Ware Welch Web Hosting's Guide to Web Hosting

Glossary of Web Hosting Terminology

This glossary is intended to help you to work out which is the appropriate hosting package for your website. It attempts to explain some of the terminology and potential pitfalls which are associated with web hosting and web hosting companies. Although it is on the site of Ware Welch Web Hosting, it attempts to be impartial and is in no way an advert for our products or services. We at Ware Welch Web Hosting realise the difficulties in understanding the terminology and requirements for a web site to the novice (and sometimes experienced user) and constantly strive to make everybody's hosting and online experience as enjoyable as possible.

Bandwidth - This is the amount of data which you can upload and download from your website (every time your website is viewed the data is retrieved/downloaded from the server on which your website is hosted). Your bandwidth entitlement also includes anyone else who views your site. This means that each time somebody views your website, an amount of your bandwidth is used up. More bandwidth is used for viewing lots of pages (or having lots of visitors), pages containing a lot of photographs/graphics or if your site has large downloadable files (such as MP3 or video clips). Many web hosting companies limit bandwidth for both uploads and downloads and many hosting companies do not allow the storage of certain sorts of files on their servers (MP3 for example). You also need to find out what happens to your site if you run out of bandwidth. Most companies will either make your site unavailable or charge you for each Megabyte of extra bandwidth used (sometimes at extortionate rates). In summary if your site has a lot of visitors, has a lot of pages or contains large amounts of photos/graphics/downloads, you need to be looking for a host who provides a lot of bandwidth or preferably unlimited bandwidth to avoid downtime or a big bill at the end of the month.

CGI/PHP Scripts - CGI stands for Common Gateway Interface and is a standard protocol for linking external application software with a server, usually a web server. CGI allows the server to pass requests forwards and backwards between the web browser and the application. Many of these applications are written in languages such as PERL or PHP. Applications include such things as: E-commerce programs, form-to-email programs, wiki software, blog/forum software, photo gallery software, CMS and random image generators. CGI scripts are usually stored in a folder on the server called the CGI bin. Most web hosting companies allow access to the CGI bin but if you're planning on writing or installing your own scripts or somebody else's from an external source, you need to make sure that you hosting company will allow this. Most web hosting companies offer at least some CGI/PHP scripts and programs as part of their hosting packages. Check whether this is the case for your web host as these programs can make your life a lot easier.

Domain Names - A domain name is used to provide a memorable and individual representation of an IP address (a specific place on a particular server which is a part of the internet). An example of a domain name is 'warewelchwebhosting.co.uk'. A registered domain name does not include the 'http://' or the 'www' which merely tell browsers where to look and how to transfer and display the data. Domain names are registered with a domain name registrar (such as Nominet) and are usually owned by individuals or companies. The domain name registrar makes sure that no two domain names are the same and therefore avoids any conflict of destination when searching the internet. Domain names can have a variety of different endings (extensions) such as '.com' (a top level domain) or '.co.uk. Many web hosting companies will provide you with a domain name for free when you buy a hosting package to go with it. This domain name will probably only be free for the first year or two of its registration so you need to check out the prices of domain names with your chosen web hosting company before you purchase a hosting package with them. Domain names can be pointed (redirected) to different web hosting companies or transferred from web host to web host by changing their DNS (Domain Name System) records but be aware that many web hosting companies charge a fee for transferring domain names in or out and it is often better to buy your domain name from the same company who provide your hosting. Top level domains (such as '.com' domains) cannot be transferred for two months after registration or for two month prior to renewal. You need to check the availability of your chosen domain name as early as possible in the web site design process in order to make sure that your chosen domain name isn't already registered to someone else. If a domain name is already registered then you cannot purchase that domain name unless the current registrant agrees to sell it to you. Some web hosting companies provide free domain names for the duration of your hosting with them. Check carefully what is provided by your chosen hosting company to avoid future expense/disappointment.

E-Commerce - E-commerce stands for electronic commerce and is the phrase used to describe the buying and selling of any goods or services on the internet. This can range from the simple selling of one or two items or a simple online catalogue, right through to a full online shop or store containing thousands of products. E-commerce is often handled by proprietary software which is purpose built for the job and lets the shop or store be easily managed and changed via a graphical user interface. Such software can be very expensive, but can be found free on the internet in some cases and is often offered as part of a hosting package by many web hosting companies. If you are planning to include e-commerce as part of your website design, then it is essential that you make sure that you have enough webspace and a MySQL database as part of your web hosting package. If you are not experienced in scripting websites with PHP and MySQL then you need to make sure that your web hosting company offers some free e-commerce software.

FTP - FTP is short for File Transfer Protocol, which is the protocol for exchanging files over the Internet. FTP is most commonly used to download a file from a server using the Internet or to upload a file to a server (e.g. uploading a Web page file to a server). FTP software is a tool to make this transfer of files more user friendly. Most FTP software will have a graphical user interface which lets you simply and easily log on to the server where your website is stored and then view, upload and download files. Most web hosting companies provide some form of file transfer software to enable you to get your site up and running. Many hosting companies also recommend or provide a full FTP program which works well with their system. Most FTP software is freely downloadable from the internet and therefore web hosting companies which charge you for this software should be avoided unless their software offers something special. It's a case of trying a few different FTP programs out until you find one that suits you.

