An explanation of web page hosting
As its name signifies, web hosting is a service, which entails hosting web content. There are different varieties and kinds of web hosting, depending on the aims and on the functions. Even so, they all involve hosting files, which, once hosted, are made accessible throughout the Web. A host is actually a server that is linked to the Web and has its very own Internet Protocol address, which enables people to gain access to it through the Internet. The hosting server's configuration and its resources are subject to the type of web hosting service it will be utilized for.
What are the different types of web hosting?
Depending on the usage, the professional web hosting service may be:
File Storage Web Hosting - this type of hosting permits the users to host their files on a particular web server. With the standard file storage hosting service, the files that are hosted may only be accessed by the individual that's availing of the service. This hosting service typically includes backups of personal computers , docs, personal files and even other servers. This solution may also impose certain limitations in terms of the disk storage and the root access. There may also be web traffic restrictions, but that depends on the given host.
Warez Hosting - the so-called warez hosting solution is quite similar to the previous web hosting service type. Yet, in contrast with the file storage web hosting service, the warez web hosting solution is utilized for circulating copyrighted content without being given the OK to do so by the copyright owner. To put it briefly - it pertains to the forbidden dissemination of files and materials. There are lots of ways for this to be achieved, but the 2 chief ways are - via simple HTTP downloading and through P2P connections. The first method involves either a given website, or, most typically, just a directory on a hosting server that's been made available for everybody to access it and thereby download licensed files free of cost. The second way entails a P2P connection, utilizing the so-called Torrent web servers, through which users share files between each other. There are very few website hosting providers that allow that form of hosting on their web hosting servers, chiefly owing to all the legal problems that it entails. Commonly such websites are hosted on personal dedicated servers that are registered by 3rd party companies either in the Middle East or in Asia.
E-mail Web Hosting - this solution is applicable with both shared web page hosting and dedicated web servers, depending on the client's desire. If you wish to run your own private SMTP mail server, then you will require either a VPS web hosting server or a dedicated hosting server that offers the level of access required to accomplish such an assignment. For regular e-mail web hosting purposes, though, you can utilize a conventional shared site hosting account, to which you can point the MX records of your domain. This is not a service that's widely used, since the web site hosting and the mail hosting services are being served by 2 different servers, often belonging to different companies.
Website Hosting - the most widespread and broadly utilized hosting service as of now. It's utilized for hosting site files, whose sort depends on the OS the server is utilizing - Linux or Windows. Different kinds of files require different server Operating Systems, otherwise they won't be displayed accurately on the World Wide Web. This type of web hosting may contain data storage and bandwidth limitations, root access and central processing unit usage restrictions.
Depending on the goals and on the usage, the user should select the kind of server that he needs for his project, and, of course, the web site hosting provider that's going to provide it. There are different types of web hosting servers, depending on the specs and the web space hosting services that they offer. These are:
Shared Hosting Server - a shared web site hosting server includes a smaller quantity of resources, which, of course, is reflected on the price of the service. It can be utilized for hosting small scale and medium sized web sites, which do not demand vast quotas of server storage space and bandwidth.
Semi-Dedicated Servers - they are based on the very same principle as the shared web servers. Nevertheless, there are much fewer customers sharing the same hosting server. That is why, each of them will get a larger quota of the hosting server's resources like RAM, disk space, bandwidth and CPU. Excellent for hosting big web sites that do not need full server root access.
VPS hosting - the virtual private web hosting servers are excellent for middle size web pages, which do need root-level access to the web server's configuration files. Generally, there are a few private virtual web hosting server accounts accommodated on the same physical machine. However, each of them is isolated from the rest and has its own OS.
Dedicated Servers - a completely dedicated web hosting server set up and accessed by you and only you. It guarantees a huge quantity of system resources. It also provides complete server root access, which makes it an ideal platform for any sort of online portal that necessitates a webspace hosting solution.
The sole question that's left is:
Which website hosting firm should I choose?
As mentioned above, there aren't many hosts offering warez web hosting services due to legal entanglements. Such hosting providers are being shut down virtually every month. That is why, if you want to run such a service, you should do it on your own PC. The shared webspace hosting service is the most famous type of web hosting service. For that reason, each and every web space hosting distributor provides it. Not all of them, though, provide services such as private virtual web hosting servers, semi-dedicated servers and dedicated hosting servers. Most of the small scale web hosting suppliers do not have the resources required for offering those services. That's why it's invariably best to settle on a larger web host that can supply its customers with all the services that they request. You can easily identify such companies by the types of solutions that they are providing and by the manner in which they introduce them to the clients. For example, certain hosting companies allow you to begin with a small sized webspace hosting account and subsequently move to a more powerful one, if you find it mandatory to do so. This is extremely suitable, since you do not have to migrate web portals between hosting servers and there is no danger of facing service interruptions because of all the predicaments that may occur. Providers such as Exclusive Hosting offer all kinds of solutions and have the necessary server resources and staff to guarantee that their clients will not come across any complications when changing services, which is what a top hosting provider is actually all about.