DevX Studio Blog

Understanding Country Code Top Level Domains (ccTLDs)

Although .com, .net and .org are typically the most widespread and talked-about domain name extensions, they are not the only fully-functional ones that are available for use. As more words and phrases in the English language becoming snapped up as .com, .net and .org domains, ccTLDs are becoming increasingly popular.

Simply put, a domain name using a ccTLD has a country code as its suffix instead of the typical .com, .net or .org extension. Each country has its own domain extension; Canada, for example, is .ca, while Japan has been assigned .jp. From a functional perspective, ccTLDs work just as well as any TLD. Therefore, more webmasters are choosing country-specific domains, as better names are typically available than when choosing a domain under the .com, .org or .net extensions.

One common misconception is that ccTLDs can only be assigned to Web sites physically located in the suffix country. This is not necessarily true. While most countries have specific rules surrounding exactly who can register domains using their suffix and for what purpose, regulations in some countries are more stringent than others. While it is true that in certain cases, the registrant must be an individual/company located within the country of the country suffix they wish to register, there are no restrictions whatsoever in others. Micronesia’s .fm domain extension, for example, is available to the general public worldwide; however, Canada’s .ca domains can only be assigned to Canadian companies and individuals.

Because these restrictions can vary, it is important to “look before you leap” when purchasing a ccTLD. Always research any restrictions that may be placed on potential ccTLD purchases; otherwise, you may not be able to buy the domain you want.

Why You Should Consider Purchasing a ccTLD

There are several reasons why purchasing a ccTLD instead of a regular TLD could be advantageous to your Web site:

* Keyword availability: Most of the effective domain names available under the current TLD structure have already been registered. Because of this, most businesses and consumers are being forced to register obscure words and phrases as domain names. ccTLDs, on the other hand, are available to a limited pool of buyers; this significantly increases the chances that the domain name you want is available.

* Regional identification and branding: Although part of the Internet’s allure is its global nature, a ccTLD can provide regional-specific branding that a typical TLD cannot. This is becoming particularly important as companies try to distance themselves from being labeled as “.com” operations. It is also important because “.com” Web sites are typically perceived to be American; therefore, a ccTLD can provide the regional identification that a TLD lacks.

* Reseller advantage: Domain name resellers that offer ccTLDs send a strong message to customers that they are willing to provide a “one stop shop” for domain name services. It also increases the potential for repeat business and revenue.

With the increasingly widespread use of ccTLDs, it is no longer necessary to settle for a mediocre TLD when better ones are available using a different suffix. Therefore, keep all of your options open the next time you shop for a domain name; you may be selling yourself short if you don’t.

Add comment June 20th, 2007

Glossary of Domain Name Terms

.COM: Short for .commercial. Domain names with the .com extension are by far the most popular, and can be purchased by any individual or business. .

.NET: Short for .network, this domain extension was originally designed to be used by technical Web sites. However, domains using this extension can be registered by anyone.

.ORG: Short for .organization. Originally designated for non-profit firms and any other organizations that did not fit under the .com or .net extension, any individual or business may now register a .org domain name.

.AERO: The TLD designated for the air transport industry. Available only to aviation community members, this domain suffix is now live and fully functional. You can find more information on this TLD here: http://www.nic.aero.

.BIZ: The .biz TLD is a designated suffix for businesses. Domains using the .biz extension must be used for business or commercial use. This suffix is fully active. http://www.neulevel.biz has more information on the .biz suffix.

.COOP: This TLD is available to cooperatives, cooperative service organizations and wholly owned subsidiaries of cooperatives. You can find more information on the .coop suffix here: http://www.nic.coop.

.INFO: The first unrestricted top-level domain since .com, .info domains are available to the general public. You can find more information here: http://www.nic.info/gateway.

.MUSEUM: This TLD is available only to museums, museum organizations and individual members of the museum profession. More information on the .museum TLD is available at http://musedoma.museum.

.NAME: Available to the general public, .name email addresses are listed as firstname@lastname.name or lastname@firstname.name, while Web sites are listed as www.firstname.lastname.name. More information on the .name TLD is available here: http://www.nic.name.

.PRO: The .pro suffix was created for certified professionals including lawyers, doctors and accountants. RegistryPro, the organization in charge of administering .pro domains, has initiated steps to set up the new registry, and anticipates taking registrations in late 2002. More information is available at http://www.registrypro.com.