Junk Mail Filter - A junk mail filter normally scans all incoming mail to a mailbox and according to certain criteria (which can usually be adjusted by the user of the mailbox) to remove mail to another area/mailbox. The reason for having a junk mail filter is usually to remove spam and/or computer viruses. Junk mail filters can be very effective and save the tedious arrival of unwanted or unsolicited mail but they can also filter out good e-mails so it's always worth checking your junk mail folder periodically. Many web hosting companies offer junk mail filters for their clients mailboxes but these are usually as an upgrade or with higher end hosting packages. The amount of mail which your website will receive and the number of people to whom you will be giving out your e-mail address will determine whether you will need a junk mail filter.

Mail Boxes - A mailbox is basically an e-mail address on your domain. The more mailboxes you have then the more e-mail addresses you can have for your domain. For example, if your domain name is 'mywebsite.com' then you could have an e-mail address which was 'Ethel@mywebspace.com'. This e-mail address would take up one mailbox. If you then wanted to add the address 'Fred@mywebspace.com' then you would need a second mailbox. Each mailbox can be configured with its own settings/passwords to enable individual users or groups of users to be able to access some e-mails but not others. You can also set up separate services such as e-mail forwarding on each mailbox. You therefore need enough mailboxes to enable you to separate your incoming mail and send it to the appropriate places/person. For an personal or small website, one mailbox would therefore probably be sufficient. A large company, however, may need hundreds of mailboxes. Different Web Hosting Companies provide different amounts of mail boxes with their hosting packages and then charge extra if you want to add more at a later date. Check that you have enough mailboxes with you web hosting package to satisfy the needs of your website.

Microsoft FrontPage Extensions - If you have used Microsoft FrontPage to design your website then you will need to install Microsoft FrontPage Extensions to successfully upload your website and use all the features that Microsoft FrontPage Extensions provides. Whilst it is possible to upload a website created with Microsoft FrontPage without Microsoft FrontPage Extensions installed, this is quite a difficult process unless you are experienced with web design and/or web hosting and is not recommended. Some web hosting companies supply Microsoft FrontPage Extensions for free (but not normally with their basic accounts), but most hosting companies charge an additional fee for Microsoft FrontPage Extensions to be included on a hosting package.

MySQL Databases - MySQL (which stands for My Single Quotient Language) is a multithreaded, multi-user SQL database management system. This basically means that it is a program which allows may users to access a number of databases and tables, in a number of different ways. MySQL databases are used for a number of different applications within websites as they are a convenient way of storing and organising large amounts of information. Common uses for MySQL databases with websites include: Keeping a customer database, e-mail lists, online shops/e-commerce, forums, photo galleries and password protection. There are an almost infinite number of other potential uses for MySQL databases but if you wish to have any of the above features on your website, you will definately need a MySql database. Most basic hosting packages don't come with any MySQL databases, but most mid to high end hosting packages should come with a number of MySQL databases as standard. Most web hosting companies will offer extra MySQL databases for a fee, but this can sometimes be quite high so check with your web host before you buy. With regard to how many MySQL databases you need, a good rule of thumb is that you will need one database for each of the above applications.

Subdomains - A subdomain is a good way of splitting your website into different parts, especially if the different parts of your site are not related to each other or you need to be able to access the separate parts from outside your site (by typing in the address). If your website has the domain name 'mywebsite.com' then to access your website you would type 'http://www.mywebsite.com' into the address bar of a web browser and this would take you to your site. With a subdomain you replace the 'www' part with the name of your subdomain e.g. 'forum'. Typing 'http://forum.mywebsite.com' into the address bar of a web browser would then take you straight to the forum section of your website, without having to go through any other areas of your site. 'http://forum.mywebsite.com' is also what would be displayed in the address bar of your web browser whilst you were viewing this page. The number of subdomains which can be set up for a particular domain name is limitless. Most web hosting companies, however, limit the number of subdomains which you are allowed depending on which hosting package you choose. If you want to split your site in this way, you need to check that you have enough available subdomains with your hosting to do so. Most small sites however don't need any subdomains and you need to be aware that many web hosting companies offer unlimited subdomains as a feature, when to run a successful website you don't necessarily need any. It's all a matter of how you wish to structure your site.

Webspace - This is the amount of actual diskspace (like the hard drive in your home computer) which you are allowed on the servers of your web hosting company. The amount of webspace which you need depends on the nature of your website. If you are creating a text only or mostly text based website, then you need very little in the way of webspace. If you are planning on putting lots of large graphics or photos on your website ( videos are even more space hungry) then you need more webspace to accommodate these files. Basically, the bigger your website and the more graphics/photos/videos/downloads you have on it then the more webspace you need. Including an online shop (with photos) or a forum can also eat up the webspace (as well as the bandwidth). Check whether your hosting company will let you upgrade your account to one with more webspace at a later date, or better still, find a hosting company which offers unlimited webspace if you feel that your site is going to be large or might need room to grow.