Both web hosting and cloud servers are managed services that can be used to host websites or applications. However, virtual host and cloud server have different characteristics and uses, mainly from the following aspects to distinguish virtual host and cloud server.

Virtualization technology:

Virtual hosting: Virtual hosting is achieved by splitting resources on a physical server and providing separate virtual environments for different users. Resources for each user are typically shared, including processor, memory, and storage.

Cloud server: A cloud server is a virtual server based on the cloud computing platform and adopts more advanced virtualization technology. Users can obtain independent virtual machine instances, each of which has its own operating system, resources, and isolation.

Resource isolation:

Virtual host: The resources of a virtual host are usually shared, with multiple users sharing the resources of a single server. This can lead to resource contention issues where the activity of one user can affect the performance of other users.

Cloud servers: Cloud servers generally provide better resource isolation, where each virtual machine instance has allocated resources without interference from other virtual machines.

Scalability:

Virtual hosts: Virtual hosts are often more difficult to scale out because resources are limited by the capabilities of the physical server.

Cloud servers: Cloud servers can easily scale out horizontally, dynamically adding or reducing virtual machine instances as needed to cope with traffic changes.

Flexibility:

Web hosting: Web hosting typically offers limited customization options and less control by the user.

Cloud servers: Cloud servers typically offer a higher degree of customization and control, allowing users to choose an operating system, configure resources, install applications, and more.

Features:

Virtual host: The performance of virtual hosts is limited by shared resources and may not be as good as that of cloud servers.

Cloud servers: Cloud servers generally provide more stable and predictable performance, and users can adjust resources to meet performance requirements on demand.

Cost:

Web hosting: Web hosting is generally more affordable and suitable for small websites and personal projects.

Cloud servers: Cloud servers typically cost more, but offer more performance and scalability, suitable for medium to large enterprises and projects that require a high degree of availability.

High Availability:

Virtual host: The high availability of a virtual host usually depends on the stability of the physical server, which is slow to recover in case of failure.

Cloud servers: Cloud servers generally offer higher availability because they can be distributed across multiple data centers, allowing for faster failover in the event of a failure.

Both web hosting and cloud servers can be used for different types of applications and projects. It depends on the user's needs, budget, and performance requirements. Virtual hosts and cloud servers differ in terms of virtualization technology, resource isolation, scalability, flexibility, performance, cost, high availability, and more. Web hosting is often used for small websites and personal projects, and cloud servers are more suitable for medium and large enterprise projects with higher performance, scalability, and availability.