An explanation of web site hosting

As its name suggests, web hosting is a solution, which entails hosting online content. There are different forms and kinds of web hosting, based on the purpose and on the functions. Even so, they all are related to hosting files, which, once hosted, are made accessible through the World Wide Web. A host is in fact a hosting server that is connected to the World Wide Web and has its own personal Internet Protocol address, which enables users to get access to it via the World Wide Web. The web hosting server's configuration and its limitations are dependent on the sort of hosting service it will be used for.

What are the various forms of web hosting?

Based on the function, the hosting solution may be:

File Web Hosting - this form of hosting permits the users to host their files on a particular web server. With the conventional file storage web hosting service, the files that are stored may only be accessed by the customer that's using the service. This web hosting service generally includes backups of personal computers , docs, personal files and even other web servers. This service may also involve certain limitations with regard to the web storage space and the root privileges. There may also be bandwidth limitations, but that is dependent on the actual host.

Warez Web Hosting - the so-called warez web hosting service is very similar to the previous web hosting service type. Still, unlike the file storage web hosting solution, the warez hosting service is used for propagating patented materials without being given the green light by the patent bearer. To put it briefly - it is related to the illegitimate circulation of files and documents. There are many methods for this to be done, but the 2 principal approaches are - through simple HTTP downloading and via peer-to-peer connections. The first way involves either a certain web page, or, most commonly, just a directory on a hosting server that's been made available for everyone to access it and thus download patented content for free. The second way entails a peer-to-peer connection, availing of the so-called Torrent web servers, through which people transmit files between each other. There are very few webspace hosting suppliers that permit such form of web hosting on their hosting servers, chiefly owing to all the judicial predicaments that it involves. Usually such web portals are hosted on private dedicated web hosting servers that are registered by third-party corporations either in the Middle East or in Asia.

Email Hosting - this service is applicable with both shared hosting and dedicated web servers, depending on the client's intention. If you wish to build your very own personal SMTP mail server, then you will need either a Virtual Private Server or a dedicated web server that provides the level of access needed to execute such an assignment. For regular electronic mail hosting ends, though, you can create a conventional shared web page hosting account, to which you can point the MX records of your domain. This is not a service that's very famous, since the site hosting and the electronic mail hosting services are being served by two separate servers, usually belonging to separate web hosting providers.

Web Page Hosting - the most widely spread and largely used hosting service now. It's used for hosting site files, whose type is determined by the Operating System the web server is utilizing - Linux or Windows. Different kinds of files need concrete server Operating Systems, otherwise they won't be displayed properly on the World Wide Web. This type of web hosting may involve data storage and traffic quota limits, server root access and central processing unit usage limits.

Depending on the purpose and on the functions, the client should select the sort of web server that he demands for his project, and, of course, the hosting supplier that's going to furnish it. There are various types of hosting servers, based on the specifications and the hosting solutions that they offer. These are:

Shared Web Hosting Server - a shared web site hosting server includes a smaller amount of resources, which, of course, reflects on the price of the service. It can be used for hosting small scale and middle scale web pages, which do not require vast amounts of web storage space and web traffic.

Semi-Dedicated - they function on the same principle as the shared web space hosting servers. Still, there are much fewer users sharing the same hosting server. For that reason, each of them will get a bigger quota of the server's resources like RAM, data storage, bandwidth and CPU. Excellent for hosting bulky sites that do not need full server root privileges.

VPS hosting - the VPS servers are excellent for middle sized web portals, which do demand root-level access to the web server's configuration files. Generally, there are a number of private virtual web server accounts placed on the same server. Yet, each of them is autonomous from the rest and has its own OS.

Dedicated Server - a fully dedicated physical machine set up and accessed by you and only you. It guarantees a great quantity of system resources. It also includes root privileges, which renders it a perfect platform for any kind of website that necessitates a webspace hosting service.

The sole question that remains is:

Which web space hosting firm should I choose?

As already stated, there are not many hosts providing warez hosting solutions because of legal complications. Such web hosts are being shut down almost every month. Because of that, if you wish to establish such a service, you should do it on your very own computer. The shared web site hosting solution is the most widely spread type of hosting service. That is why, every webspace hosting distributor offers it. Not all of them, however, offer solutions such as virtual servers, semi-dedicated servers and dedicated servers. Most of the small scale web space hosting firms do not have the resources demanded for offering those services. Therefore it's always best to go with a bigger company that can furnish its clients with all the services that they seek. You can effortlessly recognize such companies by the types of services that they are making available and by the way that they present them to the customers. For instance, certain web hosting providers allow you to start with a small scale hosting plan and subsequently upgrade to a more advanced one, if you find it necessary to do so. This is very suitable, because you do not need to transmit web portals between hosting servers and there is no possibility of suffering service outages because of all the predicaments that may appear. Web hosting companies like Free Hostia provide all kinds of solutions and have the needed hosting server resources and staff to guarantee that their clients will not suffer any troubles when changing services, which is what a top hosting firm is actually all about.