A definition of web site hosting
As its name signifies, web hosting is a solution, which involves hosting web content. There are various forms and types of web hosting, based on the goals and on the usage. Even so, they all involve hosting files, which, once hosted, are made available through the Web. A host is actually a server that is linked to the World Wide Web and has its very own Internet Protocol address, which enables people to have access to it via the Web. The server's configuration and its limitations are dependent on the kind of web hosting solution it will be used for.
What are the different types of web hosting?
Based on the goal, the professional web hosting solution may be:
File Hosting - this type of web hosting allows the customers to host their files on a given server. With the standard file web hosting service, the files that are accommodated may only be accessed by the person that's availing of the service. This hosting service usually involves backups of PCs , documents, private files and even other hosting servers. This service may also involve given restrictions in relation to the data storage space and the root-level access. There may also be web traffic restrictions, but that depends on the particular host.
Warez Hosting - the so-called warez web hosting solution is very similar to the previous hosting service form. However, in contrast with the file web hosting solution, the warez web hosting service is used for disseminating copyrighted work without the approval of the licence bearer. To put it briefly - it is connected with the illicit distribution of files and docs. There are many approaches for this to be carried out, but the two chief ways are - through plain HTTP downloading and through peer-to-peer connections. The first one entails either a certain site, or, most typically, simply a directory on a hosting server that's been made available for everybody to access it and thereby download copyrighted content free of cost. The second approach entails a P2P connection, making use of the so-called Torrent servers, through which users share files between each other. There are not many hosting suppliers that allow that form of web hosting on their web servers, mainly because of all the legal predicaments that it entails. Commonly such web sites are hosted on personal dedicated hosting servers that are registered by third-party enterprises either in the Middle East or in Asia.
E-mail Web Hosting - this solution is relevant with both shared webspace hosting and dedicated servers, depending on the user's wish. If you desire to build your very own private SMTP email server, then you will need either a private virtual server or a dedicated web server that offers the access level required to perform such an assignment. For customary e-mail hosting ends, though, you can open an ordinary shared web site hosting account, to which you can point the MX records of your domain name. This is not a solution that's widely famous, because the web hosting and the e-mail hosting services are being served by two different web servers, usually owned by separate web hosts.
Web Page Hosting - the most widespread and largely used hosting service as of now. It's utilized for hosting web site files, whose sort depends on the Operating System the server is making use of - Linux or Windows. Different types of files necessitate concrete hosting server Operating Systems, otherwise they won't be exhibited accurately on the Internet. This kind of web hosting may involve storage space and bandwidth limits, root-level access and CPU usage limits.
Based on the goals and on the usage, the client should choose the sort of web hosting server that he requires for his work, and, of course, the website hosting corporation that's going to supply it. There are different kinds of web servers, based on the specs and the webspace hosting services that they offer. These are:
Shared Web Hosting Server - a shared hosting server supplies a smaller amount of system resources, which, of course, reflects on the price of the service. It can be used for hosting small scale and middle sized websites, which do not require enormous quantities of web storage and bandwidth.
Semi-Dedicated Servers Hosting - they perform on the very same principle as the shared website hosting servers. Even so, there are much less customers sharing the same server. That is why, each of them will receive a bigger quota of the hosting server's resources like RAM, web storage space, web traffic and CPU. Excellent for hosting popular web pages that do not demand full root-level access.
Virtual Servers - the VPSs are ideal for medium sized web pages, which do need root access to the web hosting server's config files. Usually, there are a number of Virtual Private Server accounts placed on the same server. Nevertheless, each of them is independent from the rest and has its own OS.
Dedicated Server Hosting - a fully dedicated physical server set up and accessed by you and only you. It guarantees a large quantity of system resources. It also offers server root access, which makes it an excellent environment for any kind of online portal that demands a webspace hosting solution.
The sole question that remains is:
Which site hosting supplier should I opt for?
As mentioned, there aren't many hosting companies offering warez web hosting solutions due to judicial problems. Such web hosting providers are being closed down virtually every month. That is why, if you wish to offer such a service, you should do it on your very own computer. The shared web space hosting service is the most famous kind of web hosting service. So, each webspace hosting distributor provides it. Not all of them, however, provide solutions such as private virtual servers, semi-dedicated web servers and dedicated servers. Most of the small sized hosting companies do not have the resources needed for maintaining those services. That is the reason why it's invariably best to opt for a larger host that can furnish its customers with all the solutions that they seek. You can quickly identify such hosts by the kinds of solutions that they are providing and by the way that they present them to the clients. For example, some web hosts permit you to begin with a small scale webspace hosting account and afterwards shift to a bigger one, if you consider it compulsory to do so. This is extremely convenient, because you do not need to relocate web pages between servers and there is no chance of experiencing network downtime due to all the problems that may arise. Providers such as Patrol Bureau are offering all kinds of solutions and have the adequate web server resources and personnel to ensure that their customers will not stumble upon any problems when swapping services, which is what a top hosting firm is in fact all about.