Web Hosting Beginner’s Guide: How Does It Work?

Basically, there are three things that you need in order to own a website. These are web hosting, domain name, and a developed website. Out of these three, web hosting is arguably the most crucial decision that you have to make. It is, after all, responsible for putting your site on the Internet.

What Is A Web Hosting?

Technically, it refers to a huge computer that you know as server. The latter is where you can store your website.

But how does web hosting works? What is the process behind it? Actually, the concept behind it is pretty straightforward. Think of hosting as something that is similar to a house where you store clothes and furniture. But instead of storing this stuff, you store computer files in a web host.

How Do I Hire a Web Hosting Company?

Hiring a web hosting company is not that difficult. Besides, there are a handful of providers out there, giving you flexibility in options. What you would rather think carefully is how you are going to hire the right provider. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some things to consider when hiring a web host.

Reading Reviews – This is definitely the very first step that you need to do. You want to read as many reviews as you can, so you can determine whether or not a provider is worth checking out. Let’s say you are interested in GoDaddy’s hosting services. Obviously, you need to read some GoDaddy user reviews, so you will have a general idea about their hosting services.

Keep in mind that reading reviews is a critical step in finding the right provider. It lets you weigh things, especially since these reviews are from users who had direct experience with the services a web host provides.

Budget – Developing and putting up a website is not an easy task to conquer. As such, you would need financial resources. The idea is to come up with a budget plan, one that will tell you just how you are willing to spend. Remember to take into account other costs as well, such as payment for the developer, domain name, etc. So when selecting a web host, make sure that its plans or offers coincide with your budget.

Uptime and Customer Support – There is a reason why these two are placed together. For your site to improve in terms of sales conversions, it must be available all the time. Imagine if your site goes down and your visitors are left puzzled. Chances are they will go to your competitors. Now, what do you do if this happens? You need to contact your hosting customer support for assistance. That is why it is essential for the provider to have 24/7 technical assistance. Make sure that the web host has this and, at the same time, offers a reliable uptime.

Shared Vs. Dedicated – If you are new to the world of web hosting, you have not probably heard about the two types of hosting servers. These are shared and dedicated. The former is where you and other website owners share a single server; hence, the name. A dedicated, on the other hand, is a server solely meant for you alone. There are different pros and cons involved. For instance, a shared server is significantly cheaper than a dedicated server; but the latter is more reliable in terms of uptime and speed. Why? That is because a shared server capability tends to rely on the number of users sharing it.

Breaking Down Shared and Dedicated Servers

This is perhaps one of the most important decisions you have to make sooner or later. And whichever you choose, you must be ready to move forward. Otherwise, you will have a hard time keeping everything up.

Shared Hosting – As explained above, your site is placed on the same server as with many other websites. And this could be hundreds or even thousands. Apparently, this type of hosting server is considered an entry-level hosting option. So if you are new to this, shared hosting might be the best way to go. This is most especially true if you are still trying to improve your traffic.

Dedicated Hosting – This one right here absolutely offers you the maximum control over the server. You are pretty much renting the server to yourself only. But since it gives you such exclusivity, expect for the price to be quite hefty. So unless you are getting thousands of traffic on a weekly or monthly basis, you should keep this server hosting at bay for the meantime.

Final Words

The aforementioned are important in your journey to finding the right web hosting company. At the end of the day, it is you who can decide which provider to go. Sure, a web host might be better in terms of prices or plans, but it does not necessarily make it the right provider. Consider your options and identify your web hosting needs, so you can make an informed decision.