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Find the hosting provider that best suits your project

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What criteria are relevant when choosing a hosting?
Why is secure web hosting so important?
Play it safe!
Hardware and software resources
Resource management and administration options
Domain registration and transfer options
Customer service and costs
Technical means and safety concept

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Find the hosting provider that best suits your project

The number of projects on the World Wide Web is increasing day by day. Regardless of whether it is a modular website, a new private blog, a corporate website, a new online swimwear store or the complex web application of an agency, they all share the same challenge: choosing the hosting ideal for your purposes..

For some time now, the private sector and small and medium-sized enterprises have been using external resources . For their part, the trend of large companies to outsource their server infrastructure is increasing. The main reason is that hosting a website on your own is very expensive and the offers of the hosting providers are very attractive. However, the options are so many that choosing is a difficult task for both beginners and professionals in the sector: web space, own server or flexible solution in the cloud? Which web hosting package is suitable for the software used? And what efforts does the hosting provider invest to ensure the availability and security of the data ?

Index
  1. What criteria are relevant when choosing a hosting?
    1. Hardware and software resources
    2. Resource management and administration options
    3. Domain registration and transfer options
    4. Customer service and costs
    5. Technical means and safety concept
  2. Why is secure web hosting so important?
  3. Play it safe!

What criteria are relevant when choosing a hosting?

Before you get down to the task of finding the ideal hosting provider at the best rates, you should carefully examine your project to determine exactly what your demands are for a web hosting solution. Not all hosting providers offer the full range of functions and services , but this is not always necessary, as choosing the best hosting will always depend on the specific requirements and conditions of your web project. Making a comparison of your needs against the offers of different providers will increase the possibility of finding the perfect solution. Here are the decisive criteria for choosing a web hosting package (remember that it may vary depending on the project).

Hardware and software resources

Every web project demands certain hardware and software requirements, therefore, before opting for a hosting provider, the necessary resources and their respective characteristics must be defined. In some cases it may be just having enough web space or taking care of an entire server environment that also has the necessary memory and processing power. In this regard, you can generally choose between classic dedicated servers and flexible virtual servers. The latter occupy an increasingly important role thanks to the fact that they do not depend on any specific hardware, offering excellent scalability and complete availability for the web project. On the other hand, it is advisable to find out if the provider, more specifically the chosen hosting pack, limits resources when the expected traffic is exceeded or the determined bandwidth is exceeded..

Before choosing a hosting provider, you should also consider software compatibility. It is important to find out if you can choose the operating system yourself or if the provider is who decides. The same question arises with respect to the programming language, web server software or database management system, as well as all other programs used for web development and content management. Today, many hosting providers make it easy to install popular programs with one click, such as content managers . If the chosen hosting offers a service of this type, you can be sure that the tools and programs will work correctly and, on the other hand, you will be saving time and effort in their installation and configuration.

Resource management and administration options

If you are not looking for accommodation for a small personal blog or a simple static website, but for an ambitious online project with large growth projections, factors such as scalability of resources play a priority role. With some packs you can specifically control the performance of the hardware, while other rates offer fixed conditions and, in case of increased traffic, may even require migration from one server to another. Here, the deciding factor is whether you opt for dedicated or shared hosting . In the first case, the contracted resources are available exclusively, while in shared hosting, as its name indicates, the resources are shared with other users..

On the other hand, the different forms of accommodation have something in common: they are all linked to different management needs or opportunities. Generally speaking, the more effort you save on server setup and maintenance, the less admin rights you'll have to deal with. If, for example, you need root access, make sure in advance that the providers or the rate you want to contract allow it.

Domain registration and transfer options

The online project domain does not need to be registered with the web host. The most important thing here is that it facilitates its use and, if necessary, allows a smooth transfer. This applies, especially, when you already have a web page and want to change it to another provider. At this point you should also inform yourself before choosing a hosting, so you will be prepared in case of unpleasant surprises. The number of domains is also important if you use or need more than one domain. This varies depending on the provider and the chosen pack.

Customer service and costs

Especially for beginners, but also for any user who has opted for a managed server solution or comparable hosting variants, it is essential to have available and quick-reacting support (email, phone, or live chat). Remember that if issues do arise and due to lack of experience or limited rights cannot be resolved immediately, a long wait can lead to a significant loss of revenue or traffic, especially at peak times or in a busy season for the business. Here, the experience of the provider is decisive, since generally a well-positioned hosting provider with several years of experience always has a competent and well-organized customer service team. Some web hosting services make a customer service representative available to users to act as a direct contact in case of problems in the future.  

