Own server vs VPS

A VPS suits you when you need something always available on the internet without worrying about hardware; your own server suits you when you handle data you don't want to take out of your office or need a lot of power, like a graphics card for local AI. It isn't an all-or-nothing choice: it's very common to end up combining the two. What decides it isn't fashion, but what you're going to run and with what data.

The comparison that misleads people is the monthly price. The VPS is paid every month and your own server seems free once bought, but it isn't: there's electricity, breakdowns, the connection, the noise and, above all, the hours it takes you to maintain it. In exchange, your own server doesn't depend on a provider or its changes of terms, and the data doesn't leave your building. The VPS takes the hardware off your hands, but security is still your job. The four useful questions are: data, cost, availability and exposure to the internet.

I've ended up with both, an internal network of 8 servers and 6 VPS outside. How I got there and what runs where I explain in "Why I have eight servers at home and six outside". The balance sheet with numbers, what each option costs, the maintenance hours and who each one makes sense for, I cover in "Is it worth having your own servers?".