Everything here depends on the size of your website.
In fact the easiest way to calculate the volume of the disc space do you need is to check your website's weight at your computer folder. But note that you'll need some extra space, just in case.
For example, if your web site needs 100 MB of disk space, look for the plan which offers at least 150 MB of web space; this will prevent a large unexpected bill at the end of the month when high priced costs, charged by most web hosts for extra disk space usage, are added on to your bill.
Bandwidth
Try to estimate how much bandwidth (data transfer) your web site may use. And of course make sure that you get more bandwidth than your site uses.
For example, if your website uses 5GB bandwidth per month, then choose a plan, which offers at least 8 GB bandwidth per month. This again will prevent from paying more money for ‘extra bandwidth in the end of the month.
Website Speed
This is a very important factor while considering a hosting service.
This will decide how fast your website loads when some one visits your site. You need to know that your future visitors and customers are very busy, so you need a fast server. Otherwise they won't be sitting and waiting for the load of all your texts and graphics.
Feel free to ask your hosting provider to provide you with a list of their client's websites to check their speed.
Mail Server
Make sure that you get enough email addresses with your own domain name. There is no need to pay an extra fee for use of a mail server as many hosts offer this service now for free, within the hosting plan.
...
Now what? That's all for now my friend. If it's your first hosting experience – this information will be sufficient for you I suppose. Of course there're many many other features that you'll find out later. But as for now – let's won't overload you with them all.
If you need to get more information about choosing web hosting or even running a web hosting company – go to www.webhostingoverview.com – believe me, there you'll find everything you need.
Author: Igor Romanoff (Web Hosting Overview)
Date: June 5, 2004
Email: info@webhostingoverview.com
Web Hosting Overview is a resource for everyone looking to find a website hosting company.
Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
Starting out in any type of online marketing or Internet business can be confusing and overwhelming. There are so many different aspects of a start-up: domain name registration and purchase, Web site host purchasing, and of course, the "building" of the Web site itself. This leaves many consumers looking for an easier way to purchase everything in one place, both to save money and to save time.
This has led to the rise of "total packages" by many hosting and Internet development companies, where everything is included: domain-name registration, software for design of a site or an online method of building a site, professional design of the site, and of course, the hosting. This is quite popular as it whittles down the process of getting a site up and running for many new to the Internet and online marketing.
However, with the convenience of Web-hosting packages of this sort, there also can be inconveniences. No road is paved "with gold" and this type of registration, hosting and design package deal is no exception. There can be problems that surface later on when purchasing a Web design and hosting package that also includes registration. These problems usually present themselves in the following forms:
1. Once a Web site becomes popular, the hosting charges may rise exorbitantly, as the "special" that was presented initially can become inapplicable once a certain amount of traffic or the size of the site changes. This is more of a problem for larger business sites than for smaller business sites or "personal" or "theme" sites.
2. Some "specials" only exist for a limited amount of time, and the charges can rise steadily after that period.
3. A Web site owner may have different needs as time goes on, and the "package" no longer suits the needs of the owner. This can include the inability to change the pages on one's own, or the inability to effectively track traffic, as some come with traffic statistics packages.
4. Downtime (when a site is down and can't be viewed) can be significant enough to warrant a change of hosts or domain name registrars.
5. A Web site, registration, and web hosting package company may go out of business, leaving a client with no way to contact them, and three services to quickly replace. This also leaves a site open to loss of the registered domain name, as well as loss of revenues while the site is "down".
6. A contract may exist which states that the "special" prices are only offered contingent on remaining with a certain company for a specified amount of time (which may be years).
7. The actual "name" of your site may not even be registered to "you" the perceived "owner", but to the hosting and registrar company that initiated the purchase through the package deal. This how the Web site hosting, design and registrar packages "save" money many times for consumers, as they "buy in bulk", registering hundreds of sites per month.
All the above seem simple enough to rectify. Simply "switch" the Web site, hosting, and domain name registrar to that of other companies.
This is the point, however, in which "trouble" can rear its ugly head. Some hosting and domain name registrars seem reluctant to "hand over" a site to any other company, as it does mean the loss of a customer and therefore, revenue, for themselves. The current hosting company and registrar may likewise delay a transfer, or refuse to provide sufficient information to a new host or registrar to effectively conclude a transfer. It becomes even more tangled, if the name of a site has been registered to them.
