What Actually is Web Hosting

If you have made a decision to build your very own personal website, but are not very sure about what a web site is and are unfamiliar with the expression "web hosting", this article is dedicated to explaining these concepts in simple terms.

What exactly is a web site?

A web site is a combination of webpages assembled systematically. It has a unique address, also called a URL (Uniform Resource Locator). A web site may consist of only one web page and sometimes may even be comprised of as many as a thousand webpages.

What is a web hosting server?

A hosting server permits you to upload your website onto it. In some cases, there might be even thousands of web sites on one single hosting server. The web hosting server basically is a computer with special hardware, which is situated in a datacenter with special cooling systems, whose task is to ensure the seamless performance of the web hosting server and all the web sites located on it.

In short, a web hosting server will be truly a launching pad when the time arrives for you to launch your web site. It could be any type of web site - a business site containing a large number of web pages, or a website, which includes only several webpages and which you have developed just for your comrades and relatives.

You've made a decision about what your website will be, now what?

Once you have made a decision about what kind of site you desire to set up, the next move is to discover what type of web hosting service you have to pick for your online adventure. Basically, there are two types of web hosting services - charge-free hosting services and professional paid website hosting services. The free web hosting solution is generally utilized by customers that do not possess a business site.

Pluses and minuses of the free hosting solution

You will not obtain plenty of options with a cost-free hosting plan. Features such as bandwidth, RAM memory and web space are restricted and inadequate for an elaborate ecommerce web site or a corporate website, or even for a web site with lots of graphics. Moreover, there are lots of ads placed on your site by the hosting plans provider. These ads occupy plenty of space on your website and are rather embarrassing.

Shared hosting

The paid shared hosting services tend to be more reliable and offer plenty of sophisticated features apart from the high-quality web hosting server that will accommodate your web site and its files. Nevertheless, it is important to find out which features your website needs prior to buying your web hosting package. You should not rush and end up investing in something that your web site does not need.

Select your web hosting solutions provider

It is easy to find a web hosting vendor. You have to simply carry out an online survey in order to find a web hosting vendor that meets your web site's demands. Before you take your actual decision, take a peek at the specifications of the web hosting packages furnished by the hosting providers that have caught your attention. We, for instance, are among the top-notch hosting service providers on the marketplace these days. The large range of services and our prices are what makes us an enticing option. Nevertheless, you must ascertain what type of hosting service you need and if the price suits your budget. Also, you must always remember to double-check the web hosting service provider's Terms of Use before subscribing to make certain that your web site is not violating them.

Signing up for a hosting account

Once you have determined what features are ideal for your site, the next step is to sign up for an account with the web hosting accounts provider of your choosing. You will get all the needed tools for handling your files and databases. With us, for example, you will acquire a hosting Control Panel, which is comprised of domain, web site, database and e-mailbox management sections. You log in the Control Panel using your unique user name and password, which grants you secure access to the part of the web hosting server where your website will be located.

Uploading your website

You can either upload your files via an FTP software program or, as is with the majority of hosting providers, through a web-based tool that is integrated within the Control Panel. With us, the File Manager is rather easy to use and offers features similar to those found in Windows Explorer, which makes file management extremely easy. We offer also a website builder and a PHP script installer, which you can utilize to develop your site if you possess no programming capabilities and are taking your very first steps in web design. The web-based website builder, dubbed SiteStudio, will also save you the time and effort of creating a web site on your personal computer and then uploading it through an FTP client application or the File Manager interface.