Shared hosting CPU/RAM/I/O limits

Shared hosting shares the server's physical resources among multiple customers. HolyCloud applies limits (CPU, RAM, processes, disk I/O) to keep all accounts stable. Understanding these caps helps diagnose slowness and 503/508 errors.

Prerequisites

• Web hosting plan (cPanel / DirectAdmin)
• Panel access to view Resource Usage / Statistics
• Identified site (main or addon domain)

Why limits?

| Resource | Risk without limits |

|-----------|-------------------|

| CPU | A looping script monopolizes the server |

| RAM | PHP-FPM or MySQL consume all memory |

| I/O | Mass imports slow shared disks |

| Processes | Fork bombs, multiple crons |

Limits protect neighbors; a spike on your site may trigger a temporary restriction.

Where to view usage (cPanel)

1. Panel → Metrics → Resource Usage (or CPU and Connection Usage).
2. CPU, Physical Memory, Entry Processes, I/O charts.
3. Snapshots tab: identify the script or domain at fault.

DirectAdmin: Account Statistics / Resource Limits depending on version.

Common terms (cPanel / CloudLinux)

| Metric | Meaning |

|----------|----------------|

| CPU Usage | Cumulative processor time (often % of one core) |

| PMEM / Virtual Memory | Memory used by your PHP processes |

| EP (Entry Processes) | Simultaneous connections to the site (parallel pages) |

| NPROC | Total process count for the account |

| IOPS / IO Usage | Disk reads/writes per second |

Repeated exceedance → « resource limit reached » email or 503 Service Unavailable.

Common causes of exceedance

• Cron too frequent (every minute) for import/sync.
• Heavy WordPress plugin (scan, backup, real-time SEO).
• Uncached traffic spike (viral article).
• Redirect loop or malicious bot (thousands of requests).
• Unindexed MySQL database (slow queries blocking PHP).

Optimizations without upgrading

1. Cache: shared-hosting-compatible page cache plugin; CDN for static assets.
2. PHP: version 8.2+; disable unused plugins.
3. Cron: space tasks (/15 instead of ).
4. Images: compression; no unoptimized full-HD images.
5. Database: clean WP revisions (wp_postmeta revisions), transient tables.

Reduce WP load (wp-config example):

define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '128M');
define('DISABLE_WP_CRON', true);

Then trigger cron via panel Cron Jobs every 15 minutes:

wget -q -O - https://votredomaine.fr/wp-cron.php?doing_wp_cron >/dev/null 2>&1

When to move to VPS or a higher plan?

• Limits hit every day despite optimization.
• Need for root, custom Apache modules, or traffic above EP quota.
• Application requiring Redis, long workers, or Java.

Contact HolyCloud sales to compare Pro hosting vs VPS.

Troubleshooting

| Symptom | Action |

|----------|--------|

| Intermittent 503 | Resource Usage; reduce plugins; cache |

| « 508 Resource Limit » | EP spike — CDN; block bots (.htaccess) |

| MySQL « too many connections » | Reduce plugins; optimize queries |

| Slow admin only | Low EP on shared — normal; avoid heavy imports at peak hours |

Simple bot blocking (.htaccess) — adapt to your logs:

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_USER_AGENT} ^.*(BadBot|SemrushBot).*$ [NC]
RewriteRule .* - [F,L]

Best practices

• Monitor panel alert emails.
• Schedule backups and imports at night.
• Test updates on a staging subdomain if available.

Need help?

Open a ticket with Resource Usage screenshots, the domain, and peak time. Support can confirm if an exceedance was logged and suggest a suitable upgrade.