Establishing an online presence is impossible without web hosting. It’s a service that supports all data your website needs to stay online and available for visitors, including HTML files and media content. Web hosting offers the opportunity to rent a storage space for your website’s data and utilize the operational capacity of the server.
The said operational capacity of the server is influenced by the type of server, its specifications, its location, etc. For example, if you want to get an Italy VPS web hosting plan, you’ll have different configurations that vary by server OS (Linux or Windows), the CPU built-in capacity, the amount of RAM and storage, and additional features you want to include.
Now, web hosting has different nuances and distinctions, which we want to shine some light on in this article.
How does web hosting work?
To cover the basics, a website cannot exist outside the server. To set up a website, you need to purchase a hosting plan from a hosting provider. This way you get access to the server, where you can store the files of your future website. Once the files are on the server (which is, in turn, connected to the internet), visitors can browse your website through their devices.
When a visitor wants to view the contents of your website, their device will connect to your server, requesting the identifying website files. The server will send the files, which will allow them to access and see the contents of your site.
The server’s task is to respond to incoming requests like displaying the Blog section of the website or a specific article. For this, the server, of course, has to be functional at a minimum. To ensure that your visitors complete the intended client journey, your website has to provide an enjoyable user experience.
With that said, different types of servers act as a basis for different hosting solutions.
Common web hosting solutions and how they differ
In web hosting, a server is the central player; practically everything revolves around it. There are three main types of hosting solutions based on how the server is used: shared hosting, VPS (Virtual Private Server) hosting, and dedicated hosting (based on a dedicated server).
Shared Hosting
With shared hosting, multiple users utilize the same resource capacity of the server. Processing power, memory, and storage are shared between the users with no restrictions to resource consumption. It may sound like an advantage, but in practice, it’s more of a drawback. While using shared hosting, one never knows the scope of operational power they get in a specific time period: other users can consume a lot of server resources leaving someone else with whatever’s left of them.
However, shared hosting is an excellent option for beginners, small businesses, and static websites that don’t subject servers to considerable load. It is cheap, straightforward, and accessible since it often comes with pre-configured hosting plans. Shared hosting also implies that you won’t be the one managing it, which is a relief for many people.
Pros
- Affordable;
- Easy-to-use;
- No technical knowledge required;
- Maintained and managed by a hosting provider;
- Offers pre-configured options;
Cons
- Limited server control;
- High probability of migrating security threats;
- Uneven distribution of server resources, resulting in lowering website’s processing speed;
You can think of shared hosting as a separate apartment in an apartment building: each individual has their space, but if somebody disrupts the water supply, the whole building is likely to feel the consequences of it.
VPS Hosting
VPS hosting represents a middle option between shared and dedicated models since it combines the best of both “worlds”. Virtual private servers (VPS) act like dedicated servers, but only virtually. It means that the resources of a physical server are still shared, however, there’s a distinct virtual partition between the environment of each user. VPS hosting delivers a guaranteed scope of resources to each user, which makes it much more reliable than shared hosting.
Due to virtualization technology, virtual private servers can handle more load and support larger traffic amounts than shared hosting solutions, since the activity of some users does not affect others. This is why VPS hosting is commonly used by e-commerce businesses, middle-sized companies, and websites with growing traffic.
Thanks to the commonly offered complete root access, VPS also gives you more control over your server, specifically its software. If you don’t want to deal with VPS software management, you can request the option of “managed VPS hosting” from your hosting provider.
Pros
- Relative affordability;
- Dedicated resources without the price of a dedicated server;
- More customization options and control over the server;
- Performance stability;
- Reliable uptime;
- Better security;
Cons
- Requires some technical knowledge to operate;
- Not suitable for heavy applications;
There is also cloud hosting, which operates through multiple virtual private servers, to equally distribute the load between them.
You can think of a VPS as a townhouse: each user has their isolated space, assigned only to them, but it feels secluded only on the inside — outside those environments are still connected.
Dedicated Hosting
Dedicated hosting offers a whole physical server to one user, which means that they can configure and set it up how they see fit, i.e. choose an operating system, software, and hardware configurations of the server.
Hosting based on dedicated servers is the most powerful hosting solution there is. A website you host on a dedicated server gets the full scope of resources, ensuring the site’s high loading speed and overall stability. Dedicated hosting also offers unmatched security, since the server is not dependent on other users’ activity, and gives the user control to implement modern security practices.
Dedicated hosting is mostly used by large businesses and enterprises, which cannot afford server downtime or performance irregularities, and require a hosting solution capable of handling considerable load.
Pros
- Better website performance;
- Ability to handle significant traffic and load;
- Enhanced stability and reliability;
- Control over software and hardware configuration;
Cons
- The most expensive among all hosting solutions;
- Requires extensive technical expertise for its management;
You can think of a dedicated server as a house you own since there’s no virtual or physical connection to anybody else. You have your own space and can do whatever you want with it.
Now that you know about the most popular web hosting solutions, let’s look into the aspects you need to access when choosing web hosting.
What to pay attention to when choosing web hosting
When you start looking for a hosting solution, you need to know how to spot a good one. Here’s what we recommend you take into account when making a decision.
- Guaranteed server uptime. Uptime refers to the average amount of time the website is online. This is important because it affects how many people can access your website, and how reliable the search engines perceive it to be. One hour of your website’s downtime can result in losing thousands of potential sales. The optimal uptime a hosting provider should offer is above 90% (99.9% is recommended).
- Loading speed. The time necessary for a webpage to load directly correlates with how powerful a server is, and how fast it can process incoming requests. A Google study shows that 53% of mobile visitors leave the website if it takes more than 3 seconds to load. Therefore, choosing a solution with a high-performance server equals more customers for your business.
- Domain name registration. Not all hosting providers offer domain name registration. Your website won’t exist without a registered domain name, thus, if you don’t know how to do it, look for a hosting provider offering such a service.
- Support from your hosting provider. The level of support from your hosting provider is essential to access, specifically if you’re new to web hosting and have little to no technical knowledge. You may face issues with the website or server functioning, so it is paramount that troubleshooting is carried out in the shortest time possible, again to eliminate downtime.
Considering your budget and how long you can financially support the hosting solution you chose is undoubtedly important. If you’re not sure about the resource volume your website requires, start with affordable web hosting such as shared or VPS hosting; you can determine whether you need an upgrade down the line.
A piece of advice: Don’t fall for free web hosting deals. They are likely to include hosting packages with unworkable amounts of storage, RAM, or bandwidth, have limited features, and provide no uptime guarantees. Plus, hosting providers offering free plans might include third-party ads on your website.
Conclusion
No matter if it’s a blog or an e-commerce website, the choice of a web hosting solution asks for detailed research. How your website will function largely depends on the hosting type and provider you choose.
Understanding the basics of web hosting will help you make an informed decision regarding the best-suited web hosting solution for you.
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