What is Virtual Private Server?

A virtual private server, or VPS, is a virtual server that appears to the user as a dedicated server, but is actually installed on a computer and shared among multiple websites. In general, it is a virtual machine sold in the form of service by internet hosting services. A single computer system has multiple VPS, and each server instance has their own operating system that runs hosting software for an individual user. A virtual private server can also be recognized as virtual dedicated server (VDS). A VDS provides the same functionality as that of a normal computer system.

A VPS comprised of web server software, a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) program, mail server and various other application software for activities like e-commerce and blogging websites. As a VPS runs its own copy of the operating system, the user has superuser-level access to that operating system instance, so that they can install any kind of software application on that operating system as per their needs. A VPS Hosting acts like a bridge between shared web hosting and dedicated server hosting. These servers are priced much lower than an equivalent physical server.