This is where it is possible for a "nightmare" of subterfuge regarding a site to begin. Sometimes, after numerous contacts, with no reply, a Web site owner will realize that the switching of the site has become a real battle.
Here's an actual real life example of a friend of mine, Katheryn:
After much downtime had occurred, Katheryn wrote to the initial hosting company, and domain name registrar, stating her disappointment in the service. A rather nasty letter was received in reply, telling her that she could either "like it or lump it" and that there was not anything they could do, as a contract was in place that could not be "broken" by any means. The language of the e-mail correspondence was rude and uncalled for, and a phone number was not provided anywhere for more personal contact, neither was the name of the support person that wrote the e-mail.
The site remained down consistently, as well, over the next few weeks, forcing Katheryn to sign up for a different hosting plan with a different host, and also re-register the domain with another registrar. Luckily for Katheryn, the registration of the site was in her name, and a new name did not need to be purchased. At the time of import, however, the previous "problem" host refused to initiate a transfer, claiming that the contract remained intact, and therefore the site could not be transferred. The new hosting company had to "maneuver" the site onto it's own servers without the cooperation of the previous company, costing the client more time and money than was necessary.
For months afterward, Katheryn was billed repeatedly by the previous hosting company for monthly hosting, even though a site no longer existed on their servers, and they were in essence hosting "air" at this point. Copies of all correspondence had to be sent to the billing service to "dismiss" this recurrent billing, which was the only option left to Katheryn at this point.
I'm sure there are many people like Katheryn who at one time or the other have gone through such ordeal.
Some possible methods of avoiding the "trap" of packages such as this:
1. Read all paperwork and contracts thoroughly. The fine print is indeed, very "fine" sometimes, for a reason, and reading everything thoroughly will save frustration and misunderstandings later.
Above all, make sure that the registration will be done in "your name", as the loss of a popular name, with a large amount of traffic, is a HUGE loss. Or better still, register your domain name yourself. With so many online domain registrars, it's very simple to register a domain name online. The only thing you need to do once you have bought a hosting package is change the "name servers" through the control panel provided by your domain registrar.
If at all you are not satisfied with your hosting company and would like to shift to a different company, simply change the name servers to point to the new company. That's it!
2. Make sure there is a contact phone number and physical address for correspondence with the companies if the need should arise. As in the case of Example #1, the lack of a phone number and physical address was detrimental to effective correspondence and resolution.
3. Take the time to research different plans and different companies. If at all possible, ask to speak to some of their other clients to ensure that they are indeed sensitive to the needs of their own customers and are flexible enough to adapt to changes in a site over time.
4. Take the time to correctly ascertain your own needs and the needs of any site you'll be building. The package needs to "fit your needs" explicitly.
5. If at all possible, use different providers for each stage of a Web site: hosting, domain-name registrar, site building. It does take longer to get a site up and running with this method, but the overall control that you will have over the site is well worth the extra effort, usually. If one provider proves to be a disappointment, it is easier to replace one service, rather than try to replace everything at once.
As you can easily see, sometimes "time saving" strategies are not really that, and can lead to heartbreak and headaches. As with everything else, "slow but steady" wins the race, and it does pay to take the time to initiate each stage of a Web site individually.
Vishal P. Rao is the editor of Home Based Business Opportunities - A website dedicated to opportunities, ideas and resources for starting a home based business. Visit him at: http://www.home-based-business-opportunities.com/
Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
The Basics
Setting up a web hosting account for the first time can be confusing and frustrating for the novice. This article will guide you through the steps of setting up a new web hosting account for your website.
Setting up your web hosting account will depend upon many things, the first of which is:
Do you already have a website built and ready to be hosted?
If the answer to that question is yes, then your next set of questions should be:
How was your website designed? Did you design it yourself using Microsoft FrontPage, or did you use some other WYSIWYG website building software? Did a professional designer build your site for you? Did they use Microsoft FrontPage, or did they use some other WYSIWYG website building software? Did your designer use a database driven software, such as Cold Fusion? Maybe they coded your site using a text editor – you’ll need the answers to these questions.
If you have a FrontPage website, you’ll need a web host who supports FrontPage. If your site was developed with Cold Fusion, you’ll need a web host who supports Cold Fusion. This also applies to other design software not mentioned here. Check with your web designer and/or web design program’s documentation for further help with this.
