Understanding Web Hosting: The Quick and Simple Guide

web hostingWeb hosting is necessary for a website to be available on the Internet and accessible to the Web browsers of your target viewers. In simple terms, Web hosting is where the directories and files of your website are hosted by a Web server that’s accessible via a Web browser and available on the Internet round the clock, all year round. In hosting a website, a Web server that is located in a data center of a Web hosting company is used to host your website files and directories. This Web server is managed and maintained by the Web hosting company’s staff of professional IT specialists with years and years of experience in Web server network management and Web development. This Web server is also always up and running with a fast and reliable Internet connection 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, all year round.

You can also set up a Web server in your home or office, provided you can implement powerful hardware and the necessary software resources into your Web server. You should also have a quick and reliable Internet connection along with a dedicated IP (Internet Protocol) address from your ISP (Internet Service Provider). You would need a set of dedicated IP addresses, in case you intend to host multiple websites developed to make you earn CPC (Cost Per Click) advertising profits, since these websites should be properly SEOd (Search Engine Optimized) to maximize your possible earnings from CPC ad clicks. Your home Web server should also be up and running and always available online all year round. Having a home Web server setup isn’t recommended for those with limited budgets, more so for those with zero to minimal experience in Web hosting and Web development. It is highly advised for beginners to get a Web hosting package from a reliable Web hosting provider. Now, here are some of the most widely used types of Web hosting plans:

1. Shared Web Hosting Packages - A shared Web hosting account is where you share the resources of a Web server’s hardware, software, bandwidth and data storage space with other customers. These shared Web hosting plans are generally cheaper than the other types of Web hosting packages and is recommended for beginners and startup companies that aren’t expecting much traffic on their websites during their first few months of operations, especially since you can request from your Web hosting provider hardware and software resource upgrades, such as bigger data storage space, higher bandwidth allocation, more powerful processor and RAM resources when you start getting more traffic and onsite viewer activity on your websites. You can even migrate your website files and directories to the next type of Web hosting account discussed below in case you need more powerful Web server resources than the upgrade options offered by your Web hosting provider.

2. Dedicated Web Hosting Plans - A dedicated Web hosting account is where the resources of a Web server is dedicated to you and your websites, which means nobody else shares these Web server resources with you. These resources include the processor and RAM resources of the Web server, the data storage space and the bandwidth allocated to the Web server. This is recommended for owners of websites that are expected to get large volumes of traffic and massive onsite viewer activity on their websites. These dedicated Web hosting accounts are also advised to those who intend to sell SAS (Software As Service) Web application subscription plans. These dedicated Web hosting packages cost more than shared Web hosting plans, though there are quite a number of differences that can accommodate a different set of needs, so it is recommended for you to weigh your needs and compare them against the benefits you can gain from a shared Web hosting account and from a dedicated Web hosting package.

Found below is a type of Web hosting plan that’s intended for websites that expect massive amounts of regular traffic and simultaneous onsite viewer activity involving heavy tasks for the Web server to accommodate and process.

3. Cloud Hosting Accounts - A cloud hosting plan is where the hardware, software, bandwidth and data storage space resources of multiple Web servers located in several data centers are provided to the customers of a cloud hosting company. This means in case of hardware failure, bandwidth issues and software problems, the websites of the cloud Web hosting provider’s customers will remain fully functional and accessible on the Internet. In a cloud Web hosting plan, you will need to subscribe to a “pay as you go” plan, which means you pay for the bandwidth resources your website consumes on a monthly basis. Bandwidth is the amount of data transferred to and from your Web server and the Web browsers or computers of your website viewers, members, subscribers and administrators.

4. VPS (Virtual Private Server) Web Hosting Plans –
A VPS Web hosting account is where you appear to have a dedicated Web server hosting the directories and files of your website, when in reality, your website files and directories are stored in hard disk drives dedicated to your account, and other customers also have hard disk drives in the same Web server that are dedicated to their VPS accounts. The Web servers used for this type of Web hosting consist of slots that can be used to expand the processor and RAM resources of the Web server, with the additional processor and RAM resources dedicated to each customer who has a VPS account attached to the Web server. These VPS accounts are also where possible hardware resource failures or software problems and bandwidth resources can be quickly resolved, since the Web server can automatically use the other hardware, software and bandwidth resources available to the Web server.

Knowing the things mentioned above about the different types of Web hosting packages that are offered by Web hosting companies will allow you to choose the best Web hosting package for your particular needs and requirements for your websites. The basic overview of what a Web hosting account is, how it works and why it’s important for your website as mentioned above can also help you fully understand Web hosting before you subscribe to the Web hosting plan you want.

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