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About Web Hosting Bandwidth and Server Load

By admin on Tuesday, September 7th, 2010 | No Comments

If you own an active website, two hosting issues you’ll definitely comes across are bandwidth and server load.

It is interesting to note that the term Bandwidth carries two meanings. Firstly it defines the magnitude of data that can be transferred to and from the server at any given point, hence the total network capacity available for users on a server. Secondly it also relates to the total limit of data transfer allowed for each user in a given month.

Any activity that you perform on the server causes consumption of bandwidth. For example each file you upload or download, any email you send or receive, any web pages that visitors to your website access etc, all of these actions result in network traffic being utilized.

Web hosting firms devise their plans and packages in a way that there’s a limit to total bandwidth that a customer can consume in a month. This makes sure that other users on the shared server also have enough traffic for their website visitors and that hosting companies themselves do not end up buying more bandwidth from their uplink provider.

The other important aspect affecting the performance of your website is server load. While server load has many definitions, it generally refers to the utilization of CPU. Just like every computer has a central processing unit to process instructions received from various applications, a web server also has a CPU that is central to its performance.

Anything you perform on the server adds some load even if very trivial to the CPU. In wider sense, the server load also refers to usage of other components like main memory, hard disk drives etc that are mistakenly taken as part of the CPU.

A request to visit a web page may result in server‘s disk drive getting busy fetching files associated to that page from different locations, passing it to the main memory for visitor retrieval. While delivering web pages is a simple task, add customized scripts and web based database solutions in this scenario and very soon you’ll realize how tedious it becomes for the CPU to allocate limited memory among the competing requests.

Life would be much easier if all users on a shared server start to care about the load they are pushing onto the server, however generally that is not the case. Therefore it is important for you to learn if the shared server your website is hosted on is going under heavy load and stress caused by other users. Most of the times it’s only a small number of users that place the server undress stress and only the system admin can figure out who they are. What you can do is ask your hosting company to move you to another server that is not heavily loaded.

Server load on a shared server is one of the reasons why many website owners prefer to have a dedicated server, specially those with successful websites. On a dedicated server it’s much easier to optimize your html pages and any scripts or database you may have and see the result of this optimization in terms of faster website access and more satisfactory experience for your visitors.

5 Important Features With Web Site Design Hosting Providers

By admin on Monday, September 6th, 2010 | No Comments

When it comes to choosing the right web site design hosting for you, it is important you know what your needs are for your website.

Here are a few things to keep in mind -

Space -

This refers to how much space they offer you to put your website pages on their server. Make sure that you have enough space to put your pages up, and that you have the option to purchase more space when your business grows.

Bandwidth -

This refers to how much traffic you are allowed – this includes but is not always limited to, emails being send/received, people clicking on your link to get to your website, uploading pages and downloading from your website, all these will use bandwidth. The rule to follow here is to get at least 4GB of bandwidth if not more.

Scripts and database support -

If your website is going to be using scripts, needing MySQL database, make sure the hosting provider gives you access to these. Make sure their support is good and helpful. You can always send in a support ticket before purchasing and seeing how their support replies.

FTP -

This stands for File Transfer Protocol, you use this to upload your pages to your host, make sure that your hosting provider allows you do to this.

Email Accounts -

Check to make sure you have access to POP3 and SMTP so you can send/receive your emails through a third party client such as Outlook or Outlook Express, not all web site design hosting providers provide this service.

There are the 5 main points to consider while looking for a web site design hosting provider, keep these points in mind while researching for a web site design hosting provider.

The important thing is to feel comfortable with their service, and that their site is easy to read and navigate through, this helps you see if they are familiar with web site design

Dedicated and Colocation Server Web Hosting

By admin on Sunday, September 5th, 2010 | No Comments

Most might be aware of the dedicated hosting servers as this is one of the very well known terms in the web hosting business. These days due to the affordable costs, even small and mid-sized businesses prefer to host their website/s onto the dedicated servers. But, until recently, only large businesses and organization could afford a dedicated server. Huge volume of data can be supported by the dedicated servers. These servers are further distinguished between Windows Dedicated Servers and Linux Dedi Servers. Depending on the requirements of the website, one can choose between these two platforms to host the website/s. Generally, if a website is designed using any of the Microsoft technologies such as ASP and .Net and require MsSQL database, then you have no option other than choosing Windows Dedicated Servers for hosting your website/s. While if the site is prepared using PHP and need MySQL database, it can be hosted on any of the platforms. Users usually prefer hosting such websites on a Linux Dedicated Server.

