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A virtual dedicated server (VDS) is a virtual machine hosted on a physical dedicated server. There can be many virtual dedicated servers on a single physical dedicated server, and the beauty of this is that you get the flexibility of your own physical server without the cost.

You are provided with the root login/administrator access to the virtual dedicated server, in the same was as if it were a physical server. You can choose your operating system, (e.g. Linux CentOS, Windows Server 2003) and can install and configure your own software exactly to your own specifications. If you require a custom Apache configuration to host your website, you can do this.

Sometimes it is recommended that a user purchase a virtual dedicated server instead of a reseller package. With a Windows or Linux reseller hosting account, you are effectively free to resell a number of websites, based upon the amount of space/bandwidth you have purchased wholesale from your reseller hosting provider. This is especially suitable for a novice web hosting user, who need to host a number of websites but who doesn’t have the systems administration experience required to keep a virtual dedicated server running smoothly and securely. Additionally, a web designer who wishes to offer web hosting to their clients may benefit from a reseller hosting account – they want to offer website hosting to their clients but without the added problems of worrying about administering the server, making sure all of the scripts and server software is up to date etc.

So whilst a reseller account is very convenient, and cost effective for a user wishing to host a large number of websites, it doesn’t quite offer the flexibility of a virtual dedicated server, which may be more suited to a developer running multiple websites requiring custom Apache/MySQL/PHP/Ruby on Rails hosting requirements. In conclusion, for most users a reseller hosting account is usually the better option to take, whilst as a user gains more experience and understands the details of administering a linux hosting server, a VDS may be an option to progress to later on.