Understanding Different Types Of Web Hosting

Posted in Web Host Shopping on Sep 3rd, 2011 |

Unless you have had a company host a website before, you will find that understanding the various types of terminology related to hosting can be quite confusing and the process of searching for a host extremely daunting.

So besides reading web hosting reviews, it’s also important to take a look at the available choices before you make a purchase.

Shared Web Hosting

Shared hosting is simply that.  It literally means your website files are stored on a server that others are sharing too. A server can hold anywhere from hundreds to thousands of websites.
The advantage of going with a shared hosting package is that you will pay less. There are companies that are offering shared hosted anywhere from $3 up to $10 a month and with this you can get a lot of features, it really depends on the hosting company.

Each shared hosting package can vary in the features that it provides you based on the price you’re paying each month. For example:

• One plan might give you a single domain, unlimited disk space, unlimited bandwidth and shared SSL certificate
• The next plan up might give you all of the above but unlimited domains ( these do not have their own Cpanel and are usually add-on domains )
• The next plan may provide all of the above and a free toll free number and private SSL and IP for your domain.

The major disadvantage with shared hosting is that your site potentially can experience slower load times and issues that arise from the other sites which are stored on the server. A script that is running on another website has the potential to affect the performance of all the sites on the server.  Initially you may find that sharing is a great way to get your feet wet in the world of hosting without shelling out to much money on a monthly or yearly basis.

Dig deeper, check out our list of Best Shared Hosting Providers.

Reseller Hosting

Reseller hosting is similar to shared hosting, which means you will be on a server that is being shared with other websites but the major difference is that you get a lot of extra tools that allow you to resell some of the hosting space you pay for a month to month basis.

Some of the advantages of a reseller package is that you will usually get a CPANEL with each and every domain that you setup as well as Web hosting Manager (WHM) which allows you to control all of the sites that you are hosting as well as invoice clients and perform maintenance.

Among some of the many benefits of reseller hosting, you also are able to get access to a number of features like private name servers (DNS Address), unlimited CPANELS for each of your domains and website templates and site builders.

Look to pay anywhere from $15 to $60 for a reseller account based on how much space or bandwidth you are planning on using.

Dig deeper, check out our list of Best Reseller Hosting Providers.

Grid / Cloud Hosting

This has become fairly popular now days it basically is a web hosting package that works with hundreds of servers that all work together and act as one large server. The major selling point of this package is that you only pay for what you use. So instead of shelling out for a dedicated server for a brand new business that you are opening up and only using a minimal amount of space and bandwidth from it in the first year; cloud hosting allows you to have access to top of the line service but at a minimal cost.  If your business was to explode over-night, you would have everything in place.

The type of cost involved will vary according to what you use, yet some services will charge a base rate of $20 and upwards all the way through to no minimum charge like Amazon.
Again another great way for anyone to start with, yet you do need to be a little bit more technical minded to get this setup.

Virtual Private Server (VPS) Hosting

Virtual private servers or sometimes referred to as VPS, basically are running off the same server but the server acts like it was several servers completely separate. You could say that VPS hosting is the middle of the road choice for people who don’t want shared hosting and their business is not big enough for dedicated hosting. The way that VPS works is instead of sharing the same resources on the server they are dedicated a slice of the total resources and that slice is only used by 1 user.

The advantages of VPS is that it lets you avoid shared hosting and some of the many mishaps that arise from being on a server with other sites that might be using scripts to slow everything down. It also will save you money as it costs less than a dedicated solution.

Expect to pay anywhere in the range of $15 to $200 for a virtual private server.

Dig deeper, check out our list of Best VPS Hosting Providers.

Dedicated Server Hosting

Any major company or one that envisions exponential growth within a short period of time will usually opt for a dedicated solution. Dedicated server hosting can be self-managed (you run the show) or fully managed (someone else manages it) either way you are renting one server that is entirely dedicated to you. No other websites are on it except yours.  There is a choice between Linux or windows servers and by far Linux remains the most popular.

Be prepared to spend anywhere from $100 and upwards per month for this type of hosting. If someone is offering it for under a $100 I would double check that they aren’t putting you on an older server or one that is still shared.

Dig deeper, check out our list of Best Dedicated Hosting Providers.