Maybe you haven’t yet designed your website. Many web hosts offer online website building software that requires no programming or HTML knowledge. If this is your strategy, make sure your web host offers such software, and find out if there’s a cost for you to use it.
Finding The Right Web Host
Locating a web host that gives you the reliability you need, plus excellent customer service, and that offers all the features you’re going to need, can be challenging.
You can begin your search by asking business associates, friends and relatives who have websites of their own, who they use. Just as you would get a recommendation for a good restaurant, word of mouth can sometimes steer you in the right direction.
You can also check out the many web hosting directories on the web. These directories are set up to allow you to search using the features that you’re looking for in a web host. Keep in mind though, that many of the listings you see may also be paid listings that are pushed your way for obvious reasons.
Once you narrow down your search to a few potential web hosts, your next step will be to visit the many web hosting message boards and forums on the web. Perform a search on each of the potential web hosts that you have in mind – read through the posts and see what other people’s experiences have been with the hosts you have in mind. If you see too many negative comments or experiences by others, you might want to take a hint from that and rule out that particular hosting company.
Once you’ve narrowed down your search to a few web hosts, you should make contact with them and get answers to any questions you have. Since you’re a beginner at this, you might strongly consider using a web host that provides telephone support. A web host that provides only email support may not be able to fully answer questions that you have – this applies to sales questions as well as support questions.
When you make your inquires, keep track of which host responds to you the quickest. Which of these hosts answers your questions patiently and takes the time to go over details with you? Do they seem more interested in getting you to sign up, or do they address topics you have no concern about, beware of those danger signs.
Signing Up For Your Web Hosting Account
Most web hosts have multiple plans that you can choose from. The trick is to choose a web hosting plan that provides you the features you actually need, without choosing a plan that offers you features you don’t need, or may never use. This is probably the most difficult thing a novice will be faced with when choosing a web host. You’ll need to choose a plan that strikes an even balance between what you need right now and what you may need a month or two down the road. Your website might remain the same size as it is today, by next year; however, your site may grow quickly, requiring additional resources in a relatively short period of time.
Consult with your web designer and with your potential new web host about these issues. Ask you potential web host if it’s easy it is to upgrade your account if you need additional services. Ask if there are any additional charges if you upgrade your account.
The last thing you should do before signing up for a web hosting account is to read your web host’s AUP (Acceptable Use Policy), and/or their TOS (Terms Of Service), and/or their SLA (Service Level Agreement). Make certain that you understand and agree with your new web host’s policies, and that your website does not break any of your new web host’s rules and regulations. By not reviewing your new host’s contracts with you, you may find your website and email shut down without prior notice for breaking a rule you were not aware of, or you might end up paying for fees you didn’t know you were liable for.
The majority of web hosts require you to sign up for a hosting account by using your credit or debit card. Some hosts offer online check payment, as well as paper check payments. Many web hosts accept PayPal. You might want to ask if your host offers discounts for advance payment. Some hosts offer substantial discounts if you prepay a year in advance. I don’t recommend this until after you’ve had some time to experience your new host’s level of service and support.
Most importantly, don’t rush into signing up. Wait until you get all of your questions answered to your satisfaction.
Author: WebSite Host Directory .Com Date: 6/15/2004 Email: mkt@websitehostdirectory.com The WebSiteHostDirectory.Com is a resource for webmasters and consumers looking to find a website hosting company or a quality expiring domain name. WSHD is part of the Techpad network of sites. Contibuting editor Russ Mate can be contacted at www.matemediainc.com
Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
You want to change web hosts because you have found a less expensive solution for your web site. You are not happy with the services your host is providing. The response time for technical support is too slow. You make the decision to change web hosts.
Now you are faced with the daunting task of switching web hosts without losing the files and beautiful design of your web site. How do you achieve this? Here are the steps you need to take:
1. Make a complete copy of your web site . Use your favorite FTP utility (I use SmartFTP.com), to download all files to your computer from your web host. Don't assume you already have all the files on your computer - you may have added some scripts from the Net that are on your server but not on your computer.
If you are using Dreamweaver, use the GET command to copy all your files.
If you are using Frontpage, use the import feature to make a complete copy of the old web site.
2. Choose your new Web Host. Choose a new Web Host that meets the needs of your web site (www.isitebuild.com/webhostarticle). If you don't know how much space you need, read the article: "How Much Hosting Space Do You Need"? - www.isitebuild.com/hostingspace ).
