Everything Business Owners Need To Know About Web Hosting
Do you know what web hosting is and why it is important for you? In this article, we’ll discuss that and check out different types of web hosting arrangements.
If you want to take your business online, you need to become familiar with web hosting. It is an underrated yet very important part of building a virtual presence.
There are 1.8 billion websites online right now.
Ever wondered where these websites are located? Of course, they are a part of the World Wide Web, but how do you get access to this piece of virtual space?
That’s what web hosting is all about.
It refers to the process of buying or renting space on the internet to host your website. All of the content — blog posts, memes, podcasts, tweets, and more — are housed on servers via web hosting.
In this post, we’ll discuss what servers are, the different types of web hosting solutions, and how you can pick the right one for your business.
Understanding Web Hosting and Servers
To keep their websites running, all companies and individuals need to pay some amount to hosting providers. They provide you with connectivity, servers, as well as all the other services required to host your websites.
For the uninitiated, servers are computers that enable web users from around the world to get connected with your website. In a nutshell, servers are necessary for your website to be accessible.
Web hosting service providers have multiple plans that cater to the needs of startups as well as large enterprises. Some of these plans are free but have limited features while others with advanced features can cost thousands of dollars.
Before you pick a web hosting solution for your business, it’s important to learn about the different types of web hosting available for your site.
What are the Different Types of Web Hosting Available?
The type of hosting provider that you choose will impact your site’s uptime, page loading speed, ease of navigation, and important parameters. So, it’s important to educate yourself before finalizing the type of web hosting you want for your business.
Here are some popular options you can choose from:
1. Shared Hosting
This type of web hosting is hosted on a shared server that is used by multiple websites together. If you opt for shared hosting, you might be sharing your server with hundreds of other websites.
Think of it like renting a table at a coworking space. You get access to modern facilities without having to shell out a big sum of money.
Because you share a CPU and a RAM for shared web hosting, this type of web hosting is the most affordable among the others. But there is a downside to sharing your server. If there is a sudden increase in traffic on other websites, your site’s speed and performance can be negatively affected.
If you are setting up a new website, shared hosting is an apt choice for you. You are not likely to have high traffic during the initial period. So, sharing your server should not be an issue. Once you start getting more traffic, you can upgrade to a different type of hosting.
2. Virtual Dedicated Server
Also called Virtual Private Server (VPS), this type of web hosting is a step from the shared hosting arrangement. In VPS, server resources are divided into virtual servers. They are distributed in such a way that underlying hardware does not get affected.
Think of it as renting an office space in a big business park. You may have neighbors around you, but you aren’t completely dependent on them. If you like, you can organize your workstation as per your preferences.
Compared to Shared Hosting, you have more access to a server’s resources within a VPS environment. If you want to develop custom applications or operate a SaaS business, this is a good option.
3. Reseller Hosting
In this type of web hosting, you can use your allotted space on the hard disk as well as the bandwidth on behalf of any third parties involved. In a nutshell, you become a “reseller” of the hosting space.
This arrangement is beneficial when you have bought extra that you don’t need. You can share some of the resources with another party to gain recurring income.
If you have multiple domains, the reseller hosting arrangement can be beneficial for you. You have the freedom to design a hosting package for your main domain and assign the other resources to another domain.
4. Cloud Hosting
In this type of web hosting arrangement, multiple servers are distributed around the world. With the help of these combined resources, your website can function smoothly.
Since multiple servers are connected, the chances of downtime are reduced. If one server is affected, another one can bear the additional load to maintain operational efficiency. Even if you have a sudden traffic surge, your site isn’t likely to be affected in a major way.
Cloud hosting enables you to scale your services in a convenient manner. Cloud hosting providers also charge users only for the resources they have consumed. In a nutshell, you pay only for what you need. You don’t have to pay a fee upfront based on an estimation of your usage.
However, this model lacks centralization. This gives you less control over where your data gets stored. It could cause privacy and data security issues for some businesses.
The best part about cloud hosting is that it gives you a lot of flexibility. Let’s say, you are expecting double the amount of traffic that you get usually on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. For such events or for any limited time period, you can request additional resources.
5. Business Hosting
Shared hosting is geared towards small business owners who are starting a new website. But what if you have an established business and require more resources? Sure, VPS is an option to consider. But managing a server is a cumbersome task, especially if you don’t have the technical know-how.
That’s the gap that business hosting is trying to fill.
The goal of this type of web hosting is to provide an alternative that is easy to use and high-performing. While you can manage it as easily as shared hosting, it gives you the power and resources of having your own server. All you need is some basic knowledge about cPanel.
What’s more, Business hosting can handle applications that are resource-intensive and won’t break down in case of high traffic.
In addition to this, there are some other types of hosting arrangements as well.
If you have a WordPress website, you can consider opting for a Shared or Managed WordPress hosting arrangement.
On the other hand, a Co-location web hosting service allows you to rent space to keep your equipment at a co-location center.
Before you make a decision about web hosting solutions, make sure you do your research and compare the pros and cons of each type.
Wrapping Up
Choosing the right type of website hosting is a very important step for entrepreneurs across various industries. To make an informed decision, make sure you have checked out the pros and cons of the different types of web hosting arrangements out there.
Take into consideration your website traffic, budget, and server requirements while picking the best type of hosting. While Shared Hosting is great for beginners, VPS and Business Hosting are great for mid and large-scale businesses. If you value flexibility, Cloud hosting might be the right choice for you.
We have only mentioned the most popular web hosting types in this post. You can find out more about the other types of hosting arrangements online.
Do you have any questions about web hosting? Please feel free to ask them in the comments section below.