Room 208

Anyone that wants to store their website or have a facility to offer products and services on the Internet will require a web hosting company to do this. This allows individuals and organizations to have their own website available on the internet which may be supplied as part of another package, free or through a fully paid service. Hosting companies can have many servers which they use to store these files, with each customer having their own section for storage; a little like a draw in a filing cabinet.

A large number of companies even supply free hosting to individuals, not generally companies, where they are able to have websites and blogs without any charge. There are many limitations to free web hosting services and they are not generally regarded as an option for serious web users as the amount of storage space is limited along with many other functions a web user may require. There is a huge range of services available and often comparison sites are the best place to search as prices do vary considerably and you must really know in advance what type of service you need.

You may settle for a shared server (where you share your space with other website owners) and it is a good tip is to go for the shared hosting first. When the need for more space and security is required then a dedicated server at extra cost can be used. Websites require a domain name (not necessarily supplied by the web hosting company)otherwise no-one will be able to find you; once this has been done your domain will be allocated a specific amount of space for you to store your website, etc. The word ‘files' is a generic term that can mean anything from video to audio tracks but be aware that basic packages do not give the most storage if you are intending to upload large files; however, as storage costs come down, companies are increasing this amount of space.

Another advantage of web hosting and your own domain name is that email addresses will include your own domain name and not that of those free providers such as Google, Yahoo and MSN to name a few of the thousands of providers whose services can be used. People who are serious about their internet presence will want to have their own identity and to prove the point where people can leave  questions on software testing  should their website is about software testing; you will never see a company using someone else's domain in their email address. The amount of data that is viewed on your site each time someone accesses it is called bandwidth; it is an extremely important aspect to consider and the main reason why buying the cheapest hosting package is not always best.

If your company can't offer you better bandwidth, then it will be very hard for your users to view your webpage. If you only have a small site that does not have much on it then this probably won't concern you but as soon as audio, video and hi-resolution images are incorporated, it becomes more of a concern. Some people use their own home computers for web hosting but there can be serious security and reliability issues here so it is best to look for a professional company to supply this service.