After creating or ordering a web application, the next thing is hosting a website so that it is accessible. You now want people to see your great site. This is the best feeling ever, right? Yes, of course, it is but, the feeling can quickly fade away if you don’t undertake the right process to host the site.
Hosting a website is the most vital step of the web development process. This is because it entails a lot including security, SSL certificates, domain, sub-domains, URL, etc. All these need to be understood to undertake the hosting process. After everything is done through the right process you are sure the site will not encounter problems any time soon.
Hosting is something you can do with your own sets of hardware (servers) and software. But this requires a lot of configurations and may end up taking time. This is not what we want because the site needs to live sooner. Hence, we get hosting service providers that offer hosting platforms and storage for your website files. Now, with this in mind let’s look at what you need to know about hosting a website.
The Ways of Hosting a website
There are multiple ways to host your site. These are for use by small websites to the large web applications that occupy huge databases. The type of hosting depends on a lot of factors like resources, expertise, website usage, budget, etc. All this when evaluated helps to determine the best type of hosting to go with.
It’s good to know these ways to host your site so that you choose the best one for your site. Here is the common way to do this:
1 Shared Web Hosting Services
This is where a website is on one server with many other websites. As many as the server can manage to host. All these website domains share the same features and resources from the server. Thus, the website functions almost in the same ways in matters of speed and loading time. This is a good option for beginners. If it is the first site you are hosting this is a good idea. Moreover, for a low budget, you will get some basic features for a start.
2 Managed Hosting Service
In this case, a user gets to have a web server for their website. But they are not allowed full control. This includes limitations to accessing the administrator configuration page and the settings. Nevertheless, the other features are easily accessible and the users have more control over their website hosting. In basic terms managed hosting services is like leasing a website server and not owning the server.
3 Virtual Dedicated Server
This is when the server resources are broken down into multiple virtual servers. This way of hosting is also known as a virtual private server (VPS). The allocation of the resources to the virtual server is done without considering the hardware. A server will have many VPS. This is good to have more freedom and control of the files. A user can decide to undertake the tasks or let the service provider undertake the admin tasks.
4. Dedicated Hosting Service
This is where a single server is dedicated to a specific customer. The single customer has full control of the machine. They can customize and configure different settings. The management of the performance metrics and the security is the role of the specific business user. This is a good one to host your site after getting the WordPress services and the WooCommerce development hosting needs. In this case, the user has access to administrator privileges.
5 Cloud Hosting
This is the newest technology in the field of web hosting. It is from cloud computing technology. The tech allows website and business owners to access scalable, reliable, and powerful servers. This is under utility billing commonly known as pay as you go. Cloud web hosting is a good option to avoid physical destruction. Thus, guaranteeing full-time web services to your customers and clients. When one server goes down the site will remain online through the other alternative servers available. Moreover, it is affordable because you only pay for the resource you use. A good example is Amazon Web Services.
6 Home Server
This is the most basic way for hosting a website. This is where a computer acting as a server is placed in a residential home. Then the owner can use it to host several sites. It is mostly useful for testing websites but not for commercial purposes. Huge traffic can slow down the host thus, not recommended for commercial purposes.
Examples of hosting Service Provides for Website Hosting
Web development is a booming industry with many frameworks and technologies. This shows the increase in hosting services. There are many platforms to create websites like WooCommerce, Wix, WordPress, and many more. This shows the number of websites is increasing. Thus, there needs to be an equal rise of service providers for hosting packages.
Luckily, there has also been an increase in service providers in the market. This gives developers and web development teams a variety of options. Moreover, it makes the services cheaper and allows the customer to choose their best.
Some of the common hosting service providers you can consider are:
- Bluehost Web Hosting
- HostGator Hosting Provider
- Hostinger web host
- Dreamhost Web Hosting
- GreenGeeks Website Hosting Services.
- SiteGround – Best for WordPress websites
Things You Should Know About Hosting a website
Now that you are a website, blog, or online shop owner there are things you should know about hosting a website. This will help you in the subsequent days, months, and years. This will keep you out of trouble and give you the best services. Thus, ensuring convenient website services to your site visitors and customers.
The hosting process as we have seen starts from the completion of the website development phase. Subsequently, this goes on till when the website will stop being live. Therefore, many things are involved. In this section, we will highlight the vital ones that you need to know.
Domains and Ip addresses
A domain is a unique name given to your website. This is used for the website URL and it is like the name of your business. But this depends on the availability of the domain name. You need to choose a domain name that is easy for people to remember and can easily associate with the business.
Note that you need to update your domain subscription based on the terms with your domain name provider. This is to avoid losing it.
The IP address is simply the location of your business website on the server. This address remains there until you move your website from the server. For example, WordPress website Migration will change the website’s IP address.
Email Addresses with the Domain
You can easily obtain Email addresses using your domain name. This is not only necessary but also professional. It ensures when you send emails they are not taken for a scam. Furthermore, to ensure the emails don’t end up in the spam folder. Instead of the common @gmail.com, you can have your email ending with @yournicedomain.com. This part of the email is known as the host. Depending on your hosting service provider you have the option to create several emails.
Website Backup
In cloud web hosting you need to backup your website. This is vital to avoid any data loss. Moreover, it assures data recovery in case your site encounters issues. The web host has to provide an option for you to back up the site. At times this comes at an extra cost.
Data Storage
This is the amount of space available on your website. You need to know that data storage has limits. You will rarely find service providers offering unlimited storage. Thus, you need to economize on the space by avoiding uploading large files.
Pricing and Services
There are different pricing for hosting that come with different services. The more you spend, the higher the services. Knowing the service you want is vital to help you choose the pricing plan you will choose. Knowing this is important to ensure satisfaction.
Bandwidth
The bandwidth is the amount of data a site can transfer. This term confuses many people, most think it is data storage. This causes them to end up transferring more data than the indicated limits. This ends up incurring additional costs.
Bonus Tips
SSL Certificates – It is short for Secure Sockets Layer. This is an important concept in cloud web hosting. The certificates are useful to avoid data interception of important information like credit cards and personal data.
Avoid Hosting your Site of Free Platforms – Free platforms can cause your brand to be affected. In the elements of a great business website security, user experience and web designs are important. This is not a priority for free hosting sites.
Conclusion
Hosting a website is an important step that will ensure people can access your website. The better the hosting provider the more the user experience is high. To achieve business objectives, you need to know some fundamentals of website hosting. The above is the thing you should know. Reach out to us for the website services that you are looking for.
