Web hosting is one of the most under appreciated parts of the Internet. People don’t realize it, but everything you experience on the Internet—from podcasts to Netflix content—live on a server that a person or company pays to keep running so you can access it. Web hosting is an essential part of the World Wide Web, yet most people don’t know much about it. In this post we aim to break down what web hosting is so you’re able to understand it, go through the different levels of hosting options and share details about our dedicated hosting, which will help you maintain an active and secure website.
What is Web Hosting?
Hosting providers are responsible for maintaining the quality of their servers, keep them up and running, protecting them from malicious attacks and sharing your website content with your website visitors. When a user types in your website address into their browser, their computer connects to your hosting server and delivers your website content to their screen.
The Difference Between Domains and Hosting
Most web hosting companies require that you purchase a domain before hosting with them. A lot of people don’t understand the difference between hosting and domains though. We’ll use an analogy to explain it.
Think of your domain like an address for a house. Your domain directs people to access your website from their browser. Hosting, in contrast is the house the domain points to. It’s the place that stores your stuff—aka your website—and keeps up and running.
Domain names and hosting are two different services, yet they work together to make websites possible on the Internet. Without a domain name people will not be able to find your website on the World Wide Web, and without hosting you won’t be able to build a website.
What are the Different Levels of Hosting?
Web hosting comes in a lot of different shapes and sizes. Most hosting providers offer multiple service packages which will vary greatly in terms of price and what you get. Nevertheless, knowing the differences between the common types of hosting will help wade through these options and decide on a service package that works best for you.
There are 3 main types of web hosting: shared, VPS and dedicated. Going back to our house analogy, you can think of web hosting in the same way. Shared hosting is like an apartment complex that stores many homes—or websites—within it. VPS hosting, in contrast, is like a townhome that shares space with other homes as well. Lastly, dedicated hosting is like a single home on its own plot of land.
Shared Hosting
If you choose to go with shared hosting, your website will be located on the same server as a ton of other websites. The amount of websites hosted on the same server can range from hundreds to thousands depending on your hosting provider. Websites on the same server will share all the resources the server provides such as memory, computing power, disk space, etc.
Pros
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Affordable option
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Beginner-friendly
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No configuration required
- User-friendly server dashboard
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Server maintenance done by host
Cons
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Sharing space with other websites
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Limited RAM, hard drive space, CPU speed, etc.
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Traffic surges on other sites can slow down your site
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No control over server configuration
VPS Hosting
VPS hosting is still hosting where you share server space with other websites. The way the server is set up is different in this option though. With VPS hosting, a separate partition is created for you on a server. This means you get a dedicated amount of space, memory and computing power for your website.
Pros
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Dedicated server space at more affordable prices
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Other websites have less of an effect on your website performance
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Accessibility to the server
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Ability to scale
Cons
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Higher cost than shared hosting
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Must have technical and server management knowledge
Dedicated Hosting
Dedicated hosting means that you have your own server that is solely used for your own website. This means you have more flexibility and freedom than with other hosting options. You can configure your website however you want, and choose to set up the hosting environment to exactly suite your needs. In fact, renting a dedicated server gives you the same benefits as owning your server on-site, except you get the added bonus of support from your hosting provider.
Pros
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Unique configuration
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Extremely reliable
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Root server access
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High-level security
Cons
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Expensive
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Must have technical and server management knowledge
What is the Best Hosting Option for You?
Choosing a hosting option is a highly variable process. It differs from one site to the next. Nevertheless, here at Simply Styled Sites, we’ve done the legwork for you to create a hosting option that will provide you a lot of benefits without the need to manage it yourself.
Dedicated Hosting through Simply Styled Sites
Simply Styled Sites offers hosting through a dedicated server to its clients. The server used for this hosting is only shared with clients from Simply Styled Sites. This gives you the advantage of having a small amount of neighbors and decreasing the impact of their sites on your overall site performance. Dedicated hosting through Simply Styled Sites takes the best things about dedicated hosting and combines them with the affordability and ease of use from VPS and shared hosting options.
Advantages
40% Increased Performance
Know Your Neighbors Advantage
More Security
Server configuration to suite your websites needs
Better Service – talk with us rather than a large hosting company
Conclusion
Overall, web hosting is a service that you will definitely need in order to publish a website online. A good web host—like us—will give you the flexibility and freedom to share your content on the internet, provide your users an excellent user experience on your website and help you attract a lot of users to your website. With all this information, you have everything you need to make an educated decision about web hosting.
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