Web hosting is primarily an internet service that helps organizations and individuals create their virtual presence on the Web. Sometimes it is part of the service an internet service provider supplies as part of their package when you sign up with them and can be supplied at no charge. The hosting company has a number of servers, or data centers, where each person is provided with varying amounts of space to store their digital media, including websites; others can then access these files (web pages for example).

Free hosting deals are great for those who want to ‘dip their toes in the water’ for example but the range of services available to them will be limited. However, if you’re planning to expand you should shift to a paid service as free web hosting only gives you limited space and sub-domains for your site. You can search the Web for many of the paid hosting services but their prices may vary depending on the packages they’re offering.

In the early days you may be quite happy to have your files on a server which is shared by many others while you try their hosting services. This will enable you to see if you have chosen a very good company; then change to a dedicated server with your company when you’re comfortable with their services. A web hosting plan is no good unless you have a registered domain to use, then you can use this in conjunction with the storage space to save your files, 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.

Web hosting also provides the facility to have your own email address unlike those supplied by Google and Yahoo for example, this means, your e-mail address is exclusive to your website. It always looks like the user is more serious about their internet presence if they have their own email and domain name, it increases credibility. If you have a busy site with lots of visitors, downloads or video etc. then you need to have a hosting package with sufficient bandwidth; this is the amount of data that can be transmitted.

Insufficient bandwidth will cause problems as visitors will be unable to see your site if it has been used up and you have a few more days before it is re-set for the following month, so you may need to use another web host. Remember, everything that is stored and can be accessed on your site has a bandwidth, even the website itself so if your site contains images, MP3 tracks and video clips for example, your bandwidth allocation will be used up even faster. Although it is possible for a person to use their own PC as a host, there are many security dangers associated with this so using a dedicated web hosting company is preferable.