Let's be frank: when you purchase a
VPS (Virtual Private Server), you are fundamentally purchasing a VPS. You mentally note the
"RAM," you note the
"storage," and then, even, the
"cost." After that all you're left with is a hardware shell of a VPS. Building on the previous thought, it leads you to ask the question, is the VPS running on a new AMD server that is high performance with plenty of processing power or a last generation Intel chip that is older and may have limited performance?
Why Knowing The Hardware Specs Is Important
And you may be thinking, "who cares the hardware specs, if the VPS works?" In reality, the hardware does matter to whether it works and it matters significantly whether it is fast and reliable it will be.
For example:
• An
NVMe VPS will operate much quicker than one on old fashioned hard drives.
• A
modern CPU will multitask and run up to speed with more users than an outdated chip.
• Network speeds (1 Gbps vs 10 Gbps) will change the experience entirely.
Why Providers Should Be Honest
I think
VPS providers should at a minimum provide basic hardware information. Why? To create trust. If I am paying for a “
high-performance VPS” I want to know what it is based on on.
The Reason Why Some Providers are Opaque
However, providers stated that hardware is constantly evolving. They may upgrade the machines or switch out mixing machines in different locations. The precision of specifying the exact hardware can be daunting. Secondly, let's just be honest— some consumers simply do not care if it is
"AMD EPYC" or
"Intel Xeon"—they just want it to work.
My Prior Experience
Not too long ago I signed up with a
VPS provider who advertised
"fast SSD storage". I signed up only to find out that I would be getting a barebones
SATA-SSD- not the innovative
NVMe storage, which wasn't bad per say, but not as quick as I had envisioned either. This is essentially why I feel
VPS providers should be required to disclose such basic information:
- CPU Model or Generation
- Storage Technology (NVMe, SSD, HDD)
- Network Speed
If nothing else, many customers would greatly appreciate this information ahead of purchase.