What is shared web hosting? Shared web hosting is a web hosting that is between a single server and multiple websites. Users are given a particular portion of the server’s resources like accounts, database, disc space, etc. It is one of the most commonly used types of web hosting. Shared hosting is an ideal choice if you are a newcomer looking to set up a website. Knowing only ‘What is shared hosting’ is not enough. You must know the advantages and disadvantages of shared hosting. Here, we will explore some of the pr opos and cons of shared hosting.

What is Shared Hosting?

First, let us tell you what is shared website hosting just like we explained what is Oracle software used for. It is a type of web hosting where various websites are hosted on a single physical server. All the user gets a specific portion of the server’s bandwidth, disk space, and other resources needed to run a website. Unlike dedicated servers or hosting services, a single website occupies a whole server. Hopefully, you understand what is a shared web hosting service.

How Does Shared Hosting Work?

Here, we will discuss how does shared hosting work. The hosting service provider installs and manages the server resources. The provider divides them among multiple users. Users can handle their email accounts, websites, databases, and other features through a control panel. Storage space, server maintenance, security updates, technical support, and extra features are managed by the hosting provider, making it a hassle-free choice for website owners. Now you must understand what is shared hosting used for.

Advantages of Shared Web Hosting

Let us explore some of the key advantages of web hosting shared hosting.

Cost Effective

Shared hosting is simply sharing a host server with another user. If a server is shared, the person can effortlessly profit. They can also offer some cheaper services. The great profit and benefit of shared hosting is cost-effectiveness because it is done cheaply. As we all know, the web technology industry is the fastest growing; therefore, in this competitive hosting world, you can get shared web hosting at cheap rates with all the required features.

Community and Network Effects

Shared hosting gives technical support for common problems in the shared hosting environment. Meanwhile, online communities let users share knowledge and collectively solve problems.
Various websites hosted on the same server encourage cross-promotion. This increases network visibility, allowing users to discover and collaborate with other website owners. It also encourages mutual assistance, which results in new connections. This can lead to increased monthly traffic for hosted websites.

Easy to Use

The shared hosting is called managed hosting. This is because dedicated servers handle them. Shared hosting has an information center, which maintains hardware and associated servers. This will work as an admin and provide you with all the complex and basic connectivity.
People who need to learn how to maintain and handle a server and who face complications in maintaining it can adapt to a shared hosting environment. A shared hosting environment also provides website builders with control panel software. This simplicity is one of the major advantages of the growing web technology industry.

Shared Hosting Enables Multiple Domains

Shared hosting enables you to host multiple domains under one hosting account. This feature is specifically advantageous if you have numerous websites or projects. You can handle all your domains from one central control panel. It simplifies the administration procedure and saves your time and effort.

Reliable Support

Security is a top priority for website owners, and shared hosting must catch up. Hosting providers invest in powerful security measures to safeguard their shared hosting servers. They usually implement regular security updates, firewalls, and malware scanning to ensure your website stays secure. Furthermore, the shared hosting environment is checked for any suspicious activities. It helps prevent security breaches.

Technical Support

Websites can break down at any time. Hence, shared hosting services give technical support to users. Good technical support means good customer support. The technical support team helps with the following:

• Solves all hardware-related issues with servers
• Advising users on performance issues
• Website migration
• Addressing server configuration

Hosting firms offer technical support through live chat, email, ticket, knowledge base, and phone. Remember that some support, such as email, live chat, and phone, is available all day on most shared hosting platforms and unavailable on others.

Scalability

Scalability in web hosting is the ability of a hosting server to take on a website’s load. It is important because scalable hosting lets the website stay online even if it experiences heavier traffic than usual. Shared hosting enables easy scalability, so you can update your hosting plan as your website grows. It ensures your website does not go through downtime. Most hosting providers provide scalability features such as bandwidth and disk space. Bandwidth is the volume of data transferable between the internet, a website, and users. With more bandwidth, you can get the data faster.

These were some of the key advantages of shared hosting over other hosting. Also, the shared hosting advantages stability are outstanding as compared to others.

Disadvantages of Shared Web Hosting

After discussing the advantages of using shared hosting, now let’s discuss some of the disadvantages of shared web hosting.

