Just thought of creating an online business to start making money but are confused as to how to make it available to the public? Then look no more! This article is a complete guide for newbies to web hosting and will tell you what it is, what it does and what its types are. So, let’s start!
What is Web hosting?
Web hosting, as the name suggests, is a service that allows an individual or a corporation to host their website or make it available to the consumers on the World Wide Web (or simply, the internet). Web hosting services are generally provided by web host companies, who provide you a space in their vast servers and make your website functional on the web. Typically, you needed your own server to open your website, but now with the help of host companies, you can it with a variety of options, which brings us to our next topic.
Types of Web hosting:
Many people worldwide are confused with the vast range of servers and hosting types present, and you will be too once you start making your website. So, here are all the types of hosting that are publicly available to consumers to clear things up a bit:
SHARED WEB HOSTING:
As the name tells you, it means your website is hosted on a public server with many other websites. It is very cheap to set up, with monthly costs less than $20. However, the biggest disadvantage is that you are at the mercy of other websites hosted alongside yours. That means that if there is a popular website in the server, yours is highly unlikely to get noticed. So, it is good to get your first website up and running but is not recommended for long-term business.
RESELLER WEB HOSTING:
Reseller Web hosting are simply shared web hosting services with additional perks, like free website templates, technical support by the providers, etc. But the greatest advantage is the ability to create a private name server, which boosts the chances of getting more customers because of the uniqueness of different domain name servers. It is priced at $15-$50 and depends on the limits and features.
CLOUD BASED WEB HOSTING:
It is the best type of server for newcomers as it combines hundreds of servers to create one giant server, and more can be added if required. This means that if your website generates a large amount of traffic than the limit, the server will control it by adding more servers as opposed to shutting your website down. It uses a pay-for-what-you-use structure, meaning you’ll pay according to how much space of the server you use.
VIRTUAL PRIVATE SERVER (VPS):
From here onward starts the expensive but better servers usually made for companies and large-scale corporations. A VPS is a single large server that acts like multiple servers and straddles between the lines of shared and dedicated servers. So, in simple words, it avoids the costs of a dedicated server while giving you full access to a place without any other websites. Most VPS packages vary from $50-$200, with pricing dependant on the CPU and RAM you require.
DEDICATED WEB SERVER:
A dedicated server is a type of server you rent from hosting companies for you own start-up Corporation. The company manages the additional costs, but gives you full control over the server, meaning it’s all yours. It costs from $100 to up, excluding the cost of a system admin to take care of the technical details.
COCOLATION WEB HOSTING:
When you use colocated hosting, you rent a space in a data centre. You handle the cost of the servers, and the centre provides the power, cooling, security and internet uplink. The disadvantage is that you are responsible for the software, hardware failures, data storage, etc, so it is not recommended because of the large amount of money and expertise required.
SELF SERVICE WEB HOSTING:
This is only for large companies because you have to do everything yourself! You take care of the cooling, software, hardware, power (including the backup), server bandwidth and data integrity, system admin, and lots of other things. So, go read the first line again to understand who this is for!
Kidal Delonix is a contributor to Mr. Hoffman's blog. The views and opinions are entirely his/her own and may not reflect Mr Hoffman's views.
