{"id":9604,"date":"2021-11-16T09:17:00","date_gmt":"2021-11-16T08:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/?p=9604"},"modified":"2025-10-03T17:02:26","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T15:02:26","slug":"managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-what-is-the-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-what-is-the-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"Managed vs unmanaged cloud: what is the difference?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>As an entrepreneur, you want to concentrate on your own business, which is why you prefer to leave all your digital issues to experts in the field. If you want to store all your data on an external server (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/save-money-and-time-by-working-in-the-cloud\/\">the cloud<\/a> has become the new standard for businesses!), <a href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/managed-cloud\">managed hosting<\/a> is exactly what you need.<\/p>\n<p>But there is also such a thing as an 'unmanaged cloud'. We will therefore help you understand the difference:<em> managed vs unmanaged cloud<\/em>!<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-inline-notice uagb-inline_notice__align-left uagb-block-fc21cf8e uagb-inline_notice__outer-wrap\">\n<p class=\"uagb-notice-title\">Download our e-book 'En route to the cloud' now!<\/p>\n<div class=\"uagb-notice-text\">\n<p>Managed vs unmanaged is just one of the choices you can make to find the cloud solution that is right for you. Our <a href=\"https:\/\/on.combell.com\/en\/ebooks\/extended-report-on-the-cloud\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">e-book 'En route to the cloud'<\/a> will get you started!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Unmanaged cloud hosting<\/h2>\n<p>The name 'unmanaged cloud hosting' says it all: your cloud hosting provider will not manage your cloud system for you.<\/p>\n<p>When you choose unmanaged hosting, you rent a server and an operating system from your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/how-can-you-choose-a-good-cloud-provider\/\">cloud provider<\/a>. That provider will ensure that the hardware remains up-to-date, that defective parts are replaced and that your server is always available. Even when your server needs to be restarted, your cloud provider will do that for you.<\/p>\n<p>It is quite obvious that with <em>unmanaged<\/em> hosting, your cloud provider will only take care of the hardware side of your infrastructure.<\/p>\n<p>But with <em>unmanaged<\/em> hosting, everything related to your software management is handled by you. So it will be your responsibility (or that of your system administrator) to install additional software or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/installing-updates-quickly-a-must-for-better-security\/\">updates and security patches<\/a>, in order to solve problems or to<a href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/what-are-the-benefits-of-a-cloud-backup\/\"> back up the data on your server<\/a>. You will also be responsible for monitoring the performance of your server.<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The benefits of unmanaged hosting<\/h3>\n<p><strong>The price<\/strong> is the greatest advantage of unmanaged hosting. If you already have sufficient technical knowledge, unmanaged cloud hosting is often a more affordable option.<\/p>\n<p>You should, however, bear in mind that you will need an in-house cloud administrator, who will have to spend time and money on updating and maintaining your server. And, if there are any software problems in the middle of the night, your cloud administrator will have to take action as soon as possible.<\/p>\n<p>Another major advantage is the fact that you have<strong> complete control over your server<\/strong>: with unmanaged hosting, you manage everything, which leaves you more room to make certain (technical) choices. You also have complete control over how you configure, manage and maintain the servers.<\/p>\n<p>Having full control is especially useful when you often need to make technical adjustments, or like to experiment with your cloud solution.<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-horizontal is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-1 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-white-color has-yellow-background-color has-text-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/unmanaged-cloud\">Discover our unmanaged solutions<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Managed cloud hosting<\/h2>\n<p>With managed hosting, your cloud provider takes care of everything related to your cloud. The management and maintenance of your infrastructure is entirely (or partially) taken care of by your cloud provider.<\/p>\n<p>The cloud provider is therefore responsible for management, performance, security, backups and monitoring. It also troubleshoots any issues relating to your infrastructure and network. In return, you will benefit from a number of clear guarantees, which you can even formalise in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/sla-guarantees\">Service Level Agreements (SLAs)<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In those SLAs, such guarantees are set in stone: for example, you can always count on fast response and recovery times, as well as on the monitoring of your systems. And if your cloud provider cannot meet these guarantees, it must provide fair compensation.<\/p>\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-inline-notice uagb-inline_notice__align-left uagb-block-62a07ab8 uagb-inline_notice__outer-wrap\">\n<p class=\"uagb-notice-title\">Also read<\/p>\n<div class=\"uagb-notice-text\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/how-can-you-choose-a-good-cloud-provider\/\">How can you choose a good cloud provider?