EuroVPS sales staff: “How much disk space do you require to host your sites?”
Potential customer:“…..”
Far too often, this simple question is a deer-in-headlights moment. But it’s not as complicated as many think.
Calculating disk size doesn’t require a university physics degree. It’s not calculus. It’s basic math. It’s simple!
Unlimited!***
Don’t be gullible. It’s a marketing ploy. In fact, most “unlimited” hosts have extreme limits on how you’re allowed to use space on the plans. Using such plans are a mistake, and will backfire.
How much hard disk space do you really need?
One of the main reasons people migrate to a new host is because they learn the hard way that “unlimited” isn’t unlimited. This mostly applies to shared and reseller hosting, but we’d honestly not be surprised if VPS was one day advertised in such a deceptive manner.
Assess current usage
This step requires simple addition. And most control panels include a calculator that displays usage information.
If it looks high, then consider checking the account or server for unnecessary files. For example, do you really need to keep that Linux installer ISO that was “temporarily” uploaded 3 years ago?
Two Methods to Find Disk Usage
1. Panel Method: Check usage in the panel
In cPanel, click the Dashboard icon on the left side of the screen, and you can see your total disk usage. For a detailed folder-by-folder view, go back to Home, and click the Disk Usage icon under Files.
2. SSH Method: Check usage using command line
In SSH, the command "df -h" will tell you your “disk free” statistics, and export it in human readable format with the option "-h".
Forecasting your future disk needs
This one is simple multiplication. Although every case is unique, a quick general rule is to multiply it by at least 50% per year.
So if the site is 10 GB, in a year, it may be 15 GB.
To be safe, you can multiply it by 2 or 3.
Further Tips for Disk Usage Forecasting
- If the site is not updated often and therefore has minimal needs, then 1.5
- If the site is using a CMS, and gets daily updates with lots of images uploads, perhaps 4x is more accurate.
- In general 2x or 3x is a good estimate. Recalculate every 6 months, to verify that you’re on the hosting plan that you truly need.
Quick facts on Disk Usage Statistics
The HTTP Archive has some interesting statistics. In 2015, the average webpage size was 2 MB. Only 3 years ago, in 2012, it was half that!
Broadband and mobile speeds increase annually, which allows web developers to create larger and more media-rich sites. It’s not uncommon to find sites loading HTML5 HD video or large megapixel images.
Historical growth factor calculation
Want a more accurate way to find out how much disk space you’ll need a year from now? You can also estimate based on page size, and the amount of pages added per year.
Example:
- Average Page Size (APS): 2 MB
- Average Pages per Website (APW): 50
- Total Websites on Server (TP): 100
- Annualised Growth Factor (G) :25%
Disk Growth Forecasting Formula:
APS x APW x TP x G = disk required next year
The above VPS websites take 10 GB of disk space today, but within a year, will need 12.5 GB.
Never grossly overestimate!
Too many new hosting users insist that their new sites will “go viral” and have “lots of traffic”, and give unrealistic numbers to our sales staff.
At EuroVPS, we want your business to succeed! But at the same time, we don’t want you to sign up for a €500 hosting plan that you do not need and cannot afford long-term.
We want successful customers, not customers whose businesses quickly implode.
There’s no place like home
Disk space is your website’s home in cyberspace. Whether you host in “the cloud”, a shared account, a VPS or a dedicated server, you’re storing on disk. ( SSD or Rotational, a disk is a disk.)
Calculating how much disk space you’ll actually need is an important first step in ensuring a quality hosting experience. Not having enough can cause downtimes, and having too much can attack your pocketbook.
Contact us. We’ll help you get that perfect hosting plan that you need.
