Once your website is ready, it must be published online. You’ll need a web host for that, and preferably a good one so you don’t have any problems in the future.
In many ways, a website’s host can affect its performance, in both good and bad ways. Your hosting service is responsible for your site’s load time, security, scalability, and user-friendliness. As selecting a web host might be difficult with all the options out there and the various web hosting features you might require.
Web hosting features, such as disc space, bandwidth, security, and more, can vary widely between providers. Knowing what you require and what you can do without is crucial. As such, we have outlined the key features of reliable web hosting to help you get started.
The key features of reliable web hosting
Sufficient disc space
One of the two primary services provided by web hosts is storage space on the host’s server. You can’t have a website without storing its files on web servers, which in turn require physical data centres.
Because the files take up space on the server’s hard drive, you’ll need a hosting package that can accommodate these storage needs.
The right bandwidth
The best web hosting services also need to offer bandwidth, a vital component for any online presence. It is a time-based measurement of how much data can be transferred by a server in that period.
Your website’s loading time is directly proportional to the amount of bandwidth available to it during web hosting.
Strong security
If you’re worried about cyberattacks, your web host can help. Defending your website from malicious attacks is possible with the help of a reliable web host.
Data transferred via your website should be encrypted using an SSL certificate if it contains sensitive information such as credit card numbers or social security numbers. Free SSL certificates are included in certain web hosting packages.
Your web hosting should be able to assist you in finding and eliminating malware. Some even analyse websites for malicious code and alert admins to any issues they may have.
To prevent the most frequent types of attacks, a web application firewall (WAF) can generate rules to apply to your website.
Verify that the hosting plan has enough security measures built in; further, more robust security may be available as an upgrade.
The web speed
Users now anticipate a sub-5 second load time for popular websites. Besides hurting user experience, website performance also influences search engine optimisation (SEO).
More websites hosted on a server means more demand for the server’s limited resources. The web hosting will make sure each site has access to sufficient resources by capping the number of sites hosted on a single server.
Available domain names
The domain name you register is the unique identifier for your online real estate on the World Wide Web. It was created so that internet organisations may be located and identified without resorting to IP addresses.
Free domain name registration is a common perk of hosting plans.
Some website proprietors will register a domain name (to use with their company’s email service), but later switch to a different web host. Therefore, the domain registrant should be able to change registrars if they so want.