| What is a web host? What is web hosting?
Do I need a web host? What is web hosting all about? Web hosting
jargon can be very confusing to those looking for their first
web host. Here at Host Search, our mission is to de-mystify
all aspects of web hosting so you can choose for yourself
the best web host to meet your needs. We have 6 lessons here
for you to start learning all about web hosts and web hosting.
Read on…
Lesson One: What is Web Hosting?
Web hosting is the essentially the placement
of your website onto the Internet through a server. Once your
site is on a server, anyone with Internet access can look at
your website - from anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day. In
order to have your site hosted on the web, you need to have
the following three things:
- A website - a page or set of pages that is located under
the same domain name. HostSearch.com is a website (but you
knew that already!) A web page is a computer document written
in a publishing language called HTML. When an Internet user
types in your web address, your web server sends the content
of your web page to that user.
- A domain name - a unique text-based address used to locate
a specific set of web pages. A domain name is made up of
words and/or numbers plus a TLD (top level domain). The
TLD for most businesses is ".com", such as www.hostsearch.com;
non-profit organizations use ".org"; universities and educational
sites use ".edu"; and sites involved with the U.S. government
use ".gov". More TLDs are on the way, such as .biz, .pro,
.name, .info, etc.
- An account with a web hosting company, or a server of
your own to host your website
A server is a computer that stores information that can be accessed
through the network. Servers can also be used to store website
information that can be accessed by any computer with a connection
to the Internet - and a browser such as Internet Explorer or
Netscape Navigator, the two most popular web browsers.
Web hosting is, in many ways, similar to renting property. There
are plenty of companies that will rent you space on their web
servers. The wide range of services start from free hosting
on up to buying a server for your own personal use. It's possible
to spend thousands of dollars a year on web hosting alone, though
the average person or small business typically pays $10 - $40
a month, depending on how many features they need.
Lesson Two: Do
I Need a Web Host?
If you are planning to establish an internet
presence, whether it be in the form of a personal homepage
or a full-service e-commerce catalogue, and do not own your
own personal server, you will definitely need a web host.
Finding a good web host, however, can be a rather difficult
endeavor. That is where a site like HostSearch can help you,
as our entire site is dedicated to helping you find the best
hosting solution for your particular needs.
Choosing a host for your website should
not be taken lightly. Once committed, it becomes a real headache
to move elsewhere - not to mention the damage that can be
done to your business if you make the wrong choice. This makes
it very important to "get it right the first time." Find out
as much as you can about your prospective host before making
any decisions, and have a clear idea of the scope of your
site, and the functions you wish to have prior to searching
for your host. Doing the proper planning will help you a great
deal in your selection of a host, and will save you the headache
of trying to change hosts later.
Lesson Three: What type of web hosting
package is suitable for me - free, shared, or dedicated?
Free is for fun. If you want to experiment
with a site or put up a small, personal site for the fun of
it, a free package will suffice.
Go "shared" if you are serious about doing
some business or have a professional website that is much
better off "standing on its own." Or if you simply prefer
your own domain name and space.
Dedicated is for large, high-traffic sites,
or for those with special needs such as e-commerce or security.
They are also good for those folks for whom money is no object.
Lesson Four: What Features Should I Look
For in a Web Host?
The more you know about what you need, the
easier it will be to use HostSearch to find the right web host
for you. For starters, you should determine the following:
- Do you want a virtual or dedicated
server?
Depending on your requirements, you may be better off investing
with a dedicated server, as opposed to a virtual host. Dedicated
servers are typically used for sites that need to handle
a high level of traffic, need a higher degree of security,
or sites that run their own customised software and applications
rather than the standard ones supplied by the host. As a
general rule, dedicated servers are ideal for larger sites,
so if you are planning a small site virtual hosting should
more than suffice.
For more information on dedicated servers, check out our
article: To Share or Not to Share? On Dedicated Servers.
- Are you a good match?
Is your host's server, software and support services compatible
with the skills and software that you (or your design team)
are using? If, for instance, you are working in a Unix environment,
then it makes little sense to choose an NT host.
With all hosting plans, there will be some features that
you need and some offered that you don't need. Be sure to
focus on the essentials that are required to launch your
website. You may want all the nice extras but will you use
them? It's a good idea to choose a host that will allow
you to expand and upgrade your plan as and when your website
grows. If you want to start selling online, for example,
an additional e-commerce option for an extra fee will be
easier and quicker to implement than looking for and transferring
to a new host.
- Are You Flexible and Can I Upgrade?
You may not need a database solution now, perhaps, but you
may need one in the future. Similarly, a shared hosting
arrangement may be fine for you now, but what if your traffic
levels explode, and you need your own server in a years'
time? It is much easier to remain with one host than to
change. So, when choosing a host, keep in mind your possible
future needs, and whether the host will be able to accommodate
them.
Lesson Five: How Much Space and Bandwidth
Will I Need?
For a small site with
not so much traffic, not so much. Your needs in this case can
be met with 10 to 100 MB of disk space and 1 to 10 GB of data
transfer per month. (Be aware that movie and sound files will
eat up a lot of disk space and bandwidth.) If your web site
is text-based, you needn't worry about this technical stuff
- text takes almost no space at all - not even really
big font sizes!
