Shared Hosting: An In-Depth Overview of its Operation

a) What is shared hosting?

Shared hosting services are popular due to their affordability. They offer access to a small portion of web servers used by numerous websites, divided into partitions for hosting customers. Each plan holder has a certain amount of server resources, which can be pulled from other network partitions if needed. This process may sacrifice performance and page load times, but it allows unlimited plan features like bandwidth and disk space. Shared hosting is a unique and affordable web hosting plan where a single web server powers hundreds of websites owned by different administrators.

b) Who needs it?

It is a popular choice for web administrator who want to experience their first web hosting experience. Web server configuration can have a huge impact on how your website performs, especially if it is growing and experiencing high traffic. Although shared hosting is a less comprehensive service, it is enough to run a basic website and get internet training. In fact, most experts recommend starting with shared hosting to learn in a comfortable and affordable hosting environment before moving on to more advanced solutions. If you are planning to start out as a webmaster, then you may want to consider shared hosting as your first web hosting plan.

c) What are the advantages of shared hosting?

Shared hosting offers a simple user interface, managed through a control panel. This allows users to make changes, upload, create websites, add domains, and more. With these admin panels, no prior knowledge about Linux or Windows servers is needed, and the control panels are typically Plesk or cPanel. This makes it easier to use the service without focusing on details. Shared hosting services prioritize security to prevent problems with multiple services running on the same server. Companies offering these services are sensitive to security checks and restrictions to protect users.

Common security issues include regular server updates, data backups, restrictions on service changes, and the inability to use certain protocols. These measures ensure the safety and security of users. Shared hosting offers affordability due to the distribution of server resources among multiple websites, reducing user costs. Pricing plans range from RM25 to RM100 per month, and many allow hosting unlimited domain names. This type of hosting is ideal for those who own multiple websites and want to operate them from a single interface. Shared hosting plans are highly scalable and low-risk, making them an attractive option for web administrator.