In the category of Dedi Servers, a user would lease an entire server from a host, and use it as per the requirements. You have complete root access of the server, therefore one can install any software or application of your choice without any restriction from the web hosting provider. Ofcourse one has to obey the terms of usage described by the webhost. Choosing Managed dedicated server hosting can ease you from the maintenance, security patch uploading, back-ups and recovery etc. With leased dedicated servers you can be rest assured of the data and website security and its optimum performance. The user gets the privilege to modify the server settings of the hardware components and the OS as per the requirements. One can also ask for customization of the dedicated servers. Also, some web hosting providers offer free back up servers with the package.

Colocation is little different than the dedicated servers web hosting service. The colocation services are also referred as Colo server. In colocation web hosting solution, the hardware is owned by the user himself. These dedicated hosting servers are housed in the data center facility of the web hosting provider. To avail this service, it is important that the customer owns the hardware and software licenses. The customer has the privilege of managing the dedicated servers themselves. The hardware security, bandwidth, power, space and redundant network connectivity is provided by the web hosting company. If you are ready to pay some extra charges, the host would offer technical support and the management services for your server.

Colocation is one of the most expensive types of webhosting solutions. The webmasters who have good experience with server management or large organizations and enterprises can afford Colocation web hosting services. Usually the hardware maintenance, software upgrades, security patch upgrades needs to be taken care by the owner of the server. But with managed colocation services, the host would do it for you.

Dedicated hosting servers as well as Colocation servers have individual pros and cons. With dedi servers you get to experience the same facilities as with colocation servers, but you actually do not own the server hardware, whereas with Colocation servers the customer needs to invest in the costly server hardware and pay for the initial set-up cost to the web host.

Your Web Host – Friend Or Foe?

By admin on Saturday, September 4th, 2010 | No Comments

There’s no way to get around it – your website has to be hosted somewhere. Finding a web host is like finding a mechanic when your car breaks down in a strange town. There are plenty of them, but which ones are fantastic, which ones are semi-competent, which ones are incompetent and which ones are pure thieves?

Before we launch into a discussion about good and bad web hosts, I should probably explain what a web host is. Every website has to be hosted on a web server somewhere. A web server is basically a computer with software that knows how 1) to take calls asking for web page, 2) package a web page for delivery, and 3) send the package to the right computer. Oh, and by the way, the web server needs to be able to tell the difference between a genuine web page request and one that is asking the computer to attack something. Believe it or not, there are bad guys out there trying to get web servers to do all kinds of bad things.

When you order a web hosting package from a web host. you get a place to store your web files where they are available to the public (storage.) You also get a certain amount of work that the computer can do, such as deliver web pages (transfer.) These are the main services you need, but there are other services, such as email and database, available too.

Here are some of my experiences with web hosts. The first high-tech company I worked for was a web host, besides providing design, programming and some other web services to a particular industry. Not a single employee, including myself, had any formal training in web development or programming. We learned by the seat of our pants.

A lot of web hosts today are just someone who figures it’s just a quick way to turn a buck.

In our case, we weren’t credentialed, but we had a great customer service ethic, and if something went wrong we worked double time to fix the problem. But, one time a new tech guy completely deleted a new client’s web site. The words “off-site backup” took on new meaning!

What kind of backup system does your web host have? if the server with your website on it goes down, what will they do?

My next web hosting experience was with a great company, based in Missouri, called Communitech. Their system was great, and their support was even better. But, they were so good, a company called Interland bought them out. It was downhill from there. I teach web development classes, and I put all my course materials on my web site. Three times in one year, I got to class to find out that my site was not functional. When I would call, they would fix it, but their main emphasis was to try to get me to buy a new hosting package. Finally, late one night I got one of the original tech support guys on the line. He said that Interland was cutting back on all their resources, human and computer. All they really wanted was the client base!

So, I moved my site to a local, Missoula, web hosting company, called Modwest. And, I told them that, if they sell to Interland, I’m moving my site.

Do you have a list of other great web hosting companies, in case yours goes bad?

