A definition of web hosting
As its name hints, web hosting is a solution, which entails hosting web content. There are various forms and kinds of hosting, based on the purpose and on the functions. Still, they all are associated with hosting files, which, once hosted, are made available through the Web. A web host is in fact a hosting server that is connected to the World Wide Web and has its very own Internet Protocol address, which permits users to have access to it through the World Wide Web. The hosting server's configuration and its system resources are dependent on the sort of hosting solution it will be utilized for.
What are the different types of web hosting?
Based on the purpose, the web hosting solution may be:
File Storage Hosting - this type of web hosting enables the clients to keep their files on a certain web hosting server. With the ordinary file web hosting service, the files that are accommodated may only be accessed by the individual that's availing of the service. This web hosting service mainly entails backups of computers , docs, private files and even other web hosting servers. This service may also have given limitations with regard to the web storage space and the root access. There may also be traffic limits, but that depends on the actual web host.
Warez Web Hosting - the so-called warez web hosting solution is quite similar to the previous hosting service type. Still, unlike the file hosting solution, the warez hosting solution is used for circulating patented materials without being given the okay to do so by the license possessor. In brief - it is related to the forbidden circulation of files and materials. There are multiple ways for this to be fulfilled, but the two chief ways are - via simple Hypertext Transfer Protocol downloading and via P2P connections. The first one entails either a given web site, or, most typically, just a directory on a server that's been made available for everybody to access it and thereby download patented files free of charge. The second method involves a peer-to-peer connection, utilizing the so-called Torrent web servers, via which people exchange files between each other. There are a few website hosting vendors that allow such form of web hosting on their web hosting servers, mostly because of all the legal entanglements that it presupposes. Commonly such web pages are hosted on private dedicated web hosting servers that are registered by 3rd party firms either in the Middle East or in Asia.
Email Web Hosting - this solution is used with both shared webspace hosting and dedicated web servers, based on the user's wish. If you wish to have your own private SMTP e-mail server, then you will need either a private virtual server or a dedicated server that offers the access level needed to perform such an operation. For typical e-mail hosting ends, though, you can use a standard shared website hosting account, to which you can point the MX records of your domain. This is not a solution that's very popular, because the web page hosting and the e-mail hosting services are being served by two different servers, usually belonging to separate companies.
Web Site Hosting - the most popular and extensively used hosting service now. It's used for hosting site files, whose type is determined by the OS the hosting server is using - Linux or Windows. Different types of files need specific hosting server Operating Systems, or else they won't be displayed properly on the Web. This kind of web hosting may contain disk space and traffic limitations, root-level access and central processing unit usage limits.
Depending on the goals and on the functions, the user should choose the kind of hosting server that he demands for his work, and, of course, the website hosting company that's going to furnish it. There are various kinds of servers, based on the specs and the web space hosting services that they offer. These are:
Shared Web Hosting Server - a shared web space hosting server includes a smaller quantity of system resources, which, of course, is manifested in the price of the service. It can be utilized for hosting small and middle sized websites, which do not demand immense quotas of data storage space and web traffic.
Semi-Dedicated Servers - they perform on the same principle as the shared web space hosting servers. Even so, there are much fewer customers hosted on the same hosting server. Because of that, each of them will have a greater share of the hosting server's resources like RAM, disk space, web traffic and CPU. Perfect for hosting immense web portals that do not need full server root privileges.
Virtual Private Server - the virtual private web hosting servers are excellent for middle sized web pages, which do need root access to the web hosting server's configuration files. Generally, there are a handful of Virtual Private Server web hosting accounts hosted on the same machine. In spite of that, each of them is autonomous from the others and has its own Operating System.
Dedicated Hosting - a completely dedicated server set up and accessed by you and only you. It ensures a gigantic amount of system resources. It also offers root-level access, which makes it a perfect platform for any sort of online portal that necessitates a web site hosting service.
The sole question that remains is:
Which website hosting supplier should I choose?
As stated above, there aren't many hosts providing warez hosting services due to legal entanglements. Such hosts are being shut down practically every month. Because of that, if you desire to start such a service, you should do it on your own computer. The shared web page hosting service is the most popular kind of hosting service. For that reason, every site hosting provider provides it. Not all of them, however, provide solutions such as virtual private web servers, semi-dedicated servers and dedicated hosting servers. Most of the smaller web space hosting distributors do not have the resources needed for maintaining those solutions. That's why it's always best to select a bigger company that can supply its customers with all the solutions that they are looking for. You can quickly identify such hosts by the sorts of services that they are supplying and by the manner in which they present them to the clientele. For example, some hosting companies allow you to commence with a smaller web site hosting plan and afterwards move to a bigger one, if you deem it obligatory to do so. This is extremely suitable, since you do not need to transfer web portals between hosting servers and there is no risk of suffering outages due to all the predicaments that may take place. Companies like Amazonserver.net provide all sorts of services and have the needed web server resources and staff to ensure that their clients will not experience any troubles when swapping services, which is what a top hosting firm is actually all about.