A definition of hosting
As its name implies, web hosting is a solution, which entails hosting web content. There are different forms and types of web hosting, based on the purpose and on the objectives. However, they all entail hosting files, which, once hosted, are made accessible throughout the Web. A host is actually a web hosting service that is connected to the Web and has its own personal Internet Protocol address, which enables users to have access to it through the World Wide Web. The hosting server's configuration and its resources depend on the type of web hosting service it will be used for.
What are the different types of hosting?
Depending on the purpose, the web hosting service may be:
File Storage Web Hosting - this type of hosting allows the clients to deposit their files on a particular web server. With the regular file storage web hosting solution, the files that are stored may only be accessed by the individual that's using the service. This web hosting service generally entails backups of computers , documents, private files and even other hosting servers. This solution may also contain certain restrictions in relation to the data storage space and the root access. There may also be web traffic limitations, but that is dependent on the given hosting provider.
Warez Hosting - the so-called warez web hosting service is resembling the previous web hosting service type. Nevertheless, unlike the file hosting service, the warez web hosting service is utilized for transmitting licensed materials without the permission of the patent keeper. In brief - it appertains to the criminal distribution of files and materials. There are numerous methods for this to be fulfilled, but the two essential ways are - via plain Hypertext Transfer Protocol downloading and via peer-to-peer connections. The first approach involves either a specific web page, or, most often, simply a directory on a hosting server that's been made available for everybody to access it and thus download proprietary files for free. The second way entails a peer-to-peer connection, utilizing the so-called Torrent web servers, through which people share files between each other. There are not many web page hosting providers that allow that type of web hosting on their web servers, mostly owing to all the legal troubles that it presupposes. Typically such web portals are hosted on private dedicated web hosting servers that are registered by 3rd party companies either in the Middle East or in Asia.
Mail Hosting - this solution is applicable with both shared web hosting and dedicated web hosting servers, depending on the client's desire. If you would like to establish your very own personal SMTP electronic mail server, then you will need either a VPS web server or a dedicated web hosting server that offers the access level needed to carry out such a task. For standard electronic mail hosting purposes, however, you can utilize a normal shared webspace hosting account, to which you can point the mail exchanger records of your domain. This is not a solution that's very famous, since the web site hosting and the electronic mail hosting services are being served by 2 different servers, often belonging to separate web hosting providers.
Web Site Hosting - the most widespread and immensely used hosting service at present. It's utilized for hosting site files, whose sort depends on the OS the web hosting server is running - Linux or Windows. Different types of files demand specific web server Operating Systems, otherwise they won't be shown appropriately on the Web. This type of hosting may involve disk storage space and web traffic quota limits, server root access and central processing unit usage limitations.
Depending on the aims and on the objectives, the user should select the sort of server that he requires for his work, and, of course, the hosting provider that's going to furnish it. There are several types of servers, depending on the specifications and the web hosting solutions that they provide. These are:
Shared Hosting Server - a shared web space hosting server offers a smaller quantity of resources, which, of course, reflects on the cost of the service. It can be utilized for hosting small size and medium web portals, which do not require vast amounts of server space and bandwidth.
Semi-Dedicated Servers Hosting - they operate on the very same principle as the shared webspace hosting servers. However, there are much less users sharing the same hosting server. Because of that, each of them will have a bigger share of the web hosting server's resources like RAM, disk storage, traffic and CPU. Perfect for hosting huge websites that do not need complete root-level access.
VPS hosting - the virtual web servers are ideal for medium scale web sites, which do require root access to the web hosting server's configuration files. Commonly, there are a bunch of virtual web server hosting accounts placed on the same server. Nevertheless, each of them is isolated from the other ones and runs its own Operating System.
Dedicated Servers - a completely dedicated physical machine set up and accessed by you and only you. It ensures an immense quantity of system resources. It also includes full root-level access, which makes it an ideal environment for any kind of web portal that needs a web space hosting solution.
The only question that remains is:
Which hosting corporation should I opt for?
As mentioned, there are not many web hosts offering warez web hosting solutions because of judicial troubles. Such hosts are being shut down practically every month. For that reason, if you wish to offer such a service, you should do it on your very own computer. The shared web page hosting service is the most widespread kind of hosting service. For that reason, every hosting supplier offers it. Not all of them, though, provide services such as virtual web hosting servers, semi-dedicated servers and dedicated web hosting servers. Most of the smaller webspace hosting providers do not have the means required for maintaining those solutions. That's why it's always best to settle on a larger hosting company that can supply its clients with all the solutions that they are looking for. You can quickly ID such web hosts by the kinds of services that they are supplying and by the way that they present them to the clientele. For instance, some web hosting providers permit you to kick off with a small scale web site hosting account and subsequently move to a more advanced one, if you consider it obligatory to do so. This is very convenient, because you do not have to transfer websites between web servers and there is no risk of suffering network downtime because of all the problems that may appear. Hosting providers such as NE Ohio Domain Registar provide all types of services and have the needed server resources and personnel to guarantee that their customers will not chance upon any complications when swapping services, which is what a top hosting corporation is in fact all about.