Did you know that the very first computer network in the world was created way back in 1969, when Apple wasn’t even a twinkle in Steve Jobs’ eyes? ARPANET was created to link computers at Stanford University and the University of California. The World Wide Web only came into being in 1991, with the very first web browser, created by Tim Berners-Lee, allowing the common man access to hypertext documents on the network.
The story evolved quite rapidly after that, with the internet penetrating the world at lightning speeds. So much so that by 2018, the global web hosting market was valued at $90.6 billion, with expectations that it would rise to over $216 billion by 2025. So, what is all this hype about web hosting? Let’s take a look.
What is Web Hosting?
When you create a website, you need a way to house it on the World Wide Web so that anyone can access the site and browse through it from anywhere and at any time. To do this, you need a server that will provide such connectivity. Now, getting your own server to host your website is not just insane monetarily, it also requires you to hire an entire team to take care of the server. This is where web hosting services providers come to the rescue.
Web hosting allows you to rent space on a network of servers, while gaining access to all associated services that ensure that your website is up and running on the World Wide Web, with minimal downtime. So, essentially you get space on a physical server, where you store all your website content, such as HTML, CSS, images, and videos, required for your site to become accessible on the internet. You will find some of the best hosting providers in India.
Types of Web Hosting
Before you go ahead and choose a provider, check the types of hosting plans available, so that you choose one that is best suited to your needs
- Shared Hosting: Here, your website will share space on a server with other websites. The server resources will be distributed evenly among all these websites.
Pros – Hosting price is the lowest for this type of plan, great for start-ups and small businesses
Cons – It can be inefficient at times, especially during peak traffic, since the resources are shared across websites.
- Dedicated Hosting: As the name suggests, here your website is hosted on a server completely dedicated to your website. This means that all the server resources are solely under your control. This is a good option for sites that see heavy traffic, such as e-commerce sites.
Pros – Fast and efficient, full server control
Cons – High price of hosting
- VPS Hosting: This hosting is a combination of the best of what shared and dedicated hosting has to offer. Here your website is hosted on a virtualized & partitioned section of a physical server. So, although you share the server with other websites, specific resources are allocated solely for your use. This type of hosting mimics dedicated hosting and provides more flexibility than shared hosting.
Pros – Efficient, greater control over resources than with shared hosting
Cons – Slightly more expensive than shared hosting
How to Choose a Web Hosting Service?
India is home to some of the best hosting providers. However, the key to ensuring that you get the best out of this service, here are some things to keep in mind which choosing the service provider:
- The first thing you are likely to check is the hosting price. However, don’t let it be the only criterion. Make sure the plan you choose fulfills your needs.
- Check what other services the provider offers such as a free domain name for the first year, free SSL certification, free premium CDB and caching for higher speed, one-click WordPress installation, and 24/7 support to ensure minimal downtime.
- Check if the service provider supports you as your business grows, such that your website can be upgraded or scaled, as required.
- Do they offer WordPress website hosting? What about WooCommerce hosting or managed hosting, so that all the stress of keeping your website running is taken off your shoulders?
Remember, getting a domain name is only the first step in taking your website live on the internet. Choosing the right web hosting services provider in India will make the rest of the journey a breeze.