Appraising: The process of evaluating a domain name and determining its market value.

Bandwidth: The amount of data that can be transmitted at a given moment to a server. The higher your bandwidth, the larger amount of traffic your site can handle at one time.

CGI: Short for Common Gateway Interface, a small script that processes data taken from the user (such as from a form application).

Cgi-bin: The directory on a Web server where CGI scripts are stored.

Domain servers: This contains the DNS (Domain Name System) information for a domain, and is usually listed in WHOIS records. There are usually two lines of DNS information. The first is typically a site’s primary DNS information, while the second contains secondary/back-up information.

DNS: Short for Domain Name System which is used to translate numeric addresses (known as IP, or Internet Protocol, addresses) into words.

Domain names: The word sequences users enter in their URL bar to visit your site.

Escrow: A third party service that will essentially hold on to the buyer’s payment when selling a domain name, thereby protecting both the buyer and seller.

HTTP: Stands for HyperText Transfer Protocol, the protocol by which HTML files move across the Internet. HTTP requires a client browser and an HTTP server (typically a Web server).

ICANN: Stands for Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which is a not for profit organization that handles IP address space allocation and most other regulatory tasks associated with domain names.

IP Address: The numeric address behind a domain name that holds a website’s real location on the Web.

Domain Name Parking: All domain names have to be stored on a server in order to be purchased. Most domain registration services will therefore temporarily place a newly purchased name on their servers until a hosting plan is purchased or the owner points the DNS to a different site. This is known as parking.

Propagation: The process where name servers throughout the Internet add new domains and remove expired ones from their records. This can be a lengthy process, which is why connecting to a new domain name can often take three or four days.

Reseller: A company/person that sells domain names through registry services provided by an ICANN approved registrar.

SSL: Short for Secure Sockets Layer, a protocol developed by Netscape to handle and protect confidential/sensitive information required for e-commerce transactions (like credit card numbers). SSL address usually begin with ‘https’.

Subdomain: Typically known as a “domain within a domain”, subdomains are individual Web addresses built upon a pre-existing domain name (such as clientname.yourhostingcompany.com). As a reseller, you will have the option of assigning subdomains to clients if they do not choose to have a domain name.

TLD: Short for Top Level Domain, the suffix to a domain name. TLDs include .com, .net, .org and country codes such as .ca.

WHOIS: A central database which tracks all domain name/IP registrations. Each domain name registrar typically maintains its own version of a WHOIS database.

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Glossary of Web Hosting Terminology

Access Microsoft’s advanced database creation and maintenance software. It is very popular among developers who maintain online databases with Windows NT.

Active Server Page (ASP) ASPs are HTML documents embedded with scripts (typically Microsoft’s VB Script or Jscript). These scripts are processed by the server prior to being transferred to the user.

ActiveX A set of properties that define how applications are to share information with each other. These properties are known as controls.

Aliased Nameservers An aliased nameserver is a nameserver that has been labeled as yours (the reseller’s) despite the fact it actually belongs to your Web hosting provider. This ensures that domains located on your server are listed as “ns.yourservername.com” instead of “ns.yourprovidersname.com”. Also see NAMESERVER below.

Apache One of the world’s most popular Web server programs, Apache was built by a group of open-source programmers and is often used because of its outstanding performance, strong security features and the fact that it is free.

Application Service Provider A third party that manages software applications for servers and networks.

Bandwidth The amount of data that can be transmitted at a given moment to a server. The higher your bandwidth, the larger amount of traffic your site can handle at one time.

Cookie A text file sent to a user’s Web browser from a Web server. Cookies are typically exchanged back and forth between the two in order to prepare custom content for users, and to exchange data like registration information.

Domain names Domain names are the word sequences users enter in their URL bar to visit your site. They are attached to a DNS, short for Domain Naming System, which is used to translate numeric addresses (known as IP, or Internet Protocol, addresses) into words. Each site you visit on the net has a numeric IP address behind its name.

FTP Short for File Transfer Protocol, a method of allowing remote users and Web servers to exchange files.

HTTP Stands for HyperText Transfer Protocol, the protocol by which HTML files move across the Internet. HTTP requires a client browser and an HTTP server (typically a Web server).

