or gives online coaching to Indian examinations. For such websites, having an Indian based VPS data center will help deliver to your target audience perfectly by providing real-time analytics.

Latency is the amount of time it takes to process your request and deliver it. This could be the amount of time it takes for your web page to load after a single click or the time it takes to carry out payments. The ideal latency period is 0, but this is not always practical. For an Indian client, checking out a website that is hosted on an Indian VPS center, the latency period is around 20 milliseconds. If your Indian client is based abroad, the latency period can be close to 9 times more. Your latency period not only determines the impression the client gathers about your website, but it also goes a long way in making sure you acquire a regular customer base. In this fast-paced world, nobody has the patience for a slow website.

India is a country of diverse languages. Any website that caters centrally to an Indian audience should be capable of addressing queries in local languages. Make sure that when you chose an Indian based VPS center, your traffic and business is not handicapped by lack of support from the back end over the mode of languages. Buying a USA based VPS can severely handicap the support you provide to your client.

Timeline conflicts are a burning issue. If I have a server based in the USA, who is almost 11 hours behind us with reference to EST. So a potential customer who needs support at 3pm will be unable to access help from your USA based web host. There are high chances he will jump to another website that caters to his needs promptly.

A full-fledged plan would be to choose a web host that promises you 24-hour support through calls or emails and can cater to audiences in diverse languages. Indian based VPS hosting service provider Server Basket promises you the same.

While database centers are designed to run at all hours of the day and cater in a full-fledged manner to their client’s needs, there’s no denying that server breakdowns are an unavoidable reality anywhere across the globe. Not just server breakdowns, sometimes you might have come across a message that says this particular website is not available to you right now on account of refurbishing or maintenance activities. A USA based VPS center will obviously choose to perform this during the night time, as traffic is generally lesser during the late hours. Due to the timeline conflicts mentioned previously, this directly coincides Indian work hours. Choosing an Indian based VPS center will save you from these issues, and ensures that your customers are provided with standard services at the most convenient time.

Next, let’s come to the question of affordability. Choosing a USA based VPS center will save you some bucks compared to an Indian center. The USA has upwards of 1000 data centers, while India has roughly 144 data centers. The USA has a much more competitive market, because of which the prices are more affordable. However, having said that, I don’t notice a big difference between the prices in these two countries. Considering the benefits promised above, I had said that the plus points far outweigh the price factor in this scenario.

Security is one of the key points that play a great role in choosing your website. Generally, Tier # data centers offer lesser security than Tier 4. Most of the centers in the USA are Tier 4 data centers and offer you protection from any malpractices. This might prove to be a great factor in favouring a USA based VPS hosting over an Indian one. If you plan on choosing an Indian one anyway, rest assured that quite a few centers are now offering Tier 4 security.

To sum it up, USA based VPS centers and choosing a USA based hosting service might sound more secure and affordable. However, if you consider all the dynamics that go into making a good website that has a loyal customer base, you will find that your choice should be based on your target customer’s place of residence. Improve the quality of your service by opting for an Indian VPS center. Go through all the specifications mentioned in the website with regard to their data centers, what each plan involves in terms of the services offered and choose the best plan based on your clientele.

Tags: Indian, usa, VPS

About the Author

Sunit Nandi I'm the leader of Techno FAQ. Also an engineering college student with immense interest in science and technology. Other interests include literature, coin collecting, gardening and photography. Always wish to live life like there's no tomorrow.