Another company I worked for hosted one of their sites with Interland. The company has a weekly emailed newsletter with links to various articles on their web site. A large portion of their weekly traffic comes on the day the newsletter goes out. About 3 or 4 weeks a year, the web site goes down on the day that the newsletter goes out. And they can’t seem to figure it out themselves. We had to call then to let them know that the server was down. I found out that their web servers are set up so that one site is only on one server. If that server goes down, all the sites are dead. Modwest has their web sites on clusters of servers. If one goes down, the others in the cluster pick up the load. You would think that at the very least, if the Interland servers go down, someone would be alerted and fix it before we have to call!

Look into your web host‘s “configuration” before you sign up!

Web Mirroring Service at BNS Hosting

By admin on Friday, September 3rd, 2010 | No Comments

As the saying goes, “Two heads are better than one,” but technically, two or more web servers are better than one. This is how the Mirroring Service will multiply your current website and copy its content over to our mirroring webserver. This instantly adds an extra webserver that is hosted in the US. Your website gets to use our 1gb of extra bandwidth. This service is perfect for handling sudden traffic surges. It also moves your website closer to your North American web visitors.

What is the web mirroring service?

It is a service wherein it will multiply your current website and copy or mirror all of its contents to another server. Other typical mirroring service will require you to upload the same copy to the mirror site, or, the mirror site copies the files on the server 2 or 3 days later after the update of the server. Unlike other mirroring service, our web mirroring service is automatic, meaning, our system takes care of it automatically so as the client update the original site our Mirror site will be updated as well. Easy to deploy, easy to update, no hassle on the part of the client.

Advantages of having the web mirroring service are, there will be two or more locations of your site content, depending on how many mirror sites being deployed. Having two or more locations, means the site will be much accessible, since bandwidth is being doubled or even tripled. Next to this, clients dont get to exceed the bandwidth usage, and this is perfect for handling traffic surges, no more downtime because of bandwidth exceed. This will reduce CPU and memory utilization on your original server.

This service is best for sites that expect more visitors, game servers, blogs, etc.

Advantages & Disadvantages of Colocation

By admin on Thursday, September 2nd, 2010 | No Comments

Colocation is a type of internet server hosting. With Colocation, companies buy rack space in a Data Centre and store their own server equipment there. These Data Centre’s are facilities purpose built for this purpose. It is a way for companies running there own servers, but not having to have them on the site of their own business. Multiple customers are located at these Data Centre’s, but each own their own rack space and server‘s. There are both advantages and disadvantages to Colocation, compared with hosting your own server on site, or just basic web hosting.

Bandwidth is cheaper in a Colocation Centre than it would be if you hosted your own Server. As bandwidth is shared between many servers, the cost is reduced. This also has the advantage of there being extra bandwidth should it be necessary. Unlike managed hosting, with Colocation you own your server and therefore have control over it, and can upgrade if you want to. There are large power and mechanical systems, and due to this website speeds can be much quicker. Having your server based away from your own site means that your internal networks are freed up and can be used for other purposes.

As colocation centres specialise in this area there are superior backup protection in case of any problems. If the is a power failure, for example, there is unlikely the server are the same problems you would get if you host your own. This means that websites can go forward. Colocation can be beneficial for small businesses, some of the characteristics of a large IT department you want, without the high costs. Most centers pay extra for customers to make their servers are operated and maintained. Server centers are located in a safe environment for colocation. There are security, and servers are kept in a firesafe and temperature controlled environment.

As with most things Colocation has disadvantages and advantages. It may be cheaper than hosts, but is more expensive web hosting simple. Therefore, when web hosting is all that is necessary, this is the best option. There is an initial cost involved, as you have to pay for both rack space in data centers and servers. Once you have insufficientthese initial costs, you still need to pay for bandwidth, usually on a monthly basis. This cost will vary depending on the amount of bandwidth that has been used. If a particularly large amount of data has been transferred during the month, then you could have quite a large increase in costs that month. Of course, this can also work the other way, with the cost being less than expected.

As the prices fluctuate month on month you don’t have the security of knowing the exact amount you will be spending. Unlike Managed Hosting, you also have to pay whenever your server equipment needs updating. One of the benefits of having your server located at your own site is that it is there with you, whenever you need it. This is not the case with Colocation, and you will need to travel to the Data Centre when you need to perform any tasks. Unless you pay someone else to do it for you, you have to maintain your own server equipment, much like server, but unlike managed hosting.

