Web Hosting
What is Hosting?
Do I have to have my Domain name hosted?
What hosting options are there?
What is a server?
I have a server in the office. Can't I use that?
I want to use Microsoft FrontPage to develop my site. Do I need an NT server?
What is Domain Parking?

Web Hosting
What is Hosting?
Hosting a domain name means giving it a home on the internet. All domain names must be hosted on a server which looks after any internet transactions to do with the domain.
The main functions of a server are to:
- provide a home for the domain name itself
- provide the web space for the domain's web site
- handles any email sent to an address @ that domain
- provide FTP access to allow the owner to log in and update the web site


Do I have to have my Domain name hosted?
Yes. It is an international requirement when registering a domain name to provide the details of an active server which is set up to host the domain.


What hosting options are there?
You will find the full list on our hosting plans page. We have various plans available starting from Virtual-A: $50US for 5MB of space, 2 domain addresses, and several additional services.


What is a server?
A server is basically a computer with a permanent, high-capacity, leased-line connection to the internet. It is a real computer, just like the one in your office or at home, but with a higher memory capacity and a much faster connection to the internet than a common modem connection.
When you purchase a server to host your domain, what you are actually purchasing is a partitioned directory on one of these high-spec computers. This is known as a virtual server.


I have a server in the office. Can't I use that?
Technically yes, you can. But the extra costs to make it suitable for use as an internet server would be prohibitive. You would need to purchase a leased line to give a permanent internet connection, minimum cost $4,000. Even this would not be as good as the high-capacity lines that internet servers use. Internet servers are located very close to the backbone of the internet, which translates into fast downloading of your website by your customers.
You would need to purchase web server software to allow the contents of the server to be seen by others on the internet.
The security implications of using your own server also need to be considered. You would need to protect it with Firewalls to prevent unwanted access by undesired visitors.
Finally you would have no redundancy with your own server, which means that in the event of anything going wrong with it, your web site and email become unusable. Our servers have multiple redundancy, guaranteeing 99.9% uptime.


I want to use Microsoft FrontPage to develop my site. Do I need an NT server?
No. Microsoft Front Page 98 or 2000 are web design packages and the code they output is in the main standard HTML code which will run on any web server. There are special additional functions, known as "Front Page extensions", which make it easier for the user to include interactive items, like visitor response forms, on their web site. Our servers support this feature. This however, still uses the Linux operating system; there is no need to use Windows NT.


What is Domain Parking?
If you want to register a domain name, but don't need to use it yet, you can park the domain on our servers. This protects and reserves the domain name for future use.
Parking means that we host the domain, but dont make it available as a web site, or set up any email processing for the domain.