Also known as: Dedicated server, Bare metal server
A dedicated server is a whole physical server rented for your exclusive use — no other customers share the hardware.1
Overview
Unlike a virtual private server, which carves one machine into many tenants, a dedicated server is yours alone. That means raw, uncontended performance: no neighbors competing for CPU, memory, or disk. You (or the provider, under a managed plan) handle the metal — the operating system, patching, and recovery.
When to choose it
Pick a dedicated server when predictable, full-machine performance is worth the higher price compared with a VPS — sustained heavy workloads, strict latency budgets, or licensing that demands a single tenant. For lighter or bursty needs, a VPS or cloud computing is usually the better value.
Sources
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Dedicated hosting service — Wikipedia, on single-tenant dedicated servers. ↩