ISDN Short for Integrated Services Digital Network, a high-speed solution to moving data over phone lines. It can transfer data at approximately 128,000 bits per second over a standard land line.

Load Balancing Distributing data across a network of servers in order to ensure that a single Web server does not get overloaded with work, thereby affecting performance.

MS Index Server An add-on for Microsoft Internet Information server (see above) that indexes documents on Web or Intranet servers running IIS. The information is then presented to users in a searchable format.

NOC Short for Network Operations Center, a hosting company’s “home base,” so to speak. The NOC is usually where most administration, technical support and physical server storage takes place. For more information, please refer to our article, Inside the NOC, here.

OC Short for Optical Carrier, representing the speed of fiber-optic networks. OC speeds can range anywhere between 1 and 48. Most hosting companies have OC3 connections, which allows for the transfer of data at a rate of up to 155.52 Mbps.

Propagation The process where name servers throughout the Internet add new domains and remove expired ones from their records. This can be a lengthy process, which is why connecting to a new domain name can often take three or four days.

Reseller A reseller operates components of a Web hosting operation using services, infrastructure and equipment provided by another Web hosting service. Some resellers operate full-fledged businesses using the hardware, software, network and logistical support of another Web hosting firm, while others simply operate as sales agents for other Web hosting companies, offering discounts and providing low-level technical support.

Subdomain Typically known as a “domain within a domain”, subdomains are individual Web addresses built upon a pre-existing domain name (such as clientname.yourhostingcompany.com). As a reseller, you will have the option of assigning subdomains to clients if they do not choose to have a domain name.

TLD Shot for Top Level Domain, the suffix for major domain names like .com, .net and .org.

UUENCODE Short for Unix to Unix Encoding, a method of converting images to ASCII (see above) text in order to be transferred over the Internet.

Virtual Private Server (VPS) A virtual private server provides the features of a dedicated server on a machine that is shared by other Web hosting customers. Customers therefore get hosting services that are similar to that of dedicated Web hosting without sacrificing privacy or performance.

Windows NT/2000 These are graphic-based, multitasking Operating Systems developed over the past few years by Microsoft. Both can act as standalone OS for personal computers/workstations, or can serve as an OS for a Web site/network. Most Web hosting companies and resellers offer Windows-based hosting in some capacity or other.

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How Resellers can Ensure Quality of Service

An important component to any hosting operation is quality of service. Hosting operations must ensure that they provide reliable, quality service to their clientele to ensure their retention. The best way for resellers to make certain that they are offering the best services possible is to contract Web hosting from a higher-tier provider under the auspices of a service-level agreement.

A service-level agreement (SLA) is a contract between a carrier and a customer that defines the terms of the carrier’s responsibility to that customer, and the type and extent of remuneration if those responsibilities are not met. Such an agreement commits a service provider to a pre-determined level of performance based on specific criteria. Penalties are levied if the service provider fails to meet commitments.

Previously, SLAs only applied to telecommunications carriers and data processing service providers. With the advent of the Internet, networked business applications and Web host outsourcing, the service level agreement has been extended to cover a larger array of business situations.

Web hosting consumers and Web host resellers are using SLAs to set performance standards for their network and equipment vendors. The contract works to ensure that the outsourcer is delivering the uptime, service, security and bandwidth required. At the very least, a SLA should guarantee the degree to which the network or the application is working and available.

Most service providers guarantee 99.5 percent uptime and will sometimes ensure 100 per cent network availability. The most credible and comprehensive service level agreements will specifically guarantee network latency, network packet delivery, service quality and equipment availability.

Network latency guarantees will ensure that customers will always be able to access network resources at a specific speed.

Network packet delivery guarantees ensure that data transmissions between recipient and your hosting service are sound and reliable. This is one of the most important guarantees that apply to a hosting reseller. Information on a network is divided into “packets” before it is transmitted one packet at a time. Some service providers measure the rate of network traffic based on the packets that go in and out, but they do not mention how many packets of information inadvertently are dropped along the way. It is essential that a guarantee against packet loss be incorporated into any SLA that is utilized by a reseller. Any packet loss is in fact data loss, which impacts your customers.

Resellers should also ensure that service quality is built into their SLA arrangements. Service quality guarantees attempt to build in a minimum level of technical support and customer care into a Web hosting arrangement.