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The benefits of managed cloud hosting<\/h2>\n<p>Every cloud provider has its own conditions and benefits. With Combell, these are quite extensive, as you can see below.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-icon-list uagb-block-dbae78a2 uagb-icon-list__outer-wrap uagb-icon-list__layout-vertical uagb-icon-list__icon-at-top\">\n<div class=\"uagb-icon-list__wrap\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-icon-list-child uagb-block-c8141609 uagb-icon-list-repeater uagb-icon-list__wrapper\"><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__source-wrap\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M438.6 105.4C451.1 117.9 451.1 138.1 438.6 150.6L182.6 406.6C170.1 419.1 149.9 419.1 137.4 406.6L9.372 278.6C-3.124 266.1-3.124 245.9 9.372 233.4C21.87 220.9 42.13 220.9 54.63 233.4L159.1 338.7L393.4 105.4C405.9 92.88 426.1 92.88 438.6 105.4H438.6z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__label\"><strong><strong>Guarantees<\/strong>: <\/strong>Your IT manager no longer needs to be woken up in case of problems: you get rock-solid guarantees for uptime, performance, security and privacy.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-icon-list-child uagb-block-78a6d283 uagb-icon-list-repeater uagb-icon-list__wrapper\"><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__source-wrap\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M438.6 105.4C451.1 117.9 451.1 138.1 438.6 150.6L182.6 406.6C170.1 419.1 149.9 419.1 137.4 406.6L9.372 278.6C-3.124 266.1-3.124 245.9 9.372 233.4C21.87 220.9 42.13 220.9 54.63 233.4L159.1 338.7L393.4 105.4C405.9 92.88 426.1 92.88 438.6 105.4H438.6z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__label\"><strong><strong><strong>Proactive monitoring:\u00a0<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>Combell monitors your infrastructure 24\/7, which allows us to detect certain irregularities or peaks even before they become a problem. Think for example of the monitoring of your CPU load, memory, storage, application performance, etc.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-icon-list-child uagb-block-57f7966e uagb-icon-list-repeater uagb-icon-list__wrapper\"><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__source-wrap\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M438.6 105.4C451.1 117.9 451.1 138.1 438.6 150.6L182.6 406.6C170.1 419.1 149.9 419.1 137.4 406.6L9.372 278.6C-3.124 266.1-3.124 245.9 9.372 233.4C21.87 220.9 42.13 220.9 54.63 233.4L159.1 338.7L393.4 105.4C405.9 92.88 426.1 92.88 438.6 105.4H438.6z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__label\"><strong><strong><strong><strong>Instant updates:\u00a0<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>When certain software updates or security patches are available, your cloud provider will install them immediately - if they do not pose a problem to the rest of your infrastructure, of course. This helps keep any security risks to a minimum.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-icon-list-child uagb-block-cd5932bc uagb-icon-list-repeater uagb-icon-list__wrapper\"><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__source-wrap\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M438.6 105.4C451.1 117.9 451.1 138.1 438.6 150.6L182.6 406.6C170.1 419.1 149.9 419.1 137.4 406.6L9.372 278.6C-3.124 266.1-3.124 245.9 9.372 233.4C21.87 220.9 42.13 220.9 54.63 233.4L159.1 338.7L393.4 105.4C405.9 92.88 426.1 92.88 438.6 105.4H438.6z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__label\"><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong>High-quality security:\u00a0<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>Combell determines the level of security you need in consultation with you. Its specialists will take care of the set-up of the different layers and their monitoring. If your cloud provider, such as Combell, is ISO 27001-certified, you can also be sure that the security of your data is regularly assessed by experts.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-icon-list-child uagb-block-bd0babc8 uagb-icon-list-repeater uagb-icon-list__wrapper\"><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__source-wrap\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M438.6 105.4C451.1 117.9 451.1 138.1 438.6 150.6L182.6 406.6C170.1 419.1 149.9 419.1 137.4 406.6L9.372 278.6C-3.124 266.1-3.124 245.9 9.372 233.4C21.87 220.9 42.13 220.9 54.63 233.4L159.1 338.7L393.4 105.4C405.9 92.88 426.1 92.88 438.6 105.4H438.6z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__label\"><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong>Backups available at all times:\u00a0<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>With managed cloud hosting, Combell automatically creates cloud backups of your infrastructure at specific times. These backups can also be restored immediately when necessary.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-icon-list-child uagb-block-3fad0fa1 uagb-icon-list-repeater uagb-icon-list__wrapper\"><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__source-wrap\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M438.6 105.4C451.1 117.9 451.1 138.1 438.6 150.6L182.6 406.6C170.1 419.1 149.9 419.1 137.4 406.6L9.372 278.6C-3.124 266.1-3.124 245.9 9.372 233.4C21.87 220.9 42.13 220.9 54.63 233.4L159.1 338.7L393.4 105.4C405.9 92.88 426.1 92.88 438.6 105.4H438.6z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__label\"><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong>Tailored service package:\u00a0<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>Combell offers different managed service packages. This way, you can perfectly determine what you want to manage yourself and what your cloud provider should do. You can also determine the budget you can\/want to spend on managed hosting and the guarantees you want.