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Thinking of launching a website but you don’t know where to begin? You’re not alone! Getting to grips with the ins and outs of launching your first website can be confusing for most people.
For those that are new to the whole process, one of the most complicated parts is web hosting. With so many hosting packages to choose from, it can be very confusing. Should you go with shared hosting or a VPS? What is a dedicated server?
In this guide to web hosting, well go through the basics of web hosting to help you understand what you need yo get your website online.
What is web hosting?
We usually take it for granted that websites are just there, waiting for us to visit ad interact with. Most of the time we may not even think about all the processes involved in making a website appear in your browser.
But of course, all the files that make up a website must exist somewhere, and that somewhere is a web server.
Think of a web server as a computer that is always on and always connected to the internet.
We offer a range of hosting packages to suit the needs and budgets of everyone from individuals looking to build a basic website to larger corporations expecting thousands of website visitors a day.
Types of Hosting
If you have already had a look at the available web hosting packages out there and couldn’t workout which type of hosting you need, then this is the section of the guide for you. Equally, if you’re just starting our in the hunt for a web hosting package then this section will help you understand the various options available.
Shared web hosting
Sometimes just referred to as web hosting or cloud web hosting these days, gives you access to space on a server, the resources of which are shared among several users. Costs are much lower, but don’t expect the same level of performance as you would get with the more expensive options.
We provide you with an option to host several websites through the same web hosting package, along with unlimited bandwidth which means you wont get charged extra if there is a sudden influx of visitors on your website.
Virtual Private Servers (VPS)
A VPS is a step up from shared web hosting. The server is divided into a few virtual machines, and each customer gets allocated one of these machines. The costs are still lower than dedicated servers and because each VPS has guaranteed resources, its an option with more power than shared hosting.
Dedicated Servers
The most expensive and most powerful option available. As the name suggests you get a whole server allocated all to yourself. This option suits the high traffic websites like e-commerce websites, or resource intensive websites or projects.
The right web hosting for me
Hopefully you should now have a better understanding of the kind of web hosting package you need for your project, but there are still a few things to consider.
Storage space and bandwidth
How big will your website be and how many people will visit it? Unlike some of our competitors . we provide Unlimited SSD storage space and unlimited bandwidth to all our shared web hosting customers.
Resource usage
Will your website be just a few pages or will you need an e-commerce website? You wouldn’t want to try and run a huge e-commerce website on shared web hosting. It simply wont work but equally you don’t want to run a small simple website on a dedicated server. Remember, you can always start small and upgrade you hosting package in the future if you need. We offergreat support and a Global CDN to all our clients to help speed up your website, at no extra cost. Thats something most web hosting providers do not provide free or at all.
Technical support
Does your web hosting provider offer 24/7 support? If not, you may face a problem putting things right if something goes wrong when you need them the most. If there is no sign of any technical support, you should look elsewhere.
Uptime guarantee
Top notch web hosts should offer an uptime guarantee of either 99.5% or 99.95. (Of course this guarantee doesn’t include downtime caused by problems outside the web hosts control)
Extras
Lots of hosting companies offer extras, such as free domain name for a year, to encourage you to sign up. Take a look at these to see if theres anything you would find useful.