Website Hosting : An Overview
The internet has been part and parcel of our daily lives in such a way that if you take it away, our world would grind into a halt and become a lame one. There are millions of websites driving the internet, from social media sites to entirely business related ones. Given such a scenario, "website hosting" has become a relatively common term. But what exactly is website hosting?
Website hosting is all about 'publishing' a website on the internet, at a space provided by a website hosting provider. Every website needs to be hosted on a web server before it can be viewed in the browser. It works as if you are renting a digital space where you can set up and format your web pages and from where people can access those pages via the internet. There are practically thousands if not millions of website hosting companies in the United States alone. They can be divided into various classes according to individual needs. There are free website hosting plans which have sponsored advertisements on your web pages. That's how servers earn their money, they can't let you use the space out of charity! There are others who offer their services at a very affordable cost while retaining all the features that you may need. Finally, there are reputable servers who offer premium fee based web hosting plans which are normally acquired by big businesses and organizations.
There are scores of website hosting options, plans or packages that are out in the market today. There are free website hosting plans which are suited for individuals or for new businesses with a small budget for their presence in the internet. There are others who offer their services at a very affordable cost while retaining all the features that you may need. These are called paid website hosting which is great for established businesses or organizations, and provides more storage and features for the hosted website.
The next stage would be picking the appropriate hosting type. There are many types of hosting, among which are shared hosting, virtual private web server, and a dedicated server. Shared web hosting, as the name suggests, has many users who are using the same machine and share the same server resources. The concept behind shared web hosting is not entirely new and this market appears to be the strongest in the sector. It is an affordable option for beginners or the ones that do not require too many resources. A virtual private server (VPS), also called collocation basically divides one single server into multiple web servers through a concept referred to as virtualization. It is a bit more expensive than shared hosting and is best suited for clients who want power and security but can't afford a full blown dedicated server. If the first two types don't appeal to you or simply doesn't fit your needs, then a dedicated server is the likely solution. A dedicated server is owned by a single user and is accorded complete rights over it. This simply means that you would be given a complete web server dedicated to your web site. You have the right to fully utilize the CPU or RAM resources on it. This type is typically used if you plan to have a website with tons of content, images, and videos. However, the main drawback is that dedicated servers are more expensive and will cost you up to 10 times more than the average web hosts.
The next stage involves choosing the web hosting plan. There are several types of website hosting plans, depending on the demand of every type of website. Personal web hosting plans are intended for personal websites and for starters in general. The rate of data transfer is quite low which explains why personal plans come with lower bandwidth and disk space. Business plans, as the name imply, are used by companies or organizations who require a higher bandwidth and larger disk space for high trafficking. The e-commerce sites which handle huge volume of products require the maximum bandwidth and disk space.
The next step would be the actual choosing of the web hosting plan. This is by no means an easy task because there are literally thousands of website hosting plans out there. Website hosting plans come in several types, each type catering to the demands and specifications of every type of website. Personal web hosting plans are generally intended for personal websites and for starters. The rate of data transfer is low that is why personal plans come with lower bandwidth and disk space. Business plans are the perfect type of hosting if you run a small or medium sized business. The plans come in reasonable prices but it does not mean quality and package options are compromised. This is something that would be greatly appreciated by small businesses as every saved expense is very important.
Website hosting is all about 'publishing' a website on the internet, at a space provided by a website hosting provider. Every website needs to be hosted on a web server before it can be viewed in the browser. It works as if you are renting a digital space where you can set up and format your web pages and from where people can access those pages via the internet. There are practically thousands if not millions of website hosting companies in the United States alone. They can be divided into various classes according to individual needs. There are free website hosting plans which have sponsored advertisements on your web pages. That's how servers earn their money, they can't let you use the space out of charity! There are others who offer their services at a very affordable cost while retaining all the features that you may need. Finally, there are reputable servers who offer premium fee based web hosting plans which are normally acquired by big businesses and organizations.
There are scores of website hosting options, plans or packages that are out in the market today. There are free website hosting plans which are suited for individuals or for new businesses with a small budget for their presence in the internet. There are others who offer their services at a very affordable cost while retaining all the features that you may need. These are called paid website hosting which is great for established businesses or organizations, and provides more storage and features for the hosted website.
The next stage would be picking the appropriate hosting type. There are many types of hosting, among which are shared hosting, virtual private web server, and a dedicated server. Shared web hosting, as the name suggests, has many users who are using the same machine and share the same server resources. The concept behind shared web hosting is not entirely new and this market appears to be the strongest in the sector. It is an affordable option for beginners or the ones that do not require too many resources. A virtual private server (VPS), also called collocation basically divides one single server into multiple web servers through a concept referred to as virtualization. It is a bit more expensive than shared hosting and is best suited for clients who want power and security but can't afford a full blown dedicated server. If the first two types don't appeal to you or simply doesn't fit your needs, then a dedicated server is the likely solution. A dedicated server is owned by a single user and is accorded complete rights over it. This simply means that you would be given a complete web server dedicated to your web site. You have the right to fully utilize the CPU or RAM resources on it. This type is typically used if you plan to have a website with tons of content, images, and videos. However, the main drawback is that dedicated servers are more expensive and will cost you up to 10 times more than the average web hosts.
The next stage involves choosing the web hosting plan. There are several types of website hosting plans, depending on the demand of every type of website. Personal web hosting plans are intended for personal websites and for starters in general. The rate of data transfer is quite low which explains why personal plans come with lower bandwidth and disk space. Business plans, as the name imply, are used by companies or organizations who require a higher bandwidth and larger disk space for high trafficking. The e-commerce sites which handle huge volume of products require the maximum bandwidth and disk space.
The next step would be the actual choosing of the web hosting plan. This is by no means an easy task because there are literally thousands of website hosting plans out there. Website hosting plans come in several types, each type catering to the demands and specifications of every type of website. Personal web hosting plans are generally intended for personal websites and for starters. The rate of data transfer is low that is why personal plans come with lower bandwidth and disk space. Business plans are the perfect type of hosting if you run a small or medium sized business. The plans come in reasonable prices but it does not mean quality and package options are compromised. This is something that would be greatly appreciated by small businesses as every saved expense is very important.
About the Author:
What's all the hype behind website hosting? Simply put, getting your site published in the internet has never been as fast and affordable as today. So get one now!
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