If you're planning to sell something online, look for a provider
who can provide you with a commercial web solution such as Shopping
Cart software or a secure online payment system. Choosing a
large web space with a high bandwidth allowance is a good idea
in this case. In this category, 50 MB of disk space or more
is advisable. Bandwidth allowance really depends on how many
visitors you're expecting and how well you promote your web
site. For most sites, 5 to 30 GB should suffice.
Lesson Six: Choosing
the Best Option
Setting up your own web server is not the
best approach for an individual or a small business. You can
rent space for your web site from a web hosting provider at
a far lower cost. However, choosing just the right provider
for your specific needs is not an easy job amidst all the
hype on the Web today.
We have provided the information in this lesson to serve as
a guideline to help you find the right home for your web site.
First of all...
- Ask yourself, "What do I need web
space for?"
| A. |
I just want some
web space for my personal web pages. |
| |
If your answer falls
into this category, you probably need just a small
amount of web space and little bandwidth: 2 to 10
MB should be plenty for your needs; and a personal,
unique domain name may not even be necessary. In
fact, you can get web space FREE. A popular provider
of free space is Geocities (www.geocities.com).
However, because it's free, you may find out later
that there are many limitations - it all depends
how far you want to go... |
| B. |
I want to develop
my web design skills. Maybe I will want to go beyond
a personal homepage. |
| |
OK! Now that you think
you want to go beyond the basics, you may find that
a unique, personal domain name is necessary. It
identifies you (or your business) and says what
your site is all about, and also that you take doing
business on the Web seriously!
You may also want to run a CGI (Custom Gateway Interface)
script for a Visitor Counter or a Discussion Board.
Your needs in this case can be met with 10 to 100
MB of disk space and 1 to 10 GB of data transfer
per month. (Please note that movie and sound files
will eat up a lot of disk space and bandwidth.)
If your web site is text-based, you shouldn't worry
about this stuff - text takes almost no space at
all! Select a provider that supports CGI and other
advanced features that you think you might use in
the future. Better safe than sorry! And in this
category, we're not talking big money! |
| C. |
I'm developing
a commercial web site for a small business. |
| |
If you're developing
a web site for a small business or organization,
you should carefully evaluate the possibility of
further expansion in the future. It will be a bit
of a hassle if you discover later that you need
a database for your web site, but your provider
doesn't offer it.
If you're planning to sell a product (or products)
online, look for a provider who can provide you
with a commercial web solution such as Shopping
Cart software or a secure online payment system.
Choosing a large web space with a high bandwidth
allowance is a good idea in this case.
In this category, 50 MB of disk space or more is
advisable. Bandwidth allowance really depends on
how many visitors you're expecting and how well
you promote your web site. For most sites, 5 to
30 GB should suffice. |
| D. |
I want web space
for my corporate web site. |
| |
If your answer falls
into this category, you should be very careful when
selecting a provider. Changing providers later will
cost both time and money. The platform that your
provider uses is very important: Unix, Windows
NT, and Mac run different applications.
Try listing the features that you want now and what
you foresee needing in the future. Disk space and
traffic allowance depend on what you will have on
your web site, and how many visitors will surf to
it. In fact, you may need a dedicated server so
that you can customize it to do whatever you want.
Many companies listed here also offer a dedicated
server. You should look for 500 MB of space
or more, a transfer allowance over 10 GB, and full
advanced features |
- Conduct a good survey...
| A. |
Ask the potential
provider about its customer support policies. |
| |
After opening an account
with a web hosting provider, you will find that
customer support is very important - often critical.
To cover yourself from the start, take some time
to look around at several providers' web sites to
see what their support policies are. Email them
with a few sample questions to check the speed and
quality of their responses. Nothing guarantees that
they will respond at the same speed and manner if
you do become a customer, but this approach is quite
accurate and telling about 80% of the time.
Most web hosting providers offer email support during
business hours. Some of them provide telephone support.
Some providers say that they provide 24 hour-support,
7 days a week. You should be cautious about such
claims, because they may have someone to monitor
the servers, but no one on hand to actually provide
you with genuine customer support.
Look at a number of providers' web sites to see
how they handle support. Many providers provide
lists of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and support
documents on their web sites. |
| B. |
Survey the reliability
of a service. |
| |
Selecting a provider
with many years of experience is a good decision.
Look at the provider's web page for a list of its
customers and check out some of their pages.
The simplest and most basic way to do a survey is
by asking your friends who currently use a web hosting
service or services who they recommend. You may
also find that our Reviews Section is very helpful
since it contains reviews from real customers of
web hosting companies.
Nowadays, the web hosting market is full of resellers.
Even well-known providers can be resellers of a
large web hosting provider or wholesaler services.
Sometimes, they are resellers of resellers. Choosing
a reseller provider is not always a bad idea. The
reseller may provide you with faster technical support
for basic questions. They usually offer other services
too, such as web design or web maintenance.
To investigate the reliability of providers, we
recommend you check the contents of their web sites.
Experienced providers should have a large web site
containing several pages of services and support
documents, plus their phone and fax numbers, as
well as their physical address. And never forget,
caveat emptor - let the buyer beware! |
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