Even when the price of web hosting rates is very varied, it never hurts to make a comparison of prices and contractual conditions where the conditions of the service are identified. Every provider must always disclose the installation costs, as well as the monthly and additional costs, because only in this way is it possible for users to get an idea of ​​the total price. The duration of the contract and the notice periods must be clearly defined.

Technical means and safety concept

For many modern web projects it is of great importance that all project data is always available, can be transferred quickly and, at the same time, is always protected . In this case, guaranteeing the quality of the technology used by the supplier and the respective security measures are the most important evaluation criteria. To ensure fast data transfer, hosting providers must have an excellent Internet connection , keep their data centers up-to-date, and have powerful hardware such as fast-access SSDs. Some web hosting services allow, for a small fee, the use of Content Delivery Networks (CDN) that reduce the load time of the web project by reducing the load of the web server in the delivery of static content and large amounts of data.  

While technical performance has a direct influence on the user experience and, in the same way, on the positioning of the web in search engine results pages, choose a hosting that offers high security features and keeps the website protected. Completeness of data is a sine qua non priority . The more sensitive the information hosted and the greater the need for its availability, the greater the demands for security guarantees. Some of the possible security measures are:

  • Regular updates and backups
  • Georeundancy in independent data centers
  • Constant power sources
  • TLS / SSL encryption of data
  • Application of Intrusion Detection Systems

To be sure in terms of privacy and data protection, we recommend choosing a provider that has data centers in Europe .

Why is secure web hosting so important?

The digitization of the economy has caused profound changes in the structure of companies. The buying and selling of goods and services takes place on digital platforms, production processes have been automated and workspaces have moved to the cloud. Obviously, these new conditions offer first-class benefits for all actors involved.

This simplification of the corporate structure offers different benefits for clients and consumers, among them: payment transactions are easily managed from online banking , Christmas purchases can be made from the comfort of home and, for a long time, no longer You need a closet for storing videos and music or an album for photos. Now, these are files that can be stored online with a trusted service and are available anytime, anywhere.

With the rise of digital networks, on the other hand, cybercrime has also assumed unforeseen proportions. Today more than ever, companies are in the crosshairs of unscrupulous people who are willing to steal confidential information from users (such as personal data, passwords, addresses or bank account data) and hand it over or sell it to third parties when they companies do not have the necessary measures to discourage these purposes. Attacks that have the sole purpose of paralyzing web projects, infecting them with spam or malware, and generating damages are also not rare. While, with sufficient knowledge , the corporate network can be in charge of securing all its components, ensuring the security of stored content such as the website, customer databases or project files, among others, it corresponds to the web host. As a consequence, choosing a secure hosting guarantees the protection of your sensitive data, specifically those beyond your possibilities.

Play it safe!

Getting a hosting provider that prioritizes the security of your website is essential to gain the trust of your customers and users and, as a consequence, for the success of your web project. The IONOS security campaign prioritizes this point. Regardless of whether you are creating a simple website with IONOS MyWebsite or hosting a complex web application with IONOS Server Cloud , with our hosting solutions you will enjoy benefits such as:

  • 256-bit SSL encryption : The transmission of data from IONOS-hosted pages is protected under Symantec's SSL encryption protocol. In this way, you will gain the trust of your customers and, in combination with HTTP / 2, you will speed up the loading times of your website and achieve a better position in search engines.
  • Anti-hacker protection: DDoS protection recognizes and fights external attacks on your web project, even before you are aware of the danger.
  • 360 GBit / s fiber optic: our data centers work with an external connection of more than 360 GBit / s and ensure faster access times to your page or web application.
  • Georeundance: all shared web hosting packages run in parallel in two spatially separated data centers. Thus, in the event of a failure in one of the components or in the data center, it is automatically switched to the other. With IONOS you have the choice between data centers in Germany (ISO 27001: 2013 Certified) or in the United States.
  • UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) : a diesel power supply combined with lead-gel batteries ensures an uninterrupted power supply that keeps your project available at all times, even in the event of power outages.
  • Daily Backups : We perform daily backups on a routine basis. Thus, in the event that information is accidentally erased, you can rescue the information at any time.

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