3. Transfer your domain name Contact the domain name registrar (place where you registered your domain name) and change the Domain Name Server (DNS) or Name Server information to your new hosts DNS information.
Your site is going to experience a downtime while your DNS record is being changed and propagated through the world's WHOIS servers. It will take about 24-72 hours for the process to be completed.
Maintain any existing services set up on your old domain name such as email forwarding, web pointing and website hosting until the transfer is complete to ensure continuity of your service.
You can check the progress of your domain name transfer by using a Domain Name Search facility such as Whois.net. You should see the details change from your previous Host to your New Host when the transfer is complete.
4. Upload all files to your new Web Host. When you are sure your domain name has been transferred, upload the files to your new Web Host.
Dreamweaver - define your site first, and then use the PUT command to transfer all your files and html pages. This will ensure that your whole web will remain intact with the transfer.
FrontPage - create a new Web from the site files you have imported from your old host, then publish them to the new host. Make sure your new host has Front Page extensions installed. This process will transfer your complete site to your new Host.
5. Transferring web pages to the New Host. Dreamweaver or FrontPage editors make it very easy to transfer html web pages. They keep most, if not all your web site intact for the transfer (as explained above).
Another way to transfer your web pages is to copy the source code by right clicking on the page as you see it when you visit the site and select 'view/source'. It will come up on Notepad. Select 'file/save as' and save to a place of your choice as an HTML file. To do this, at the bottom of the box just before you save it, it will say '.txt'. Change the drop menu to 'all files' and then change the '.txt' at the end of the name you're saving it as to '.html', then save it. You will then have a complete page ready to load to wherever you want. If you have images though, you'll have to save them separately.
6. Amending your web site . Sometimes your web site may not look exactly the same as on your last Web Host. This is because the html code and/or files did not completely transfer. This may happen more often with the editors. FrontPage will do this more because it uses FrontPage extensions for publishing (extra files for easy publishing).
Make the necessary design changes to mirror the site you had previously hosted. You may have to eliminate or add some code to completely reflect your original site.
7. Testing your web site. Once the domain name and your web site files have been transferred, you should test that all services are working on the your new Host (i.e. email services, etc). If it's working correctly, go ahead and cancel all your remaining services with your previous hosting service.
Transferring your web site to a new Host doesn't have to be such a nerve-racking task, once you know the exact steps to take. Now you can enjoy the savings and services of a new home for your web site.
About the author:
Herman Drost is a Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW) owner and author of iSiteBuild.com Low Cost Hosting and Site Design (http://www.isitebuild.com/sitehosting.htm)
Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
Whether you already have a website or are thinking of setting up shop online, sooner or later you'll have to deal with the issue of web hosting. Although it may seem like a "no brainer," there are actually many factors you'll need to consider before making this important decision. Your first inclination may be to look only at the cost, thinking "cheaper is better." However, that old saying "you get what you pay for,"is especially true in this situation. Here are some of the more important points you'll want to look at when considering your next host.
UNIX/ NT/ The two most popular hosting platforms to choose from are UNIX and NT. UNIX is by far the favorite, as it was the only choice way back in the early days of the Internet. It is easy to configure, great for setting your own file permissions and the platform for most of the free scripts available for download. It is flexible, reliable and supports scripting languages like Perl and PHP3.
NT is Microsoft's baby. One problem that I have found with NT servers is a lack of readily available scripts that work on this platform. Also, (unlike UNIX) many NT users need assistance from their Web Host Administrators to set file permissions. NT supports MS applications such as ASP, Access, FP and scripting languages such as Perl, Cold Fusion and ASP.
TECH SUPPORT/ When you need help you'll want to make sure you can get it. Some web hosts offer phone support or even live chat. Make sure they have good tech support in place as there's nothing more annoying than needing assistance with your site and not being able to get it.
SET UP FEE/ MONTHLY FEE/ Some hosts charge an initial set up fee to get your site set up and running on their server. Make sure you check on this when comparing prices. I've seen monthly fees ranging from 9.99 to 39.99, depending on the plan and services offered. My advice to you would be to look past the cheapest and most expensive ends of the scale and go with a mid-range pricing plan to be on the safe side. You should be able to pick up a reliable web host for 20 to 25.00 per month.