Equipment availability guarantees insure that higher-tier hosting providers invest in fault-tolerance in the event of server failure.

While resellers should seek SLA arrangements for services, which they intend to furnish to their clientele, they must not envision the SLA as a panacea for all service provision issues. SLAs are complex documents, which are often complicated by specific terms.

For example, while most service providers will claim to provide 99.5 per cent network availability, many will define this availability in terms of consecutive hours. This means that if service is not available for a specified time, it might not be considered a breech of the SLA.

Because service level agreements are extremely complex documents, it is recommended that resellers review them in detail to ensure all components of their services are guaranteed against failure. Most resellers will not protect against customer-induced outages or acts of God, and these factors must be considered before signing an SLA.

Resellers should also consider the process of signing a SLA as a negotiable process, which means that SLA terms and conditions must be flexible before hosting services are purchased. Resellers must therefore examine SLAs with care by reading the fine print and doing the calculations.

Resellers should also consider whether the remedies offered by the higher-tier host are sufficient in cause of failure.

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How A Domain Name Works

Although the concept of a domain name may seem simple enough – using a sequence of letters and words to identify a Web address – there is a great deal more going on “behind the scenes”. This is because a domain name does not represent a Web site’s true address; rather, it is a mask that makes a Web site’s true address easier to remember.

Domain names are actually attached to a DNS (Domain Naming System) server, which is used to translate numeric addresses (known as IP, or Internet Protocol, addresses) into words. Each site you visit on the net has a numeric IP address behind its name, which represents the site’s real address on the Internet.

Every domain name must be attached to a DNS server, which is the responsibility of the domain’s owner (most registrars and Web hosts will handle this issue for you). There is no one central registry for DNS information; when a user enters a domain name in to their Web browser, it is up to that URL’s DNS to handle the request. The DNS server then provides the browser with the correct IP, if it exists; otherwise, it returns an error message or redirects the user elsewhere.

After an IP has been determined, the user can interact with the Web server to access specific pages. While this is a specific and complex process in itself, here is a general overview as to how it works:

1. The browser now determines which protocol (the language client machines use to communicate with servers) should be used. Examples of protocols include FTP, or File Transfer Protocol, and HTTP, HyperText Transfer Protocol.

2. The server sends a GET request to the Web server to retrieve the address it has been given. For example, when a user types http://www.example.com/1.jpg, the browser sends a GET 1.jpg command to example.com and waits for a response. The server now responds to the browser’s requests. It verifies that the given address exists, finds the necessary files, runs the appropriate scripts, exchanges cookies if necessary, and returns the results back to the browser. If it cannot locate the file, the server sends an error message to the client.

3. The browser translates the data it has been given in to HTML and displays the results to the user.

This process is repeated until the client browser leaves the site.

When you purchase a domain name, you should be able to edit your DNS information as often as you like. Make sure to retain your login information, as DNS servers tell users where to go; if you need to update your DNS information and you can’t access your control panel, users will never find your Web site.

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How do I Choose a Good Web Host?

A good, shared Web host must provide reliable and reasonable quality of service. Many times, a consumer will sign up with the least expensive provider only to experience many technical difficulties and the inevitable and frustrating experience of changing Web hosts. To avoid this experience, it is best if the consumer chooses the right hosting company. Ensuring that a shared Web hosting firm has the following characteristics will increase the probability of consumer satisfaction.

Quality Server Technology The use of quality server technology is important. Since shared hosting services utilize multiplexed equipment, consumers must ensure that the server and server technology used can accommodate the number of users on your particular server.

System Administrators Make sure that knowledgeable system administrators are operating your hosting company’s technology.

Network Redundancy Your shared hosting package must have multiple connections to the Internet. Network redundancy ensures that if one Internet connection goes down, traffic can be re-routed through another connection.

Network Connectivity It is important to find the fastest Internet connection possible. Since you are competing with other users for resources in a shared hosting environment, you should ensure that you have at least T3 connection that is using less than 50 per cent of available bandwidth.

You should also consider the following factors before selecting any type of shared hosting solution for your Web site. By considering these factors, you will save money in the long run by selecting a solution that grows with your business.

Purchase only what you need Select a Web hosting solution that corresponds with your business needs. Only purchase services that your site will require to provide your specific content. Don’t sign up for an all-inclusive account with a hosting firm if you won’t use most of their services. This will unnecessarily increase your costs.

