Web Hosting Reviews & Ratings

May 06, 2010

Online Games Moving to Dedicated Servers

Traditionally dedicated servers have been used by businesses to store their confidential information. These servers allowed companies to securely retrieve and manipulate files on an exclusive connection.

This popular type of hosting has spilled over into the gaming industry. A growing trend is using dedicated hosting to house online games. Since the popularity of online games has significantly grown, the need for this service is also constantly growing.

Popular Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG) like World of Warcraft is situated on multiple dedicated servers to accommodate the millions of players and resource-intensive graphics. Of course these gaming companies opt for the best equipment and service to ensure maximum uptime.

In the past, it was possible to run a game server in a household. As gaming technology has grown, a single residential connection to a server will not be reliable enough to handle the thousands to millions of players online.

When shopping for a dedicated gaming server, there are a few factors that must be considered including:

• RAM
• CPU
• Disk Space
• Bandwidth
• Pricing
• Data center support

Since many online games are in a first-person three dimensional environment, the amount of RAM and the speed of the CPU are imperative to reliability. Today’s graphics are so resource intensive, a large quantity of RAM and multiple CPU’s are a must.

Another major factor is the amount of disk space available on the server. Many hard drives must be available as a contingency for traffic spikes and the addition of new players. Also bandwidth should be unlimited due to the amount of players logging in 24/7 from every corner of the world.

Pricing can be a complete deal-breaker. Most clients highly base their decision on pricing alone. Make sure to understand the price of everything and ensure there are no hidden charges and fees so there are no surprises when the bill comes.

Finally it’s imperative to have a top-notch data support team. In the case that a major issue arises, the support team must be diligent and efficient at targeting the problem and concocting a solution. On that note, access to backup and recovery servers are vital.

Dedicated servers that host online games must maximize their uptime with quick support solutions when the systems go awry. These gaming companies rely on their dedicated hosting providers to supply top notch quality, speed and support ensuring customer satisfaction.

Tags: dedicated hosting,  Word of Warcraft,  RAM,  MMORPG,  gaming industry,  data support,  CPU,  Dedicated Servers