Does anyone have an opinion on whether linking sites within a dedicated server will be any different, than linking sites from a large shared host that like was said above could be from a different site owner on that shares the same ip or is on the same server?
I'm not sure, but since sites on the same dedicated server have the same IP, therefore it should be the same like bunch of sites on a shared server
I agree with this response! I can speak from personal experience, I have owned over 170 domain names at one time and still currently own over 60 domain names. Out of personal curiosity and to better myself as a SEO professional, I decided to study cause and effect factors of SEO. I only had one server at the time, but I did have dedicated IP address for some of the most important websites. I linked many websites together that had the same IP address to see if it had an effect on search engine position, just as you are asking about. I have found that it does seem to have a benefit if it is done properly, but if it is not done properly it can produce less than desirable results. Everyone has a different idea as to how to properly optimize a website, but in my option it is not what you do, it is how you do it. I have reviewed all of the responses to question and I see a lot of good points that you should consider. Just as I have done and others have recommend, I would advise you to not just take someone's word. Setup your own SEO testing environments to study the cause and effects of the most important factors of SEO. I currently have my websites on (3) three different servers, and I still like to use a dedicated IP address for important websites. I got servers from different data centers as well, for the purpose trading links to increase keyword performance. To get the best results: You may want to consider hosting a few of your websites on servers with dedicated IP addresses from different web hosting companies. In conclusion, trading links with websites on the same server is okay, but do it with caution and care. Do not over do it, or you may run into problems. I hope this information is of value to you. If you have any further questions, comments, or concerns, feel free to post them.