Select a scalable solution Make sure that your hosting solution can grow as your site grows in complexity. Ensure that you can upgrade your site to accommodate increased bandwidth and other demanding resource requirements such as server-side scripting, database support and multimedia streaming.

Find prompt tech support Only use a host that provides prompt and knowledgeable customer care. A dependable host should offer 24×7 toll-free technical support rendered by experienced and professionally trained technicians.

Check references Before you commit to a particular hosting firm, ask for references. Make sure to canvass other webmasters running sites with similar specifications. Browse their Web sites and measure response times at both peak and non-peak periods.

Watch your billing and keep your receipt Many hosting firms are notorious for their horrid billing practices. Check your credit card statements to ensure that you are not being overcharged or billed at an incorrect frequency. Most purchases occur online, so make sure to print out your receipt. Most companies will require you to remit that receipt by fax in order to cancel.

Back up all your data Do not depend on your host to recover any data you publish on the Web. Most hosting firms are only equipped to recover files in the event of a system failure. Ensure that you have a copy of any data that you post to the Web on your own hard drive.

Own your own domain Make sure that your Web host will not hold you hostage to their service by exercising administrative control over your domain name. Your host should only be listed as a technical contact. You should exercise administrative control over the domain name from the point of purchase.

Do extensive background research Find out whether a host is real or whether it resells hosting solutions. Also check what payment processor the host uses to run credit card transactions. Determine who owns the hosting company and whether they possess the technical expertise required to run it effectively. All of these factors impact upon the credibility and reliability of the host and the services you provide your customers.

Obtain assurances You should obtain assurances concerning service quality before you sign up for hosting services. A quality Web host should assure some form of service quality and compensation if you experience an interruption in service.

Understand your obligations Before you sign up with a Web host, you must understand what your obligations are concerning payment for service and permissible behavior. Certain hosting companies will not permit high traffic content, such as adult material. Other hosting companies will permit such content, but only if a special hosting service package is selected.

Establish an exit strategy Always have a backup plan in case your host goes belly-up or experiences an unrecoverable failure. Redundancy should always be a priority if you are running an Internet-based business. Remember that any service outage can completely compromise your source of income.

Add comment June 20th, 2007

How Does a Web Server Work?

You have probably come to this site to find a company that provides Web servers or Web hosting services. But do you actually know how these hosting machines work? It’s a good idea to know a little bit about the product or service you are searching for before you begin your quest.

First, it’s important to note that this is a two-sided story. Web servers are responsible for storing and exchanging information with other machines. Because of this, at least two participants are required for each exchange of information: a client, which requests the information, and a server, which stores it. Each side also requires a piece of software to negotiate the exchange of data; in the case of the client, a browser like Netscape or Internet Explorer is used.

On the server side, however, things are not as simple. There is a myriad of software options available, but they all have a similar task: to negotiate data transfers between clients and servers via HyperText Transfer Protocol, the communications protocol of the Web. What type of server software you are able to run depends on the Operating System chosen for the server. For example, Microsoft Internet Information Server is a popular choice for Windows NT, while many Unix fans choose Apache Web server.

A simple exchange between the client machine and Web server goes like this:

1. The client’s browser dissects the URL in to a number of separate parts, including address, path name and protocol.

5. The browser translates the data it has been given in to HTML and displays the results to the user.

This process is repeated until the client browser leaves the site.

Aside from its functions listed above, the Web server also has an additional number of responsibilities. Whereas a Web browser simply translates and displays data it is fed, a Web server is responsible for distinguishing between various error and data types. A Web server must, for example, designate the proper code for any sort of internal error and send that back to the browser immediately after it occurs. It also has to distinguish between various elements on a Web page (such as .GIFs, JPEGS and audio files) so that the browser knows which files are saved in which format. Depending on the site’s function, a Web server may also have numerous additional tasks to handle, including logging statistics, handling security and encryption, serving images for other sites (for banners, pictures, etc), generating dynamic content, or managing e-commerce functions.

Now that you’ve had a behind-the-scenes tour of a Web server, you can appreciate all the work that goes in to delivering a single page of content to your computer screen. Use this knowledge to your advantage, and keep it in mind when shopping around for your next host.

