Do I need a dedicated server?

[Ruriko]

Hi I have a site that is currently getting 300+ users on at the same time and the site is becoming slow to load and I'm thinking is it because the host can't handle it or a shared hosting can't handle it?

[Dan]

You could go for a better shared host with much better resources such as RAM, Transfer etc.
I doubt a Dedicated box would be an option as yet as your just getting 300+ visitors at once.
I would suggest maybe a VPS?

[Ruriko]

What specs should I look at for 500+ users on 1gb ram?

[Dan]

It's not the space you should be worrying about, it's the transfer.
I would say about 100 GB would suffice enough.

[~ServerPoint~]

Ruriko, how much are you currently use?

[jovis]

Ruriko, I'd suggest asking your self the following questions before deciding on the type of the package to go for:
-are your sites mission-critical? in a shared environment there's always a risk of being affected by the neighbouring sites;
-will you need any software applications not offered by your host? only dedicated or vps paclages will give you this possibility;
-are you planning to upgrade your server? the upgrade possibilities will be limited in the shared environment;
Ask your host about it as well, usually hosts offer upgrades to a bigger plans, probably, a VPS plan might be your next step. I'm with Serverpoint.com, they offer managed VPS plans, you may look into them.

[gate2vn]

I am not sure how you indicate 300+ users online at the same time, but with 300+ concurrent connection, you definitely need dedicated server, even a big server, or one for web, one for database separately. If you can let us know more about your situation, it would be better to give out advices

[andyf]

A VPS with good RAM and bandwidth will also serve your hosting need for 300+ users online at the same time. No need to go for dedicated right now.

Get a host with Good RAM and Bandwidth and your account should be on server with excellent processor.

[Ruriko]

To tell how I know there are 300+ users I had a chatango embed on my site that tells how many users are on chat. I don't think I can afford a VPS yet as I still haven't made profit with my site yet. Well my current host suspended me cause it was using too much mysql resource. Kind of odd cause the only thing I had installed was wordpress but I didn't think wordpress was a resource hog.

[AdamJ]

WordPress isn't a resource hogger.....

Seems weird how they have suspended you, maybe move to a better host?

[andyf]

Well my current host suspended me cause it was using too much mysql resource. Kind of odd cause the only thing I had installed was wordpress but I didn't think wordpress was a resource hog.

That may be true, if your blog is getting heavy traffic then the problem of resource hog may appear if you are on shared hosting so for better performance you can consider VPS :) where you get good recourses at your end.

Please let me know your budget and hosting requirements.

[Ruriko]

So what is the minimum ram + cpanel ram should I get?

[~ServerPoint~]

Find easy to upgrade company and start with 256 guaranted and then move to higher level if you feel you need that.

[Ruriko]

I got offered a shared host but with more CPU that can handle 400 users and the price is $35 for 3 months. Is that overselling?

[deny]

As first where you are hosted right now? I think that you can try with semi-dedicated or VPS but try to do some research. If your site use a lot MySQl then you need alwasy to ask before you step over about max_user_connection setting into MySql. By shared hosting is that mostly limited to 25 what is too little.
Good VPS is by powervps and i do not have any idea where to go with semi-dedicated.
For sharing hosting you can try MediaLayer, Crucialwebhost that are probably able to handle with high traffic sites.

[serverorigin]

http://www.vpslink.com - I would highly recommend going with a VPS. Shared hosting environments normally can't handle constant 300+ users to one site. A digg effect can happen in most environments but they aren't meant to sustain that many users and in the end, depending on the wordpress configuration, could have been using up serious resources if wp-cache was not setup.