Video and audio streaming has seen an explosion of growth over the past few years, due largely to the availability of high-speed Internet access as well as the popularity of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. This growth is likely to continue as technology improves and Internet speeds keep climbing.
As a video streaming provider this is all good news, but it is important that you ensure your content can be accessed efficiently at all times. Your video content is likely key to your brand and the last thing you want to do is deliver this content in such a way that turns off your customers or fans.
Customers with growing customer bases are looking more and more to dedicated streaming server solutions, many running the Linux operating system. You may be asking why choose Linux for your streaming server? Below we’ve attempted to answer this question and show you how you can implement a high-powered Linux streaming server without having a highly technical background.
Benefits of a Linux Dedicated Server
Linux is a robust operating system that was first released by Linus Torvalds in 1991. Linux was originally developed as a free operating system and is the most popular operating system for servers and mainframe computers for a variety of reasons, a few of which we’ve highlighted below:
- Security: One of the primary reasons why Linux is used so readily used in the business world is due to security. Linux is based on the Unix operating system, which is innately secure and limits administrative privileges to only the administrator or root user. In a Linux system, users are limited to certain kernels of an operating system to keep the entire system protected.
- Stability: Another huge benefit of a Linux dedicated server is stability. If you are running a dedicated server, downtime can cost you dearly. With Linux you can rest easy knowing that your server will be stable over the long haul. Linux servers rarely crash, which is great for small to medium sized businesses that are greatly affected by these types of issues. Furthermore, the majority of changes to a Linux server can be done without actually rebooting the server compared to Windows servers, which must be rebooted after most system changes.
- Hardware: Other operating systems like Windows often require significant system resources due to their heavy digital footprints. Linux is extremely light and therefore can run on a server with much less memory and system resources.
- Cost of Ownership: Because the Linux operating system is free, it is much less expensive to run a Linux server compared to other dedicated servers. With other servers you are forced to pay hefty licensing fees for software that can really add up over time.
Do You Really Need a Dedicated Streaming Server?
You may be asking yourself if you actually need a dedicated Linux streaming server and this can be a complicated question. Generally, as your content becomes more popular it requires more resources, which shared streaming services often can’t provide. Below are several reasons why it may make sense for you to use a dedicated server to handle your video streaming content.
- Control: This may seem obvious, but when you are using a dedicated server you have complete control over the machine. You do not have to worry about another user hogging server resources, which in turn can greatly affect your user’s experience as they access your videos.
- Scalability: Dedicated servers offer extreme flexibility as your user base grows. While you may only need a low-level dedicated server at this time, upgrading to a more powerful dedicated server is relatively easy, especially if you are using a managed provider like Gobyt, which can handle the entire process.
- No More Sharing! With shared video hosting you are sharing disk space, CPU, RAM and network access. This shared access can be extremely taxing on a machine, which results in your content slowing and appearing choppy. This is one of the most frustrating things for an end user to deal with when watching video content and should be avoided at all costs. With your very own Linux streaming server, you only have to worry about how much resources your content is consuming as opposed to worrying about what everyone else is doing!
- Robust Technical Support: When you choose a dedicated hosting provider such as Gobyt, you are not only receiving a high powered dedicated streaming server, but you are also receiving a high powered support team. A team of experts that is able to spot problems before they become larger issues will manage your dedicated server. This allows you to focus on creating great content as opposed to worrying about how your server is being managed.
- Speed: Because your content will be hosted on a dedicated server, you can expect must faster load times for your video content which will be welcomed by your users. With shared hosting you have no control over the speed of your content, which can be extremely frustrating to you as well as your end users. End the headaches with a dedicated Linux streaming server.
Gobyt: Your Linux Streaming Server Provider
If you think that it may be time to upgrade from a shared hosting solution to a dedicated server, Gobyt should be at the top of your list. Gobyt and TikiLIVE can provide you with a Linux dedicated server that is optimized for video streaming as opposed to other dedicated server options that may not have everything you need.
TikiLIVE has been designing and managing dedicated streaming servers for a number of years and will bring that experience and knowledge to the table when working with you on a live streaming solution. Why trust your streaming needs to a company that doesn’t specialize in video hosting? Gobyt and TikiLIVE are the perfect team to ensure your video content is hosted safely, securely and is poised for growth.
For more information on our Linux streaming servers, contact us today!