HARD DRIVE/ SPACE/ How much space they're willing to give you is important if you're going to compare apples to apples. You need to keep in mind the size of your site when deciding how much space you really need. Generally, 20 to 30 MB is plenty for a small site. You might want to ask if you can pay for more space should your site ever outgrow its present state.
FTP ACCESS/ TELNET ACCESS/ Even if you plan on using Frontpage to manage your site, you'll still need to have FTP access. It is usually standard, but it never hurts to ask. Make sure you keep your user name and password in a safe place. You'll use FTP to set file permissions and to upload your files to the web server.
Telnet can be very useful for troubleshooting CGI scripts and changing server configurations. There are some servers that will not grant telnet access.
CGI-BIN/ A very important component if you're planning on adding any sort of interactivity to your site like forms, shopping carts, etc. Usually comes as standard equipment, but I've seen some of the cheaper hosts leave it out entirely.
EMAIL BOXES & POP 3 ALIASES/ One thing that's very important to me is the ability to use different aliases with my domain name. For example, if your domain is ezineadauction.com, you may want to set up separate addresses to sort your mail like service@ezineadauction.com or support@ezineadauction.com. They may all funnel into the same mailbox, but you can set up filters at your end, making customer service a whole lot easier.
If you have a "wildcard" account, you can set up as many aliases as you like. If you have other employees who will need their own private box, check with the web host to see how many boxes they will allow.
STATS/ Once you start getting traffic, you'll want to know where it's coming from and what pages of your site are being visited. Some web hosts will throw stats tracking in with their standard package or at least give you access to your log files, which you can then use with third party software to run reports on the traffic your site is receiving.
MISCELLANEOUS THOUGHTS/:
1) If you want to use Frontpage: Do they have the FP server extensions installed? 2) Do they offer autoresponders? 3) How about a secured server option for payment transactions? 4) Do they back up all websites in case of disaster? 5) Do they offer assistance in programming or design work if needed at an hourly rate? 6) Do they offer shopping cart software if you're going to be selling products? 7) Do any customized forms come standard with your account, like feedback or order forms? 8) Bandwidth- Be aware that bandwidth is how much data can be transferred in a month's time. This shouldn't be a concern unless you're getting a ton of traffic, but be aware that most hosts do have limitations on what they'll allow.
As you can see, there are many factors to take into account when choosing a web host. Your host is essentially the spine of your site,so you want to make sure that the one you choose is reliable and solid. Nothing can ruin a site faster than an unreliable host. I know; been there, done that.
Remember, choosing a good host is essential to the success and reliability of your online business. Do your homework and choose the one that's right for you.
About the author: Merle http://www.EzineAdAuction.com "Where some of the BEST Deals in Ezine Advertising are Made" Buy & Sell Ezine Ads in a live auction setting! Publishers sell off your excess inventory and Buyers pick up some Fantastic bargains. Go now.
Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
Choosing a web host is the first vital step you'll take toward having your own website. Your web host will provide space on the Internet for your site so that the whole world can view it. But, choosing a web host is not as easy as it may seem.
There are a few mistakes to avoid while choosing your host. I'd like to share these with you below, and explain why it's important to avoid these mistakes at all costs - especially if you wish to start an online business.
3 Mistakes to Avoid
1. Free Web Space - Remember seeing all those ads that mention "free web space"? Please avoid participating in these services. In most cases, the reason it's free is because the company will place advertisements for other websites all over your web page. This defeats the entire purpose of having "your own" web business.
Why should you have to give your potential customers away? Shouldn't you be able to keep the visitors that you have paid to receive through your own ad campaigns?
With "free web space" sites, you'll give away more business than it would cost you to get your own domain and hosting service. It's not worth it.
2. Limited hosting - Avoid hosting packages that will not allow you to add order forms, statistics, or multiple email accounts to your website. These are necessary tools for any webmaster who desires to open an online business.
It's best to choose a hosting service that offers many options such as:
- Multiple POP Email Accounts - Dedicated Hosting - Secure Servers - Web Usage Statistics - Web Space Allocation (you can get how much web space you'll need) - URL Redirection - Autoresponders
These are just a few "necessary" services to look for when choosing a web host for your new website.
3. Low Cost Hosting - Watch out for very low cost hosting packages (i.e. $2.50 per month). They usually require something in return, which can take away profits from your online business.
