Personal Web Hosting 101

Personal web hosting like any other type of web hosting covers a certain amount of ground rules. The only difference between a business web hosting and a personal web hosting may be the payment arrangements like secure server for credit cards payment. Other than that, the checklist remains the same as for the business web hosting.

The checklist given below will guide you in choosing the right host:

1. How much time does it take for the domain to be put on the net? It should be less than 36 hours.

2. Can I host other sites through my domain? It should be possible for you to use alias domains, provided they lead to the main page of your domain.

3. Am I the owner of the domain name hosted? The answer should be YES, without any other conditions.

4. Will it be possible for me to update the information of my website/ domain? All rights to your domain, i.e. billing, technical, administrative, etc, should be given to you. And YES, the web host should be able to update your website’s information at your request.

5. Can I modify my web? The answer should be basically YES, though some websites will ask you to route the changes through them. This might be inconvenient for those who can do it themselves and have a lot of updating to do.

6. What is the protocol for the setting of html directory permissions? Most web hosts will allow you the use of the Control Panel to set permissions and modify your web design.

7. Do I get web mail usage through my domain? Most web hosts will have squirrel mail accounts in their packages. With this facility also comes the forwarding of the email and auto-responders.

8. Can I access my cgi and perl scripts? The answer should be YES.

9. Do you have prompt and efficient technical support/ service support? The answer should be YES, round-the-clock 24/7.

10. Do you use advanced search engine optimization tools above metatags? The answer should be again YES. Today servers use sophisticated SEO tools. However, you should definitely have your ‘keyword’ and ‘description’ metatags attached to your main content page for easy access over the web.

Other factors include payment and billing details, traffic space so called bandwidth, and disk or storage space. You should be expecting an annual billing in addition to a monthly billing. Web hosting companies do offer an annual billing for a discount rate, and some saying you should be careful to avoid one-year period packages as this will block your shifting in case you are unhappy with the web host. This is not always true because, in today’s competition between web hosting companies, many reliable companies do offer 30-90 days money-back guarantee in case you are not satisfied.

As regards the traffic space or bandwidth the minimum you would need would be somewhere around 25 GB/month, while for storing a simple personal website, the storage requirements should be minimum of 500 MB disk space. I would consider 1 GB or more of disk space to avoid extra fees in case your needed space gets bigger in the future. But it all depends on what kind and how big of files you put up on your web site. Hence, do not go after web hosts who offer you 15 GB or more of disk space for extra fees because you would never need so much space. Even with complicated business websites, you would not use more than 10 GB.

The best is to research the feedback of the web host before you decide which one to choose, and the above questions will definitely guide towards a wise decision.