Web hosting - What are your options?
Choosing a web hosting package can be a daunting task. Not only will you have to make a choice between free, shared or dedicated hosting, once you’ve made that choice you’ve then got to decide which hosting provider to go with; I’m here to help! In this article I will differentiate between the different types of hosting available and point you in the direction of some great resources to help you choose the hosting company that’s right for you.
Free hosting
As the name suggests its free and you do get what you pay for. Free services are normally pretty limited, you don’t have much control over your website address and your website will usually be surrounded by adverts. This type of hosting is ideal for your first hobby website but should not be considered for a profession/business website.
Shared hosting
This is the cheapest type of professional web hosting, you’re paying for some web space on a shared server. It’s ideal for a small business website, you get your own website address and a number of POP3 email accounts. Unlike free hosting you don’t have to put up with adverts and the price you pay is minimal. The only downside to this type of hosting is that you don’t know how many other websites are sharing the same server. Too many websites on one server can affect the performance of your website. Approximate price: £50 per year.
Reseller hosting
The same pros and cons of shared hosted except you can usually host an unlimited number of websites and email accounts. Ideal for internet entrepreneurs with a large number of websites, a web design company or if you fancy running your own web hosting business. Approximate price: £500 per year.
Dedicated server
A dedicated server is rented solely for your own use. You have full control over the server to install extra software and configure the server as you please (server administration knowledge required). You are managing your own server so updates, configuration and security is mostly down to you. There are normally engineers on hand to assist you but they usually charge you for the privilege. There isn’t a set limited to the number of websites you host on your own dedicated server but usually there is a cap on the amount of bandwidth your server can consume (usually adequate for even the most demanding of websites). Approximate price: £1000 per year.
Managed dedicated server
Has all the benefits of a dedicated server except you don’t need any specialist knowledge to maintain it. The hosting company manages the server so you don’t have to worry about updates and configuration. Approximate price: £1300 per year.
Colocated dedicated server
Similar to a dedicated server except you must provide your own server. The hosting company provides the physical space for your server, housed in a purpose built data centre. This is as complicated as it gets and the costs can vary greatly. Most data centres provide remote reboot facilities and engineers on site if required.
http://uk-hosting-review.com/ can help you choose a shared hosting provider.
I didn’t manage to find a comparison/review site that compared dedicated server providers, so I decided to create my own.
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