Hosting – provision of storage space and services on the WWW
Hosting or web hosting is the provision of storage space, so-called web space. An Internet provider – i.e. a provider of Internet-related services – rents out this storage space, which is located on a server. Hosting includes server operation and also the connection to the Internet. At the application level, there is constant monitoring by the provider. Furthermore, the customer is provided with statistics, for example, about the number of visitors to the website.
Web hosting services
In addition to the pure provision of storage space, hosting by a provider includes various services, some of which are mandatory, others optional. For example, databases are provided; depending on the provider, these may be MySQL, Oracle or other systems. Also part of the hosting package can be the provision of top level domains (TLD), store systems or CMS versions such as TYPO3 or Joomla. As a customer, you can choose which services you want to use. For this purpose, the providers put together packages that can be booked according to requirements.
Hosting options
In general, there are various ways to organize hosting. For example, you can set up your own data center – this is suitable as a system for large companies. A service provider can be used with its web offerings and likewise the use of cloud-based solutions is conceivable. The latter has the great advantage that the hosting requirements can always be adjusted exactly to the current needs, both upwards and downwards. It is particularly efficient if only the computing power used has to be paid for and there is no long-term contractual commitment to a hosting model. Private individuals often also resort to email hosting. This involves providing web space and services for the use of one or more email addresses. This service is also provided free of charge by many providers up to a certain level.
Hosting security
Especially for company websites or online stores, a high level of hosting security is required. Protection against attacks is achieved with web hosting on the provider side through various measures. For example, a powerful firewall is used and the data stream is continuously checked so that attacks can be detected and prevented at an early stage. Secure configuration of the server systems is just as much a part of the security measures as consistent encryption of sensitive data. The concepts must be constantly adapted to changing conditions so that any vulnerabilities that arise can be eliminated as quickly as possible.
