What is Web Hosting and how does it work
To create a website, you will need to coordinate several steps, and choosing a web host provider is just one of them.
Register a domain – You’ll buy it from a domain name registrar like Domain.com, Bluehost, HostGator, GoDaddy, or Google Domain, to name a few. Choose a unique name to make it easier for people to remember your IP address (which is just a string of numbers). It is much easier to remember “HP.com” than “50.32.247.170”, for example. The domain is the same no matter who purchases it, but the pricing differs for different services and add-ons.
Name Server (DNS): The domain name system is the go-between that directs visitors to your website to the correct IP address. Many times the same company will provide both your registrar and DNS services, but you can choose to use a different DNS if you wish. Some common ones are CloudFlare, OpenDNS, CleanBrowsing, and Google Public DNS.
Web hosting: The actual files that make up the website reside on a server managed by the best web hosting company. Again, this can be the same company as your registrar and DNS server, or you can use a different one for this part of the process. We’ve delved into a couple of respected hosting companies below.
Self-hosting
There are ways to build your own web servers with PC software, but the costs may actually be higher than with a dedicated facility and provider. That’s why most users rely on a third-party service that can guarantee certain features and services 24/7.
Businesses can choose to host their own website to keep everything on-site, with a significant investment in web server and manpower. This makes sense for large companies. For small and medium-sized businesses, however, third-party web hosting providers are a much cheaper route.
