Shared Web Hosting Unveiled

If you have developed a site and you want other people to see it, you must copy your web site to a public web server.

Where to host your web site?

Although you can use your own PC as a web server, it is a more conventional practice to let a hosting provider host your site. The main reason for that is the greater reliability and the uninterrupted accessibility of your web site, since web hosting providers have top-notch hardware and apportion a far greater monthly bandwidth usage allowance, which ensures the speedier access to your web site from all around the globe.

Shared web hosting solutions

Choose a shared web hosting service, which allows you to register domains and to set up email mailboxes. Lots of web shared web hosting vendors, like us at Lion Heart Consulting, offer a cost-free domain registration as a bonus if you sign up for a web hosting account.

Hosting your website yourself

Hosting your site on your own server is no doubt an option, but only in case you have time and the necessary competence. There are some issues that you need to take into consideration, including the hardware and software costs. To run a "real", professional-looking web site, you will have to invest cash in some powerful server hardware, because you cannot rely on a low-priced PC to carry out the job. You will also need a permanent high-speed Internet connection without downtimes, which usually comes at a rather steep price. If you are making use of licensed software for your site, you will need to spend cash on the license as well. You may also have to cope with bugs and Trojan horses. You will need to maintain your server running all the time in an environment where "everything could happen". If you do not have the required technical know-how, you will have to hire a sysadmin to tackle these things on your behalf, which will render the price of hosting your web site on your own even higher than that of a dedicated web hosting server offered by a web hosting distributor.

A dedicated web hosting server offered by a hosting firm

Leasing a dedicated hosting web server from a hosting vendor is a good choice if you want to develop a heavy resource-consuming site or a business page that has very rigorous safety requirements. The main upsides of utilizing a dedicated server web hosting solution are the breakneck-speed Internet connection, the uninterruptible power supply and the very powerful hardware. Some web hosting firms, again like us at Lion Heart Consulting, provide VPS web hosting and semi-dedicated hosting services, which are based on very powerful web servers that can be divided among several clients. You can also expect them to offer efficient server load balancing services and the necessary backup servers.

Safety and reliability

Web hosting service providers are specialized in furnishing web hosting services and since this is what they do to make a living, you can anticipate them to offer constant Internet connection, the newest software updates and the best malware protection, as well as system administrators available 24x7x365 to aid you in case of an emergency.

Choose your web hosting supplier

What you need to take into consideration when selecting your web hosting services provider is the reliability of the offered hosting services. Make certain that the hosting provider of your choosing offers a 24/7 client support service. Do not place yourself in a position where you cannot solve urgent issues instantaneously because you have to wait till the next working day. Furthermore, if you choose a shared website hosting package, which includes a 24/7 client support service, this implies that there constantly will be system administrators available to resolve any critical predicaments as soon as they show up, which is a very good thing.

Routine backups

Make certain that your hosting services provider offers everyday data backups with the offered services, otherwise you may lose some valuable content in the event of a hardware failure or because you have deleted something by mistake. The availability of daily backups is usually pointed out in the hosting vendor's Terms of Service.

Traffic and web hosting server disk storage space

When selecting your web hosting provider, give special attention to the traffic quota limitations. Make certain that you don't have to overpay for unforeseen high traffic volumes if your web site becomes more frequently visited. There are plenty of web hosting vendors that offer unmetered traffic nowadays, so the best step to take is to make certain that you have made the correct decision prior to opening an account.

Content limitations

Pay special attention to the hosting service provider's content limitations. If you intend to post pictures or to broadcast video or audio, make certain that you can accomplish that. In addition, most hosting providers place restrictions when it comes to using their services for file hosting purposes, so if you upload too much content that is not connected or directly linked to your website, your website hosting account could get removed. Therefore, double-checking the service provider's Terms of Service, regardless of how time-absorbing and dull this might be, is very essential.

E-mail capabilities

The majority of web hosting providers nowadays also provide e-mail services with all their website hosting packages. It is a good idea to check if the web hosting plans provider of your choosing offers such options too, so as to be sure that you'll obtain all the features that you need in return for your money.