There are many things to consider to better decide whether or not the meeting Colocation for your business. You have to bear the cost, practical, and the degree of control you have seen. Colocation need a very good alternative web hosting or managed hosting, depending on the individual.

What is Yahoo Web Hosting?

By admin on Wednesday, September 1st, 2010 | No Comments

This is the place where your website is actually stored and also the server from which the data comprising the site is transferred when someone visits it. Specifically, these two aspects of web hosting are referred to as storage and bandwidth.

These terms may all sound intimidating, but they’re really not that complex, at least conceptually. When it’s broken down, here is the best way of understanding how it all works.

The storage at a company like Yahoo hosting refers to the place where all the information and media that makes up your site is held, so that it can be accessed when someone types in your website address. Keep in mind that the internet isn’t some big bank somewhere in the center core of the earth that we can all just drop websites into and then they are there forever. The internet is simply a huge network of computers, basically.

Thus, within the network there literally has to be a computer somewhere with a hard drive on it that keeps your site‘s data saved. The act of Yahoo web hosting doing this is called “Storage.” To better understand this, realize that when you save a picture or song or text document on your personal computer, you in fact are offering yourself the service of personal storage.

The type of storage at Yahoo web hosting is only different because it’s public storage, meaning the kind that will be available to anyone who knows your website’s address. But essentially a web site is just like a bunch of pages stored on a computer known as a web server on a huge network.

Yahoo obviously has many computers. They, like most web hosts, actually keep copies of your site‘s data on multiple computers as a deliberate redundancy. This way, if the worst happens and a server fails for any reason, Yahoo web hosting always has another copy of your site on an alternate server (often in multiple geographic locations).

Web Hosting is Best on a Dedicated Server Despite the Cost

By admin on Tuesday, August 31st, 2010 | No Comments

Web hosts give you a pair of alternatives – you can be on a dedicated server or a shared server. In the latter case, it is a web hosting situation in which multiple firms occupy the room available on the server and no single enterprise maintains absolute control over the server‘s assets. On the other hand, in the former case, a single firm possesses the control all by itself. That is also referred to as being on a “private” server, meaning that it only hosts an individual company.

The business hosting the dedicated server exercises complete control over its operating system (original), its hardware and its information application software. The majority of the time it is used by information centers and businesses which transmit and perform calculations on larger amounts of data.

With the aid of a dedicated server the company using it will be able to make Adjustments to it according to his needs. And 'useful hosted applications and data groups can modify the operating system or user. There are a variety of companies, website hosting.

In essence, what the company is known for its proper destination, they may do. The web hosting company may also include things such as firewalls, up-and protection of reliable data access for security purposes. They also offer greaterbandwidth, transfer rates that are better, and improved flexibility coupled with more up to date administrative alternatives.

Alternatively, shared server helps to host many companies at a particular point of time which lead to slower data charges and no genuineness or admission to customization. This web hosting is best suited for small and medium companies but as these companies are looking for faster expansion data is escalating by so many bounds in such companies also.

If you’re willing to pay for it, there are a lot of advantages to choosing a dedicated server. A dedicated server provides quality services designed with your needs in mind. Although it isn’t always the cheapest option, it is the best choice for your company. Just make sure that you have a skilled expert on staff who has the technological skills to work with dedicated servers.

How To Choose A Hosting Service For Your Niche Web Site

By admin on Monday, August 30th, 2010 | No Comments

Choosing a web host for your niche site(s) is like taking a partner into your business, so it’s essential that you find one that fits with what you want to achieve. Here’s my basic criteria for choosing a web host:

Reliability. This is the first thing I look at when choosing a hosting service. Guaranteed minimum uptime (the time when the hosting server is functional) should be 99.9% or better with daily back-ups of their servers so you don’t lose your site if the host has a problem – it does happen.

Support. You need to make sure that your host has 24/7 support 365 days of the year. Before you sign up, send a couple of queries at different times of day and see how fast they respond. Ideally you’re looking for a response time of a couple of hours or less.