I must admit that it does sound appealing to sign up for free or very low cost hosting, but count the costs before signing up...
- Each time an advertisement banner is placed on your website, it's designed to get your visitor to click out of your website and go some place else. Most free or low cost web hosting services place these banners at the very top of your web page - giving the visitor an opportunity to click out of your site before getting to the first words of your presentation.
- One complaint that comes to mind about a free hosting service was that the company's server became overcrowded and the customer could not get their website to come up 50% of the time. When this happens, your business is closed - and you have no control over this situation.
One final point about hosting before closing. If you get your own domain name, and your own hosting, your visitors will have more confidence in your site, and will be more willing to buy your products or services.
Search for a web host that offers fabulous service, affordable rates, and everything you'll need for your online business. You'll be glad you did!
About the author: Candice Pardue, editor of Web Design Weekly. Still searching for a web host that meets the requirements above? Look no further. Go here for a special hosting starter package offer... http://www.webmastercourse.com/web-hosting/
Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
During the course of business, HostVoice serves many customers and sees many situations plaguing webmasters out there. Here are 10 true-life hosting mistakes our customers tell us they learn from and how to avoid them.
1. Falling For The Price Trap The call of low hosting prices is like a siren. There are reasonable budget-hosting solutions and there are outrageously low budget hosting almost guaranteed to become a nightmare. If the price makes you wonder how they make money then you can look forward to an extremely slow site or even denial of service because they maxed out the bandwidth. Not good. Trust your instincts stay clear.
2. Inexperienced Reseller or Not Researching Your Reseller Hosting with a reseller is not a bad thing. In fact sometimes resellers give you very good support. But you need to do your second layer research. Sometimes a reseller is very good all around but inexperienced especially when it came to scripts and server environments. Some resellers also couldn't accommodate customer requests because the server administrators wouldn't work with them under any circumstance. This usually happens when the server administrators are bulk sellers who are disconnected from the end customer. If the server administrators are not reliable or cannot accommodate you, don't hope your reseller can. Resellers should also have done their homework and know their servers as if their own.
3. Not Clearly Defining Your Requirements. As an ongoing process you should keep a list of what resources your site needs and add to that list as you grow. One Webmaster was changing their static HTML pages to dynamic, which meant scripts were going to be used. Since the Webmaster didn't have a clear idea of what he would like to install and what these scripts required, he only found out after moving, the host servers were not compatible with the scripts. He lost months of work moving the sites in and out again. So, maintain a list. It also makes it easier when you need to upgrade because you can show the list to your host.
4. Purchasing Hosting In An Auction It might be a good place to pick up a deal but then you'll need to go back and review the first point. This is not to say all auctioned hosting is completely unreliable but in case you haven't noticed auctioned items have a good deal of terms and conditions attached, usually more than if purchased through the website. This makes your package very inflexible. Unless you review closely those terms or if you have a small static HTML pages with little ambition for the site, stay away or pay their regular website prices. This way the host will more likely work with your requirements.
5. Forgiving A Host's Bad Or Limited Website If the host can't or won't take time to craft an informational site of their own, most likely they won't be too concerned about yours either. Cookie cutter sites are a dead giveaway.
6 . Putting All The Eggs In One Basket If you manage several sites, it seems like a good idea to have everything in one account. You can simplify your billing and get a better deal. Not always. We know of some webmasters who lost hours or work time because they couldn't work on anything since all their sites were down. If your site generates income and they are interconnected, having all sites down at once is bad business. There is an option to this though. Ask your host if they'll be willing to split your account across 2 or more physical servers.
7. Taking Testimonials At Face Value Not all testimonials are created equal. You need to ask other webmasters, talk to their customers. If they don't list customer names on their site, ask them if you can contact any of their customers or if they'll contact you. If the host refuses, beware.
8. Not Keeping A Record Of Their Contact Information Most of us are happy with email, forum and live support. One Webmaster's host was down for days. This also meant the host's own site. The Webmaster couldn't contact them at all because he hadn't taken the time to record a physical address or telephone number. 24/7 telephone support is still desired. When your site is down indefinitely and you're losing visitors even sales it's guaranteed you'll want to talk to someone.
9. Relying On Host Backups This happens far too often. When a customer's site went down indefinitely, they were stuck. They couldn't put the site with another host because they didn't have any backups of their own. They would have to start from scratch, which would be just as bad because the site was rather mature. Always keep your own backups.
