Editor: Michael LevanduskiNetwork Technical Engineer
Editor: Michael LevanduskiNetwork Technical Engineer
If you’re ready to take your business online, you’ll need to know the basics of web hosting. In this beginner’s guide, you’ll learn how to host a website plus get tips for deciding which hosting types and plans are best for your website.
Web hosting is putting a website on the internet for the world to view. Most of the sites you visit daily are hosted by website hosting providers. These hosts have dedicated servers or computers that store websites and their information, then allow you to publicly access their sites.
When it comes to hosting your website, you’ll need two main things: a domain and a server.
A domain is the registered website name people type into their browser’s address bar to access your website. Domains can have a variety of structures, such as the ever-popular “.com” names as well as .net, .org, .gov, etc. In this example of a URL, https://domain.com, the domain name is domain.com.
A server is a computer that stores your website’s information. Unlike the home desktops and laptops you use daily, servers are specialized computers with fast internet connections that make your website accessible to others.
There are two main options for choosing a server. You can use a hosting provider with preconfigured servers and a support team to help you troubleshoot or buy and create your own server. Both options have advantages and disadvantages, though opting for a hosting provider is the best choice for most website owners.
A web hosting provider offers a preconfigured server to store your website’s information. These servers are specially designed to offer fast response times, excellent reliability, and simple connectivity so other users can easily access your site. In addition, the servers are set up so it’s easy to create your website and publish it to the world.
Using a hosting provider is the recommended choice for beginners looking to launch their website. Hosting providers take care of the setup and technical aspects normally required to host a website. Follow these steps to get started with a web host:
The first step is to decide what hosting type is right for your site. Most hosting providers will give you various options, which dictate the power, speed, price, and capability of the server you’ll get. The most common hosting types are shown below:
| Hosting type | What it is | Best for |
| Shared | Shared hosting allows you to host your website in a special container alongside other websites rather than on its own computer. | Shared hosting is best for personal websites or websites that will have relatively low traffic. |
| Virtual Private Server (VPS) | A VPS is an isolated container for your website, which is still shared with other websites but gives far more speed and power than shared hosting. | VPS/Cloud hosting is best for medium-sized websites, such as business websites, that need a little more power or speed than shared hosting. |
| Managed | With managed hosting plans, the hosting provider sets up a dedicated server and helps you maintain the infrastructure. | Managed hosting is best for web applications that process a lot of data or require more intricate setups. |
| Dedicated | Dedicated hosting provides your own server, which gives you full access to change, customize, and set up your server. | Dedicated hosting allows technical personnel to set up intricate web applications or multiple websites used in larger business applications. |
Once you understand the different types of web hosting, it’s time to choose a web hosting provider. First, you must understand these common factors that distinguish a good hosting provider from a mediocre one:
When hosting your website through a provider, the next step is registering your domain. There are a couple of ways you can do this. The first, and recommended option, is to purchase a domain through whichever hosting provider you select. Most hosting providers will bundle a domain with their monthly hosting packages, simplifying the process.
The other option is to register a domain with a domain registrar. These registrars sometimes have a wider range of top-level domains (TLDs) — the endings of your domain outside of the common .com options. Most hosting providers have in-depth documentation on pointing a domain purchased from a registrar to your hosting provider’s server.
When purchasing a domain, you’ll generally be spending around $9.99 per year for a .com domain. If you choose a less common TLD, it can range anywhere from $3 to $120 per year, with some even higher.
Once you have both your hosting provider and your domain name, the next step is to move your website onto your hosting provider’s server. There are a couple of different scenarios.
Usually, this happens by moving a website you’ve created on your computer to the hosting provider’s server. The recommended method is using File Transfer Protocol (FTP) which is usually accessible through your hosting provider’s dashboard.
Another common scenario is moving your website from one hosting provider to another. In this case, most hosting providers allow you to contact their support teams to facilitate this exchange. Still, you can manually download your website’s files and move them over using the method described in the first scenario.
The best course of action when deciding how to move your site to your chosen hosting provider is to contact the support team. Usually, a hosting provider can help facilitate the migration of your website onto its server and, in many cases, will take care of any technical issues.
The second option for hosting your website is to build your server. This option may be best if you’re looking for more control over your website’s hosting infrastructure or planning to build large website applications.
Hosting a website yourself usually involves purchasing or building your server. This typically requires you to purchase space at a co-location center where you can house your built or purchased server and hook it up to a specialized internet connection.
It’s important to note it’s almost always required that you use a specialized hosting center when trying to host your website — most internet providers prohibit hosting websites on your personal computer.
Creating and managing your dedicated server infrastructure can significantly reduce costs and allow a greater level of control when building large-scale web applications. Here are some general pros and cons of managing your dedicated server.