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Introduction to Domain Name Management

Although it may seem simple, the way in which you manage your domain name could mean the difference between your site being online or offline. As a result, it is important to pay close attention to detail when performing administrative tasks that pertain to your domain names, as one slight mistake can lead to a great deal of anguish.

The most common mistake domain owners make is entering incorrect contact information in their domain’s WHOIS record, which essentially serves as a domain’s record of ownership. There are several components to a WHOIS record, all or most of which you will be asked to complete when registering a domain name. These are:

Registrant: The person/organization that registered the domain name.

Administrative contact: The person/organization that will be responsible for all administrative issues pertaining to the domain name, including registrant information.

Billing contact: This is the person/organization responsible for handling any billing issues related to the domain name.

Technical Contact: The technical contact is one of the most important aspects of your registration record. This is the person/company that should be contacted regarding any technical issues pertaining to your domain, and usually contains the contact information of the domain name registry that registered the address.

Should you ever wish to sell, transfer or otherwise modify your domain in a significant manner, there is a good chance your technical contact will have to become involved. As a result, it is absolutely crucial that your technical contact information remain up to date – otherwise, making any adjustments to your domain will become frustrating, and potentially impossible.

There are also several pieces of information that are only when a domain name is queried via a WHOIS service. These include:

Registrar of record: The domain name registry that registered/approved the domain name.

Record last updated: The last time any sort of alteration/update was made to the domain’s WHOIS record.

Record expires on: The date the domain name expires. When a domain name expires, the registrant risks losing control of the name.

Record created on: The date the domain was initially registered.

Domain servers: This contains the DNS (Domain Name System) information for a domain; there are usually two lines of DNS information. The first is typically a site’s primary DNS information, while the second contains secondary/back-up information.

Most registrars allow their users to update most of this information at any time via a Web-based control panel. Make sure you retain your login information when you initially register a domain.

Failing to complete any component of a WHOIS record fully and truthfully, or not keeping it completely updated, can lead to serious problems down the road. An out of date email address, for example, may prevent you from receiving the information required to renew your domain when its expiry date approaches. Therefore, always make sure your information is up to date – otherwise, you could eventually lose control of your domain.

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What is Dedicated Web Hosting?

Dedicated hosting permits individuals and business to lease pre-configured, state-of-the-art equipment and connectivity from a hosting service provider. Instead of simply sharing server space on a virtual server, dedicated hosting gives you the opportunity to lease an entire server for your own exclusive use.

Dedicated services include the lease of pre-configured equipment and connectivity from a hosting provider. The equipment and connectivity are fully managed by the hosting firm, providing its customers with a customized Web server in first-class data center facilities.

With a dedicated server, you can exercise total control over your Web presence. You can choose the operating system and software you wish to use, and individualize settings for your multimedia and e-commerce requirements. Dedicated servers are a good choice for customers that require custom software or enhanced server control but do not want to make the significant up-front investment required in purchasing a server.

Dedicated hosting is more desirable for users with more sophisticated needs, since it permits the deployment of more complex applications, as such databases, streaming media, and high-end e-mail solutions. Dedicated hosting solutions also have the ability to host multiple sites on one machine. Such solutions are usually provided on a world-class network connection, and include 24×7 monitoring of the server and network availability.

The fact that the hosting provider owns the dedicated server is a significant benefit to you because they are responsible for maintaining the equipment and the redundant connections to the Internet. If a hardware component fails, the provider is responsible for replacing it at no cost. The other advantage of dedicated service is that it is custom-designed for each customer. Advanced hosting providers will allow you select specific CPU speeds, disk space requirements and other hardware components. Such automated server specification processes maximize your return-on-investment by ensuring that you only select the hardware you need.

Dedicated servers are excellent service options since only a consumer and their visitors can access the server. This means that Web server performance and the security of e-commerce applications are enhanced.

Because of these advantages, dedicated servers can be considered a superior service allowing you access to more reliable avenues of content distribution and control over your hosting environment. With more control, however, comes more responsibility. Customers who select dedicated hosting solutions will require a certain amount of competency in IT and server administration issues in order to properly maintain the server. This will mean a greater investment of time and human resources than what a “virtual” or “shared” server requires. Furthermore, dedicated servers will require a much larger financial investment.

