Website hosting is a must have for every website on the internet as web hosting services are required for your site to be seen on the internet. If you want to host a website on the Internet, you will have to browse thousands of hosting companies to find one that suits your needs.

If you are not armed with knowledge of web hosting terminology and technology, how can you make an informed decision about which company should host your web page?

First, you need to be aware of the different types of web hosting that are available on the internet. There are many different types of web hosting, but there are the most common types used by web pages on the Internet.

Shared web hosting

With shared web hosting, multiple web pages are hosted on the same web server. All these pages will share the same resources available on the server, such as Internet connection, hard disk space, CPU speed, RAM, etc.

While this is the most common type of web hosting, it can be dangerous for a professional business due to the sometimes unreliable nature of shared web hosting.

Virtual Dedicated Server

Virtual dedicated servers are also called virtual private servers. With this type of web hosting account, you still share a server with other web pages, but this time you have your own share of the server resources that are dedicated to your site.

In all other respects, it works like a dedicated server where you usually have your own IP address, can host numerous web pages, and have root access to your server.

Dedicated server hosting

A dedicated server hosting account is where you have an entire web server that only you can use and you don’t have to share anything with any other website.

Dedicated web hosting servers are offered in several different formats to suit a client’s needs. You can usually choose the server specifications based on your budget.

Dedicated colocation servers are purchased instead of leased servers that are maintained, connected to the Internet, and stored by a web hosting company.

Dedicated servers are generally assumed to be rented servers where you make a monthly payment to the web host in order to use the web server.

Managed dedicated servers are higher priced rented servers that are managed and controlled by a web hosting company similar to the way a shared hosting account would be managed. Managed dedicated servers do not receive root access, but they will prevent you from landing in a situation where you have messed up your server configuration by messing around with something you did not have the knowledge to do.

Unmanaged dedicated servers are for webmasters who have the knowledge to maintain and even perform software updates on their own web host. This is the cheapest web server leasing option available, but you will be responsible for your own machine.

Web hosting technologies

It is also important that you have a thorough understanding of web hosting technologies before proceeding with the purchase of your web hosting account. Again, this is not a complete list of the different technologies used by web servers and website hosts, but they are the most important features to know about when choosing a web host.

Web Hosting Control Panels

There are actually quite a few different control panel software systems used by hosting companies these days. Some of these control panels are designed by the companies that use them so that they can limit access to certain features of their choice. Other control panels are powerful and widely used pieces of software that give you full control over your website and the latest technologies available.

It is essential that you select a web host that gives you full access to your site, or else you may need features that are not available to you. This is especially true when you start trying to install software scripts on your site.

CPanel is probably the most widely used web hosting control panel and is the recommended control panel to look for when selecting a hosting service provider.

Programming Languages ​​for Web Pages and Databases

It is absolutely essential that you know what programming languages ​​and databases you want to use before choosing a web host. Different scripts used for Internet sites may only be compatible with specific versions of programming languages ​​and databases.

Once you’ve determined what programming languages ​​and databases you’ll need, you can search for a web host that can provide what your website will need to function properly. Different web servers will have different versions of programming languages ​​and databases installed on them, so you need to be sure that you will have access to the versions you need.

All web pages use some form of HTML and possibly CSS as well. HTML tells the web browser what to display to the user, while CSS will add styling to various elements on the page.

Javascript, PHP, and ASP are some of the most common programming languages ​​used by web pages. If you are going to run a script written in ASP, you should make sure that you get a web hosting company that can offer you the Windows operating system because ASP does not run on Linux.

MySQL is generally considered the best and most widely used database software. It can handle huge amounts of information and is used by some of the largest and most popular websites on the Internet, such as Wikipedia, Facebook, and even Google.

Web Hosting Operating Systems

While you may be inclined to choose a Windows web hosting account because you use Windows on your home computer, you may want to reconsider unless you’re going to be running scripts written in ASP. Linux is the dominant operating system on the Internet, and most scripts will work better in that environment. Many people also argue that Linux servers produce a faster page load than Windows servers.

Web hosting bandwidth and hard drive limits

Many web hosting service providers offer unlimited disk space and bandwidth these days, but it’s still important to make sure you’re signing up before selecting a web host.

Almost all new websites won’t have to worry about exceeding bandwidth and hard drive space limits at first, but it’s something to make sure you pay attention to because your web hosting account may be suspended if you reach these limits. If your site is suspended, all web traffic will be blocked.