10. Trusting your host to have the latest software Internet crime is and viruses are more prevalent than ever. New software or the latest versions are meant to plug security holes. A customer had their site hacked twice in 2 months only to find out the host was not up to date with their software. Check with the host before you order what versions they are running and how often they make updates.
HostVoice.net - When Hosts Compete, You Win Looking for a web host? Let them compete for your business. Submit a free request and receive offers within 15 minutes from qualifying hosting company. We offer Budget, Windows, Dedicated, Reseller, Adult, e-Commerce, and more! When hosts compete for your business, you win!
Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
Every webmaster cringes at the thought of moving hosts. Like moving your home it can be messy and sometimes problems arise. But if you follow these simple steps, your move will be less painful.
Backup Backup Backup
If you've been diligent with your backups, you've got a lot of insurance to fall back on yet always make the latest backup. If you haven't, before you do anything else, do a backup now. Backup anything and everything you can and don't forget your database if your site relies on it. Save at least 2 copies and store them separately. One for you to work with, and the other as an archive. Do not underestimate how easy it is to copy over these files as you make changes or simply mess it up.
If you're moving to a host who has as different control panel, make a manual backup by downloading all your files because different control panels may not be able to restore the backups made by your old host. They also have different directory structures so your file trees will be in a mess. If you need to, make a small note file with notepad with memos for you to remember the old server configurations. This will help you as you make changes on your new host server and save the confusion moving back and forth between hosts. Remember to make the correct transfer type (ASCII or Binary) as you download. If your download is not right chances are you'll have a tough time getting your site to work on the new host server.
If server logs are especially important, remember to backup those too. There is no good way of moving logs yet because different hosts may log statistics differently. So the best thing to do is to download it and use a log analyzer on your computer to make references to later on.
Gather Odds & Ends
1. A Good FTP program which you should have by now 2. Get your new host server's DNS 3. It's also helpful to have a script that tells you the server environments installed on your new host server for quick references. 4. Get the temporary URL on your new host so you can check your site before you make a DNS change. 5. If you have your host control the domain inform them not to change your DNS until you tell them to. 6. If you run scripts: ? Get a copy of the original installation guide and the script. Sometimes after moving the scripts just do not work right so you might need to install the script from scratch. ? Get a list of all the server paths such as Perl, Sendmail and home directory on your new server. ? If your script needs special server modules or programs ensure they are installed and where. Even though these might be covered before you ordered the account with the host but sometimes your host has removed it or haven't installed it yet.
Inform Your Visitors
It is common and good practice to inform your visitors and customers of the server move. If you run a e-store, this helps assure your customers you have not fled with their money if there is any downtime. Also give an alternate email so you won't lose emails in the transfer. You might also want to give periodic updates prior, during (if there is downtime) and after. If your site is large, doing this is helpful because your visitors can alert you whenever there is a part of the site not working.
Moving Day
Try to schedule the move at a time where there's least traffic. Backup again just before you do the move so you'll have the latest data. Start by first copying or creating your custom error pages onto the new host server. Put a small note in there about the move. You can always remove it later. Then upload the most visible parts of the site first i.e. the main pages then move on to the less critical parts of the site. If you have a large site with many divisions you might want to split them across different days and instead move the least critical first. Just ensure you always do a backup before you do any moving. Use the temporary URL to check your site, visiting as many pages as you can.
Changing DNS
Once you're satisfied, change your DNS over. This typically takes about 24-48 hours so you have time to make some minor changes if need be. You might want to also take this time to modify your old site's error pages to inform your visitors of the move and give a new URL if there are URL changes. To help you determine if the DNS has resolved, make a small change on the new pages to differentiate between the old and the new.
Monitor
After you've moved and the DNS resolved, do not release the old account yet. Keep it as long as two weeks running concurrently. Go back and check the old servers for activity. Check your old email account and if you have a web based contact method on the old server check to see if any communication is left there. Once you're comfortable all email and traffic is correctly directed to the new host server, you can cancel that account.
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Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
Too often web hosts talk about bandwidth and data transfer in the same breath but truth be known they are different although very closely related. Bandwidth is how much data can be transferred at a time and data transfer is how much data is being transferred.
