Web Hosting: What, When, How And Where

Finding unbiased information on web hosting can be extremely difficult. If you aren’t a tech wizard, it can be confusing to read about what you may need in a hosting package, or what kind of host you should choose. Fortunately, this article has plenty of web hosting tips so you can make good hosting choices.

Make a priority list before shopping for a web host. List the things you desire and the things you absolutely must have. Determine which web host matches most of these traits. Making a list should help you make a good decision based on different factors instead of focusing on the price, only.

The web hosting service that you decide to utilize should have easily accessible customer support with fast response times. This is important because once you begin running your website, you might realize that you require more than is offered in your package. For example, if your website has a huge boost in traffic that is beyond your bandwidth limits, you should be able to contact your web host and immediately obtain more bandwidth. If it takes over a week for the web host to respond to your request, and if your website goes offline in the meantime, this could have lasting negative consequences.

Don’t purchase a web hosting plan just because it offers unlimited disk space or bandwidth. Compare these plans with plans that offer a reasonable amount of space and bandwidth to determine which is the best plan for your needs. Sometimes plans that offer a finite amount of space or bandwidth are better for your particular needs than plans that offer unlimited quantities of space or bandwidth.

Figure out how much bandwidth you need before shopping for web hosts. Keep in mind that you need more bandwidth if you plan to include photos or videos on your website. Compare different bandwidth plans and purchase a plan that gives you a little more bandwidth than you need so that you have room to expand your site.

A key factor for choosing a web host is available tech support. Should your site go down for any reason, you do not want to have to wait for tech support to be available during specified business hours. If a company is offering less than a full 24-hour support, 7 days a week, year-round, they should not fall under consideration. You need to know that someone besides yourself is concerned with keeping your site up.

Your web host should be the recipient of plenty of hosting awards. Knowing that others have used the company and have been satisfied with the service, is a strong indicator of a good company. Although it’s possible to fake awards, most web hosting awards are legitimate. Most awards are chosen by fan votes, so the awards give the service credibility. Any site with many awards that were voted on by fans is someone you definitely want to consider going with.

Go for a web host that has a good track record of reliable uptimes and quick page loads. It is frustrating for your visitors when they see that your website loads slowly or even not at all. If you are running a web business, this can be detrimental. So do your research, and choose a web host that can guarantee near 100% uptimes.

Choose a web host that guarantees your security. Your site should be protected from hackers efficiently, especially if you have an e-commerce site. Some services even offer you the possibility to keep your own private files on their servers. This could be a good way to keep a safe backup of your customers’ information.

Choose a web host that offers unlimited disk space and bandwidth. You will not need to worry about going over the usage limit. Hosting plans that limit disk space and bandwidth usually will charge you extra for each unit of disk space or bandwidth used over the limit. If you do not monitor it, this can cost you a lot of money.

Research the company history of providers that you’re considering to be your web host. Try to find a host that has been in the business for awhile and has a good record online. See to it that the host that you choose has been in business for no less than a year. What would you do, after all, if your hosting company went out of business?

When deciding between a Linux and Windows hosting package, you should consider the technologies that your website will be utilizing. If you plan on using PHP, Perl, MySQL databases, or other technologies that are generally associated with the Linux operating system, then you should obtain a Linux hosting solution. On the other hand, if you plan to use ASP, Cold Fusion or Microsoft Access databases, then Windows will be the ideal solution for you.

Be aware of what type of storage the web host offers. This is only relevant for certain site owners, though. If you have a site that requires a lot of videos and music, then you need to ensure the host offers the space necessary. Decide how much space you need in advance to ensure you are getting a host that supplies you will just what you need.

As mentioned in the introduction, it can be hard to find out the right information about web hosting, especially if you aren’t a techie. The best thing to do is to read through the tips laid out here and then start to make decisions about the best host for your purposes.