Virtual server or dedicated server..
 

are virtual servers as safe as dedicated boxes?

Yes they are.

define safe.

Your primary problem with a virtual box is that it is possible for someone else on the server to do something that will drop the entire server.

Well it really depends. Of course an account on a virtual server is a lot safer than a poorly maintained / configured dedicated server.

:2 cents:

-P

I mean safe in being safer than shared hosting

That happened to me. I had a virtual account and some asshole kept running shitty scripts that were constantly crashing the server.

Getting a dedicated box was a breath of fresh air.

was the person hosted on the same VPS as you?

re-read Mr. Baddog's post.

What he means is .. are you talking about safe from hackers? safe from downtime? ...

As he pointed out, there is always the risk of another user on your virtual server causing you downtime.

-p

shared hosting that is setup the correct way is very safe.

VPS and virtual are not the same.

Virtual you share all the same resources.
VPS you have your own resources, and if you screw up you are the only one that suffers. It is like dedicated without the expense.

freebsd jails do wonders :)

exxactly

I second anyone who says set up in configuration is the key to security and reliability.

Yes, they are.

also depends alot on how much bandwidth you're looking for and what you plan to run on the server.

the host should take care of that

this is not a yes or no question

shared:

how securely are the servers set up?
how many users per server?
how is cpu/memory/mysql/bandwidth capped, or not?
...

dedicated:

are you going for manage or unmanaged?
if unmanaged, do you have the skills or does someone you know have the skills to lock it up tight?
how much traffic do you expect?
what kind of traffic - download, mysql...etc.?

probably best to find a recommended host, send them details of your sites and ask them what they recommend