Disk space. This is the amount of space you’ll need on the host‘s servers to house your web site(s). (100 Mb = 60 pages approx. but this will be much reduced if you are featuring audio and/or video on your site). You need to figure out the size of your website and how much it is likely grow. Before I look for web hosting I build my site(s) so that I can figure the space in Megabytes I’m going to need. I then multiply that figure by 5 to allow for growth. It’s only a rough rule of thumb, but it works for me.

Monthly Bandwidth Transfer. This is the measure of data (web pages, images, PDF files, audio and video clips) to be accessed by visitors to your web site each month. Deciding this is a bit more difficult, especially if you’re just preparing to put up your first niche web site, because you will have no idea what volume of traffic your site will receive until it’s established and been running for a while. I usually go for 10 times the disk space I’ve estimated. So for instance if I need 100Mb of disk space for my web site then I want 1Gb (1000Mb) of bandwidth as a minimum. I know it sounds like overkill, but it’s better finding out halfway through a month your web site has been suspended because your bandwidth has been exceeded.

24/7 FTP (File Transfer Protocol) Access. FTP allows you to transfer files between your local computer and your hosting service’s server on the Internet. FTP access lets you to upload and make changes to your niche web site(s), when you need to, via a piece of software called an FTP Client. Make sure you select a hosting service that allows unlimited FTP access.

POP3 Email Accounts. These are email accounts that allow you to send and receive emails customised with your domain name, for instance sales@yourdomain.com or support@yourdomain.com. Before you decide on your host, You must ensure that they provide sufficient POP3 account for your needs.

MySQL database. If you want and stay for a candidate or blogs or similar applications that the domain you have to go to run on databases. Hosting services vary in number, they offer with their packages so surely need to provide sufficient for your expected needs. I usually choose a host that offers "unlimited" MySQLdatabases so that I know I won’t be restricted.

Cpanel with Fantastico Installer. For me this is essential. cPanel is a graphical, web-based, easy to understand, control panel, which allows you to manage all aspects of your e-mail, files, backup, FTP, CGI scripts and statistics for your web site all in one place. I’ve used hosting companies that don’t offer this facility which made it quite complicated to manage the various aspects of my web presence.

Fantastico is a commercial script library that automates the installation of a treasure trove of open source applications like blogs, content management systems (CMS), support desks, discussion boards and a lot more to enhance and automate your niche web site.

So there you have it, my basic criteria for choosing a web hosting service. Now you know what they are, get out there and use them to help select your ideal hosting service.

Just Another Cheap Hosting Guide

By admin on Sunday, August 29th, 2010 | No Comments

Hosting (also known as Web site hosting, Web hosting, and Webhosting) is a service provided by companies which offers space on a server they own or lease via the internet. The web hosts will store the web pages on their server and any individual may viewed it on the internet. In simpler terms, the web hosts act as a landlord of a building (server) that offers vacant rooms (disk space) for rent.

There are plenty of web hosting providers on the internet. The key is to choose the appropriate hosting company which offer subscribers either free or paid services. Internet access providers such as America Online, Yahoo! GeoCities, Lycos Tripod or Google (Google Page Creator) offers registered users free webspace to create their own website that is hosted by one of their computers. This literally means they offer physical space on their machines for their customers to create and manage their own website. However, it has its disadvantages since the services provided are very limited and also basic. In addition, they often place advertising banners on the web page which can turn into a nuisance. There is a probability you won’t have any say over the types of advertisement being posted.

Alternatively, you may find the cheapest web host. Having a budget web hosting does not mean to settle for less in terms of quality. There are companies which offer free domains, disk space, 24-hour technical support, more bandwidth and unlimited traffic at a fraction of the price. You will be able to enjoy flexibility and capabilities compared to any free sites could give you by paying for it. The monthly subscription ranges between $5 per month to $50 or more. Even though some web host companies offers a more expensive rate but that does not necessarily mean a high level of Service. You'd be surprised at some of the service that guests have a reliable cheaper.

No matter what budget you have, there is always the best web hosting plan for you! They are specifically adapted to your needs – are for personal use, hobby or business. This low cost web hosting services with high quality and reliable services.

Before the election of the hosting company, you should know more about the technical anddetails about their service. You may perform a search on the Internet to find more information on budget web hosting available out there that suit your needs. This can be found via online web discussion (forum) or message boards which provides many feedbacks on affordable hosting.

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