🔧 DevOps beginner

VPS (Virtual Private Server)

Virtualized server instance providing dedicated resources on shared physical hardware.

A VPS gives you a virtual machine with guaranteed CPU, RAM, and storage on shared infrastructure. Compared to shared hosting: you get root access, can install any software, and have isolated resources. Compared to dedicated servers: lower cost but shared underlying hardware. Common providers: DigitalOcean, Linode, Vultr, Hetzner, AWS Lightsail. VPS management involves: OS installation, security hardening (firewall, SSH keys, updates), software installation, monitoring, and backups. VPS is ideal for: web hosting, development environments, small databases, and learning system administration. The stepping stone between shared hosting and cloud infrastructure.