Limited Resources

Web hosts do not possess unlimited resources. As such, each website using these services is provided with a set amount of those resources, which can be challenging. If one of the websites goes through a lot of traffic, it will fetch most of the server’s resources and other websites on the same server.
This means users may need help getting access to them. As a result, your website will slow down, and over-usage by another site can lead to a system crash. However, a good web host will counter this by warning users of the usage.

Shared IP Address

The lack of a dedicated IP for websites using shared hosting implies you won’t be able to use only an IP address to access your website if any problem occurs with your domain name. A trial to do this would confuse the server because it would need to know which website to bring up.

No Dedicated SSL

Shared hosting does not allow individual users to have SSL, particularly for their websites. SSL works on IP, and shared hosting also does not permit websites to have a dedicated IP; because the IP is shared, subscribers need to share the same SSL scripting.

What to Look for When Choosing Shared Hosting

When looking for a hosting company, you should evaluate the following options before making the final decision.

Uptime

Uptime is the amount of time the server and your website are accessible on the internet. In contrast, downtime is the time your website is not accessible from the Internet. Inconsistent or low uptime can have a negative impact on your website.
Not only will your visitors have a hard time loading your website, but frequent stretches of downtime can lead your site to appear lower in search results. A standard benchmark for almost all hosting providers is 99.9% uptime. Putting that in simple words, your site might not be available for around 45 minutes over an entire month.

Customer Support

Customer support can have a major impact on your overall hosting experience, particularly when issues arise. Obviously, your site not loading is a huge problem, and most support teams can address and resolve those issues instantly.
But it is more likely that you will have issues where your website loads, but not exactly how you want it to. This is where an expert and knowledgeable support team is essential. They can help solve your problem so your site looks great and works for your visitors.

Scalability

Scalability is crucial for allowing your website to adapt to changes in resource needs or traffic. A scalable hosting plan lets you grow without complicated migrations or interruptions.
Whether you need more system resources for better website performance or want to launch more sites, look for a host that allows you to easily upgrade your plan.

Performance and Speed

When selecting a shared hosting plan, consider the hosting infrastructure that also includes server hardware and whether they uses SSD storage and caching technology. Factors significantly impact your website’s speed and performance, and visitors often leave your site if the pages load too slowly.
Speed also impacts SEO, as the average loading time for a first-page result on Google is 1.65 seconds, which is much faster than the overall average of 2.5 seconds.

Storage

Storage is another essential thing to consider when choosing a web host. You must look at the amount of space included as well as the type of storage. Between 5 and 10 GB is often plenty of storage space for even the most powerful website or WordPress blog.
You will need unlimited storage if you are hosting extremely large files or have a major database of information.

Security Features

Security must be your priority when picking a shared hosting plan. Look for features like DDoS protection, firewalls, and malware scanning. Not all hosting companies provide the same level of protection.
SSL certificates are also another security feature to consider. Most hosts provide free Domain Verification certificates, but you may need to upgrade to another SSL type for better protection and trust with your website visitors.

Tips to Make the Most Out of Your Shared Hosting

You can follow the simple tips to maximize the benefits of shared hosting providers to improve the performance and user experience of your website. Here are some effective approaches for making the most of your shared hosting service.

Optimize Your Website’s Performance

If you want a smoother site on a shared server, you should optimize performance by using caching, compressing images, and limiting heavy plugins.

Regularly Monitor Your Website

Monitor your website’s security and performance closely. Use relevant tools to monitor uptime and load time. Regular monitoring allows your website to stay on top and keep your site stable.

Take Extra Security Measures

You should enhance your shared hosting security with key measures. For instance, update scripts and applications regularly. Use strong passwords and implement security plugins. Moreover, you should also back up your website regularly to prevent data loss and use available resources wisely. You should also know your shared hosting limits and manage your server resources smartly.

Seek Reliable Customer Support

Good customer support can be a lifesaver for your website. Do not hesitate to contact your hosting provider’s support team to get help with technical issues, security concerns, or performance optimization.

Keep Your Site Clean and Organized

Keep your website efficient and secure with regular clean-ups. Make sure to audit and remove unnecessary files. Moreover, delete any unused databases and plugins. Organize for reduced security risks and better efficiency.