What Is Web Hosting?

Before we continue, you should read our dedicated article about what domain names and website URL are to be able to understand everything. 

Web Hosting

Web hosting is an online service that allows individuals and organizations to post, store, serve and maintain a website or web page on the internet. A web host or web hosting service provider is the business that provides the technologies and services needed for the website to be effective and secured. 

Once you purchase a web hosting service, simply say you are renting space on a physical server where you can store all files and data necessary for your website to function at full capacity. 

How Does it Work

As mentioned, you are renting space on a physical server. The server runs continuously to make the site available for visitors constantly. Meaning that resources, such as RAM, hard drive space, and bandwidth are allocated to the websites using it. In addition, the provider is responsible for keeping the server up and running, implementing security protocols, and ensuring that data such as images, text, or other files are transferred successfully to the user’s browsers. 

Types

Countless available hosting options vary in price; everything depends on your website requirements and budget. Here are some of the most popular types of web hosting:

Shared

Shared web hosting is the perfect solution for personal or small businesses websites that do not require advanced configuration or a lot of bandwidth. It means that multiple users are sharing the same server resources as memory, processing power, and storage space, and it is the simplest and most affordable way. 

Virtual Private Server (VPS)

Virtual Private Server or VPS is similar to shared hosting but with some differences. Each VPS owner has its own partition with guaranteed dedicated resources and space. Respectively, it is more expensive, but you are getting more memory, storage, and processing power. In addition to that, the VPS customers have root access to their partition and can configure their server software. This kind of hosting is a great option for shops and large blogs. 

Dedicated

As the name hints, this type of host dedicates a physical server to each website, which is a completely independent device. It cuts the security and performance risks associated with shared hosting, but the service is more expensive. Moreover, the owner can configure the server and choose their desired operating system and software. The dedicated hosting is perfect for businesses with heavy traffic and those who need a lot of disk space.