Every website needs a host. But what is hosting exactly? One way to think about hosting space is to regard it as a cupboard on the Internet where your website’s files (all the computer scripts, text and images that make up your website) are stored. Whenever someone enters your domain name into a browser (eg Chrome or Firefox) on their computer, or clicks on a link to your website on Google, the browser sends a message via the internet to your website’s cupboard saying it wants a copy of some or all of the files in the cupboard. It knows which cupboard to go to because each cupboard has an address on it – your domain name! When the cupboard is opened, the files are copied and a set is sent back to the viewer’s computer. The viewer’s browser will read and translate all the files and will display your website on your computer screen or viewing device. Of course this is a vast oversimplification! The hosting space is not a cupboard. It is an area on a vast hosting computer in a data centre somewhere in the country or even overseas. But the basic principle holds true.
Our hosting providers
We have our preferred hosts as we need to know exactly how the hosting is set up by the hosting provider. All the hosts we use have many secure servers and back ups, so your site is guaranteed to stay live 99.9% of the time – which is pretty good as hosting services go.
Website design and hosting
The cost of web hosting varies depending upon the website we are designing for you. Simple websites usually need a small amount of bandwidth, so our most basic hosting package should be fine for you. If you expect a lot of visitors, plan to offer large downloads from your site or host video, you may need more bandwidth and therefore a larger hosting package. Most of our website design packages include hosting free for the first year, so you only pay from year two onwards.
