RAM is an abbreviation for Random Access Memory. This is a sort of computer memory, which, in contrast to other storage devices including hard disks or DVDs, permits the information to be accessed directly without reading the previous content saved within it. Anytime an application is started, it's stored in the RAM, due to the fact that it could be accessed considerably faster than if it was read from another media device. With regard to the web hosting service itself, extra RAM means that more web applications can operate all at once on a certain server, particularly if they are resource-demanding and are accessed by a significant number of people all at once. Different from a shared web hosting plan where the system resources of a particular account may be flexible and often depend on what other users consume too, a VPS has a guaranteed amount of RAM which can be used always. That memory is assigned to one hosting server only and shall not be used by other customers even when it is not used.