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-icon-list-child uagb-block-3eaa2cfa uagb-icon-list-repeater uagb-icon-list__wrapper\"><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__source-wrap\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M438.6 105.4C451.1 117.9 451.1 138.1 438.6 150.6L182.6 406.6C170.1 419.1 149.9 419.1 137.4 406.6L9.372 278.6C-3.124 266.1-3.124 245.9 9.372 233.4C21.87 220.9 42.13 220.9 54.63 233.4L159.1 338.7L393.4 105.4C405.9 92.88 426.1 92.88 438.6 105.4H438.6z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__label\"><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong>24\/7 support:<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>\u00a0You can count on 24\/7 support. There is always someone available to follow up on alerts, solve problems or handle incidents.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-icon-list-child uagb-block-25b7e27f uagb-icon-list-repeater uagb-icon-list__wrapper\"><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__source-wrap\"><svg xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\"><path d=\"M438.6 105.4C451.1 117.9 451.1 138.1 438.6 150.6L182.6 406.6C170.1 419.1 149.9 419.1 137.4 406.6L9.372 278.6C-3.124 266.1-3.124 245.9 9.372 233.4C21.87 220.9 42.13 220.9 54.63 233.4L159.1 338.7L393.4 105.4C405.9 92.88 426.1 92.88 438.6 105.4H438.6z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"uagb-icon-list__label\"><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong><strong>Reporting:\u00a0<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>You receive regular reports on your traffic, resource usage, incidents, etc. This helps you stay on top of things without having to deal with hosting on a daily basis.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-inline-notice uagb-inline_notice__align-left uagb-block-04eb23cc uagb-inline_notice__outer-wrap\">\n<p class=\"uagb-notice-title\">Also read<\/p>\n<div class=\"uagb-notice-text\">\n<p>How <a href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/customer-story-flanders-classics\/\">Flanders Classics and Dynamate<\/a> gained complete peace of mind regarding their digital infrastructure thanks to Combell's managed cloud. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Managed vs unmanaged cloud: conclusion<\/h2>\n<p>In the 21<sup>st<\/sup> century, moving to the cloud is the best choice your company can make. When considering the issue of 'managed vs unmanaged cloud', it is best to weigh up the pros and cons of your specific cloud solution.<\/p>\n<p>If you prefer to have <strong>full control<\/strong> of your server \u2013 and if your company has the technical <em>know-how<\/em> to do so \u2013 <strong>unmanaged cloud hosting<\/strong> is a better and <strong>cheaper<\/strong> option. Keep in mind the additional costs (and effort) that can come with problems.<\/p>\n<p>If you prefer <strong>not to hire your own system administrator<\/strong>, you can opt for <strong>managed cloud hosting<\/strong>. With this option, you can always be sure of an <strong>optimally functioning, highly secure server<\/strong>. And if there are any problems, your cloud provider will solve them in no time.<\/p>\n<p>Not sure what the best cloud solution is for your business?<a href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/managed-cloud\"> Ask our experts for advice, without any obligation!<\/a><\/p>\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-horizontal is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-2 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-white-color has-yellow-background-color has-text-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/managed-cloud\">Discover our managed solutions<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When you switch to the cloud, you choose between managed or unmanaged cloud hosting. We compare them with each other: managed vs unmanaged cloud!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9606,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[61],"tags":[43,195],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1.jpg",1200,420,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-50x50.jpg",50,50,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-300x105.jpg",300,105,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-768x269.jpg",768,269,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-1024x358.jpg",1024,358,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1.jpg",1200,420,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1.jpg",1200,420,false],"post-featured":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-850x290.jpg",850,290,true],"post-featured-opt":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-750x256.jpg",750,256,true],"post-featured-opt-md":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-850x290.jpg",850,290,true],"post-featured-opt-sm":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-485x165.jpg",485,165,true],"post-featured-opt-xs":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-375x128.jpg",375,128,true],"post-most-popular":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-50x50.jpg",50,50,true],"post-author":["https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/files\/Managed-vs-unmanaged-cloud-hosting-1-60x60.jpg",60,60,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Combell","author_link":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/author\/blogadmin\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"When you switch to the cloud, you choose between managed or unmanaged cloud hosting. We compare them with each other: managed vs unmanaged cloud!","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9604"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9604"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9604\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13537,"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9604\/revisions\/13537"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9606"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.combell.com\/en\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}