What is Web Hosting?

If you have made a decision to create your very own web site, but are not quite sure about what a web site is and are not aware of the term "web hosting", this article is dedicated to clarifying these notions in plain English.

What exactly is a web site?

A web site is an amalgamation of webpages brought together in a systematic fashion. It has a unique web address, also referred to as a URL (Uniform Resource Locator). A site may consist of just one single web page and sometimes may even have as many as 1000 webpages.

What is a hosting server?

A web hosting server enables you to upload your site onto it. In some instances, there might be even 1000's of websites on one single hosting server. The hosting server basically is a computer with special hardware, which is housed in a data center facility with special cooling systems, whose mission is to ensure the seamless operation of the server and all the web sites located on it.

To summarize, a web hosting server will be indeed a launching pad when the time arrives for you to launch your website. It could be any type of web site - a business site containing a huge number of webpages, or a site, which contains only a few pages and which you have created simply for your acquaintances and family members.

You've decided what your website will be, now what?

Once you have reached a decision about what kind of site you desire to make, the next step is to discover what sort of web hosting service you have to choose for your online project. Essentially, there are two kinds of web hosting services - free-of-cost website hosting services and paid web hosting services. The free website hosting solution is typically used by individuals that do not own a business-related site.

Strengths and weaknesses of the free-of-cost website hosting solution

You will not get many features with a free-of-charge website hosting package. Features such as traffic, RAM memory and web server disk space are restricted and insufficient for a complex e-commerce web site or a business web site, or even for a web site with a lot of graphics. Furthermore, there are a lot of web banners embedded on your web site by the web hosting vendor. These adverts occupy plenty of space on your website and are rather embarrassing.

Shared website hosting

The paid shared website hosting services tend to be more dependable and offer a lot of advanced features apart from the high-powered server that will accommodate your website and its content. Nevertheless, it is important to know which features your website needs before purchasing your web hosting package. You should not rush and wind up spending cash on something that your web site does not demand.

Pick your hosting services provider

It is not difficult to find a web hosting distributor. You need to simply carry out an online survey in order to find a web hosting supplier that fulfills your web site's demands. Before you take your actual decision, have a glance at the specifications of the hosting packages supplied by the web hosting vendors that have grasped your attention. We, for example, are among the premier web hosting distributors on the marketplace today. The immense selection of hosting services and our prices are what makes us an enthralling option. Even so, you must ascertain what sort of hosting service you require and if the price fits your budget. Moreover, you must always remember to take a look at the hosting supplier's ToS before subscribing to ensure that your website is not violating them.

Signing up for a web hosting account

Once you have found out what features are best for your web site, the next move is to open an account with the web hosting company of your choosing. You will acquire all the essential tools for administering your web site files and databases. With us, for example, you will get a web hosting Control Panel, which is comprised of domain, website, database and e-mailbox account administration areas. You log into the hosting Control Panel using your unique username and password, which gives you safe access to the part of the hosting server where your website will be located.

Uploading your website

You can either upload your website through an FTP client application or, as is with the majority of web hosting vendors, via a web-based tool that is included within the Control Panel. With us, the File Manager is rather user-friendly and offers features similar to those observed in Windows Explorer, which renders file manipulation very easy. We offer also a site building tool and a PHP script installation tool, which you can utilize to develop your site if you have no programming expertise and are taking your first steps in web design. The online website builder, whose name is SiteStudio, will also spare you the time and effort of creating a web site on your personal computer and then uploading it via an FTP program or the File Manager tool.