Different Types of Hosting

This is to familiarize you with the general types of web hosting. Note that all may be the right type for your web site.

Free Web Hosting

It is possible to have free web hosting through certain companies. The catch to this is that often you must have a banner advertisement running across your home page or even every page of your site. Some companies may let you use your domain name, but, others may require you to add their name to your domain name to access your site. You don’t mind ads on your site and your site will never grow and you don’t expect any customer support than this is an option for you.

Shared Server

This type of hosting is common and can be a low cost option for you. With shared hosting you pay a monthly fee and get a share on one a server. The problem with this is that you are one site amongst many and your server could be unreliable. May cost $1-$20 per month.

Dedicated Server

With this option you get a whole server dedicated to your site. This can allow you to potentially host hundreds of different web sites. Dedicated servers atre normally used for commerce type websites or the people that want to start their own hosting company. The plus side is that you have access to the server just like you would have at home with your own PC. This type of hosting is much more reliable , but, also more expensive of course. It should run you at least $100 per month.

Server Co-Location

With this option you bring your own server into the equation. purchase a server (either from a supplier like Dell or from the Hosting company itself)get a whole server dedicated to your site. This can allow you to potentially host hundreds of different web sites. Dedicated servers atre normally used for commerce type websites or the people that want to start their own hosting company. The plus side is that you have access to the server just like you would have at home with your own PC. This type of hosting is much more reliable , but, also more expensive of course. It should run you at least $100 per month.