Learn About Web Hosting

What is Web Site Hosting?

Web hosting is a necessity for any Web site — it is the physical location of your Web site on the Internet, an online storage center that houses the information, images, video, and other content that comprises your Web site. Web hosting service providers maintain the server where the data associated with your Web site resides, and also manage the technology that makes your Web site connect to the Internet.

Web site hosting is typically measured in the amount of disk space you're allotted on the server and the amount of data transfer or "bandwidth" you need for accessing the server. For example, if you have a lot of customer interaction at your Web site, such as files to download, you will access the server frequently and you'll need more Web hosting transfer space than someone who simply puts readable text on their Web site. The more "items" or "content" you have on your site (i.e., photos, maps, PDF files, etc.), the more disk space you'll need for Web site hosting.

Many Web hosting service providers include FrontPage® extensions, which allow you to create your Web site in FrontPage®, and File Transfer Protocol (FTP), which allows you to easily upload files from your computer to the Web hosting service.

How Can a Web Hosting Service Help My Online Business?

Web hosting makes it possible for visitors to view your site's content when they type in your domain name. But a Web hosting service accomplishes much more than that. It can help keep your site up -- and running smoothly -- 24/7. This is especially important in the competitive e-commerce marketplace, where interrupted availability may cause you to lose not only sales but also customers who will leave your site after a negative experience and potentially never come back.

How Can Network Solutions Help Me with Web Hosting?

Our Web hosting packages come in a variety of disk space and monthly data transfer sizes, and we'll help you choose the package that's right for you. If you find you need more Web site hosting capacity than you initially purchased, you can increase your quantities by upgrading at anytime. For advanced technical users who need additional capabilities beyond this, we offer Virtual Private Servers for greater storage space and more control.

When it comes to choosing a Web hosting service, reliability and customer service are also key things to consider. Network Solutions Web hosting service offers 99.99% UNIX uptime and 24/7 dedicated technical customer service, via phone or e-mail.

What is a Domain Name?

A domain name is your unique address on the Internet. Domain name registration allows you to take ownership of that domain name by registering it with an approved domain names registrar like Network Solutions®. Businesses typically register domain names with their company name or their product names, while individuals often register domain names with their family names or names that have a personal interest to them. Domain names have two parts: the label and the extension, separated by a 'dot.' For example, in the domain name NetworkSolutions.com, 'Network Solutions' is the label and 'com' is the extension (also called the "top-level domain" or "TLD").

How Can Network Solutions Help Me with Domain Names?

Longevity, stability and reputation are important when choosing where to register domain names. Network Solutions became the first domain name registrar in 1993, and today remains a trusted company with millions of domain names under management.

Our domain name registration services even allow you to register a URL and hold the domain name to ensure that you can use it in the future. If someone enters this domain name on a Web browser, a placeholder page will appear with the message that the site is "under construction." Not all registrars provide under construction pages as part of their domain name registration services.

How Can a Domain Name Help My Online Business?

Domain name registration is the first step in getting your business online. Once your domain name puts your business "on the map," you can build a Web site to start attracting the customers you need. For many businesses, domain name registration involves registering multiple domain names (e.g., various product names, misspellings, or different extensions) to protect their brand, and then forwarding all their domain names to one Web site. This is known as "Web forwarding."

The majority of domain name registration customers are individuals or organizations who will build a Web site to associate with their address. However, you can get an e-mail address matched to your domain name, with or without a Web site. This approach to domain name registration is helpful for businesses trying to establish credibility as well as for individuals looking for a memorable e-mail address (i.e., john@smith.com).