Dedicated servers are usually offered for a single inclusive monthly fee to Web developers, e-commerce operators and content distributors. The cost can range from between $99 to $2,500 per month, depending on budget, and the level of customer care and technical support required.

Dedicated servers are therefore considered an entry-level hosting solution for the small to medium sized enterprises.

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Introduction to Web Hosting

Web hosting is a service that allows users to post Web pages to the Internet. A Web host, or hosting service provider (HSP), is a business that provides the technologies and services needed for Web sites to be viewed on the Web.

Web hosting is a primary service that consumers can utilize after obtaining either dial-up or broadband access to the Internet. It allows users to disseminate their own information resources to any Internet user that is interested in accessing them. Web hosting utilizes the server/client model to distribute content. A Web hosting provider will offer its clients access to a Web server that will push that client’s content to recipients on request. Recipients use clients, or Web browsers, such as Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator to request content from the Web over their own Internet connection.

Web sites are hosted, or stored, on a special computer called a server. The server, or host computer, allows Internet users connected anywhere to reach your site when they put in your domain address, for example: www.yourcompany.com.

The host computers are set up so that when someone types in your domain name (your Web address), the address will follow a route from computer to computer until it reaches your host computer and your web site. Then the Internet user will be able to browse through your Web site. Hosting companies usually require that you own your own domain name in order to host with them. If you don’t have a domain name, most hosting companies will help you purchase one.

To have a Web site on the Internet you first need to have a Web server. Unfortunately, owning and operating a Web server can be very costly and requires technical expertise that most businesses do not possess. This is where “Web hosts” come in. Web hosts provide the equipment and other technical resources that are required to provide a consumer with their own customized Web site. Hosting companies charge a rental fee for the service of storing your Web site and allowing Web site visitor traffic flow to through their computers to get to the information on your site.

Web hosting services are more advantageous because they are outsourced, meaning that the physical location of the Web server does not reside at the consumer’s premises. Outsourcing your Web presence effectively transfers the responsibility for maintaining your Web site infrastructure from yourself to an organization that is more competent to do so.

Many individuals and small businesses take advantage of Web hosts in order to free themselves from pre-occupying their scarce human and financial resources on Web host issues. Individuals and companies who outsource their Web presence do so in order to achieve the following objectives: reduce and control operating costs; improve their own company focus; gain access to in-depth expertise; free internal resources for core competencies; and obtain access to world-class capabilities to control IT functions which are difficult to manage.

The best Web hosting services will provide relatively seamless access to IT functions that will allow you to self-publish your Web site. It is important to note that “Web hosting” strictly refers to providing the consumer with the capacity to upload content to a server for immediate transmission for those that request it. Web hosting does not include the authoring of a Web site or the development of database-driven components or code. It is incumbent upon the consumer of Web hosting services to develop this material or have it developed on his or her behalf.

Web hosting is offered to the consumer in multiple formats based upon the user’s requirements. These requirements are incumbent upon cost and infrastructure provided.

Web hosting can be obtained free of cost from content portal sites such as Yahoo! GeoCities. Such content sites invite individual users to establish Web sites on their domain in order to create a critical mass of core content on their online property. The user does not pay for service because it is subsidized by banner advertising. Because such sites do not charge, they offer limited service depth and quality of service. For example, free services will not provide customized hosting services where domain names are personalized (i.e., www.yourdomain.com).

The “paid” class of Web hosting services however does provide such services. Paid services are normally offered by Internet service providers (ISPs) or by hosting service providers (HSPs). Paid services provide a reliable set of offerings that ensure domain name personalization, service depth and high levels of quality of service. The paid class of Web hosting includes shared, dedicated and managed services. Shared is the most basic level of hosting. With shared hosting, numerous Web sites are shared on one server. While an economic solution, they typically cannot handle large amounts of storage or traffic.

If a consumer’s needs are more sophisticated, then they might opt for either dedicated or managed services.

Dedicated hosting allots a Web site its own server. This is more flexible than shared hosting, as webmasters typically have full control over the back end of the server, including choice of OS.

Managed hosting, on the other hand is a dedicated server that is accompanied by a full suite of technical support, maintenance and monitoring services. This differs from dedicated Web hosting, where customers are provided with their own servers but are still responsible for virtually all administrative and maintenance duties.

Add comment June 20th, 2007