The decision that matters most.
SELF-MANAGED
You handle everything: operating system updates, security patching, monitoring, backups, firewall, and every incident.
Cheaper in money. Expensive in time and risk.
MANAGED
The provider handles server-level maintenance, patching and monitoring.
More expensive, and considerably less to go wrong at your end.
WHAT TO ASK BEFORE CHOOSING
Who applies security updates Who monitors the server Who responds to an incident, and how quickly What backups are included What happens if the server fails entirely
IF CLIENT SITES DEPEND ON IT
Managed, almost always.
Learning server administration on infrastructure carrying live sites is a poor idea.
THE COST COMPARISON
Self-managed appears cheaper until you count your time, and until the first serious incident.
THE HONEST ADVICE
If you are asking whether you can manage a server, the answer is usually to stay on shared hosting or take a managed option.
