If you want your business’s website to function properly, you’ll need to look for a good web hosting platform. In the modern world, this is of utmost importance.
For many businesses, a functioning website could mean the difference between sales and no sales. If you’re here, you’ve probably done some research concerning web hosting.
You’ve likely come across two main types of web hosting: standard web hosting and cloud hosting.
Who wins the conventional web hosting vs cloud hosting battle? We can help you determine which type of hosting will be best for your business. Continue reading to find out more.
Web hosting refers to where and how you store your company’s web files. You can think of your website as a bundle of web files stored in a database.
When someone enters your domain name or clicks on a link, they download these files from your web host. With standard web hosting, you store your files on a single server.
Some of the types of web hosting you’ll encounter when you start out will be the following:
This type of web hosting is good for those who are trying to get their websites up and running in a short amount of time. As far as web hosting goes, shared hosting is cheap and easy.
A single server is divided amongst multiple websites, meaning you rent out space on the server. Your website’s files will be among the files of dozens or hundreds of different websites.
Dedicated web hosting is a bit more expensive and technically complex than shared hosting. With dedicated hosting, you have a whole server dedicated to your own website.
This gives you more control over your website along with better performance. However, dedicated hosting requires more technical know-how, as the server itself can be difficult to set up and maintain.
For those who are technologically impaired but still want high performance and individualized web hosting, there is still a way. Managed web hosting offers just that.
A team of experts run and manage a web server for you. This option can be a bit more expensive, but it can save you lots of time and stress along the way.
VPS web hosting is similar to shared hosting in that you’ll store your web files on a shared server. The difference is you’ll simultaneously run a virtual server on top of it.
You’ll have a certain amount of storage space, memory, CPU usage, and more. Compared to shared hosting, VPS hosting offers better performance and page load speeds.
Cloud hosting has been growing in demand over the last few years. Instead of storing files on a physical server, the “hardware” is completely virtual. That doesn’t there are no physical servers involved.
Instead of utilizing a single server, your files will float in a cloud produced from a cluster of servers.
Cloud hosting is more expensive than other types of web hosting but can offer greater performance and flexibility. If you operate a rapidly growing business, your website needs to keep up.
Cloud hosting offers unlimited resources for your website, making it easy to keep up with your business. As a bonus, you can scale your resources up or down according to your traffic volumes.
This ensures you’ll never pay for more than what you use over the course of the period.
Now that you know a little more about the different types of web hosting, you may wonder which is right for you and your business. As with any business decision, the answer isn’t as simple as you might want it to be.
The type of hosting you choose will depend on your own business’s needs and resources. If your business is just starting out and has limited financial resources, you may want a cheaper option to start.
If this sounds like you, you may choose a shared hosting server.
However, if your website has more traffic volume, a shared server may not be enough. You may benefit more from managed hosting or cloud hosting.
One of the biggest dilemmas you’ll face with an online business presence is the issue of security. Of course, there is no fail-proof solution to security issues.
However, consider this:
A shared server is split sometimes between hundreds of websites. If one of those websites encounters a security breach, the other websites are at risk.
On the other hand, cloud servers operate from multiple different physical servers at once. This means a hosting service could bounce your website from one physical server to another. This happens for security concerns and performance issues.
Technology professionals often consider cloud hosting to be more secure than other types of web hosting.
If you don’t plan to keep confidential or sensitive material on your server, you may not concern yourself with this question.
For some websites, performance is key. If you have high traffic volumes from day to day, you may not be able to host your website on a shared server. You’ll need a dedicated server of some sort to make room for the volume.
Cloud hosting is thought to perform better than other web hosting platforms. However, you can get high performance from VPS servers and managed servers.
You’ll need to speak with an IT professional to figure out which type of server will best suit your website’s needs.
Before you choose a type of web hosting, you’ll need to consider your needs and your resources. No one type of web hosting will suit all websites and business types. You need to do your homework first.
Each type of web hosting comes with its own pros and cons. Are you considering conventional web hosting vs cloud hosting? Visit the hosting section of our blog to find out more about web hosting.