Think of it this way. If bandwidth were a bridge, then the bigger the bridge is the more vehicles can pass through it. While data transfer is the number of vehicles allowed on the bridge in say a month. In essence, data transfer is the consumption of bandwidth.
How It Affects Your Site
The less bandwidth you have, the slower your site takes to load regardless of the visitor's connection type. If you have more visitors, some of them will have to wait their turn. The least data transfer you have, the more often you'll find your site unavailable because you're reached the maximum allowed until a new month rolls by or you upgrade your account.
Determining Your Requirements
Usually when a host talks about bandwidth, they are referring to your transfer. So you need to figure out what is sufficient for your site to function. You'll need to gather some information; fairly easy if you already have a site. Most of this information is available from your traffic history. If you don't have an existing site, provide an optimistic estimate if you intend to heavily promote the site. Then get ready for some math.
Find out the daily averages of: - · Number of visitors / expected number of visitors · Page size including the graphics of the page · Page views / expected pages viewed by each visitor
Then, multiply them as follows: Visitors x Page size x Page views x 30 days = Monthly Website Transfer
You should also throw in a small margin or error there to take into account email traffic and your own uploads to the server. If you offer downloads, then you should add the following:
Average/Expected downloads x File Size x 30 days = Monthly Download Transfer
Unlimited Plans
Bandwidth is very expensive. All hosts are limited by their own allocations. Thinking back to the bridge. What happens is each visitor to your site will be given a smaller lane to transfer the data, creating many tiny lanes therefore "unlimited". The more visitors you have the smaller each lane will be, which makes each visitor wait for the page to load.
More often than not there is little choice over your bandwidth as your host controls this. Some hosts may limit the number of simultaneous connections so in affect slowing down your site and refusing some visitors. This is called throttling. If you're concerned about this, you should ask the host how they control bandwidth usage or purchase a package with more data transfer. If you use HostVoice.net , this information is easily obtainable with one request.
Reducing Transfers
On the other hand, you can reduce your transfer amount by building simpler, more efficient websites and optimizing your graphics. Refrain from fancy flash presentations or streaming audio. Use CSS, call JavaScript externally instead of embedding in every page. Remove unwanted tags, white space and comments. Limit your META tags to those absolutely necessary. Having too many keywords is not search engine friendly. Besides many search engines will only review the first few and ignore the rest.
Another good idea is to cache your website but you might want to set an expiry date in the HTTP headers so the browser will refresh the content after a certain time. Use mod-gzip. It could save you as much as 40% of your bandwidth. Out of control robots can also suck down your bandwidth like a black hole. So use robots.txt to keep spiders in check.
HostVoice.net - When Hosts Compete, You Win Looking for a web host? Let them compete for your business. Submit a free request and receive offers within 15 minutes from qualifying hosting company. We offer Budget, Windows, Dedicated, Reseller, Adult, e-Commerce, and more! When hosts compete for your business, you win!
Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
ASP web hosting refers to web hosting companies who provide support for ASP (Active Server Page). If you want a dynamic data-driven web site you may wish to embed ASP code into your web site's HTML Pages. When a user is viewing a web site that is developed using ASP, the pages can change depending on the actions of the user. ASP code allows you to link your web pages to a database, where users can interact with the web page by logging in and using their own personal settings or they can interactively place orders on your web site.
What is ASP? ASP stands for Active Server Pages. Active Server Pages are HTML pages with embedded ASP scripts that are processed on the server before the page is sent to the user. ASP allows you to create dynamic database driven pages, a user can access data in a database, and interact with page objects such as Active X or Java components.
How does ASP work? When you type a URL in the Address Box or click on a web page you are asking the web server to send a file to your computer; if the file is standard HTML, then, when your web browser receives the web page it will look exactly the same as it did on the web server. However if an ASP file is sent to your computer from the web server, firstly, the server will run the HTML code; and then, run the ASP code. For example: the ASP code could be the current date, or time; and other such information.
How to find an ASP web host You will need to find a web host who will host your website on a Windows 2000 server. It is safer to host your ASP pages on a Windows 2000 server as they are more stable and most ASP components work with IIS (Internet Information Services), specific to Windows. You also need to consider if your web site uses a database (e.g. SQL, Access) and then make sure your web host provides support for the type of database your web site uses.
Author: M6.Net
Reprinted from
Zongoo.com Daily Press & Consumer Information
