Domains and Webhosting #2

There are loads of companies that offer webhosting services. We distinguish between dedicated webhosting (you have a server on your own at the datacentre), virtual private server (VPS) (a server is partitioned to virtual private servers through VMWare, Xen or other) and shared webhosting (you share the server, you get your own virtual host in Apache).

The most affordable of the three is shared webhosting and prices start at around 20 euros per year for facilities that allow you to run your own WordPress blog.

To run your own WordPress blog, you need

  • Apache (Linux, etc but preferably not Windows)
  • mysql database
  • ability to upload files (typically FTP upload)
  • PHP
  • mod_rewrite is preferable
  • safe_mod off for PHP is preferable
  • disk space at least 20MB for WordPress
  • monthly bandwidth at least 2GB (for typical non-mainstream blog)

It is important that the webhosting provider allows you to administer your webhosting options and offer a tool like cPanel.

Normally you do not get shell access. In some cases you do, as long as you provide a photo ID.
Normally you do not get a backup option as it tends to be complicated to apply. For a WordPress blog, the typical changes are applied in the mysql database so there are no files that change over time (apart from plugin installation). Therefore, it is good to have a way to backup your mysql database. You could use phpmyadmin to backup your database, however it is more suitable to use something like the WordPress Database Backup plugin.
If you have recommendations for webhosting, post them as comments.

Permanent link to this article: https://blog.simos.info/domains-and-webhosting-2/

6 comments

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  1. 1and1 offers shared webhosting at good prices, for US customers. You will probably have to use a friend’s address in the US to register.
    They offer basic shared webhosting for 29 euros per year, 5GB disk space and 250GB monthly bandwith quota.

    1and1 offers webhosting in other countries (like UK, Germany), however the prices are not as competitive as those in the US.

    A sad issue with big webhosting companies is that if there is some problem with your website (someone reports something bad about it, illegal software, spam comes from your domain, etc), they simply remove it and you may lose your content. In addition, their customer support is typically unable to deal with non-standard issues. As long as you do not have to contact the customer support, you should be fine.

  2. Hi,

    i’ve seen your comment on the Andrew’s blog about your AJAX shoutbox spam problem. I modified the original version to add a little sound alert when an user post a new message and a filter to fight spammers. You can download it on my own blog. It’s an international release, so all you have to do is to translate the content of the PO file and use the generated MO file (more details on my blog). Have a try on it and give me some feedback.
    Amicably,

    Pierre

  3. Thanks Pierre!
    I am testing now :).

  4. http://www.free.fr/

    It looks that one can get completely free webhosting (includes PHP and 1GB monthly bandwidth) with free.fr.

    Normally you need to be resident of Franch (and Spain?). For more information, google with “free.fr webhosting” for more tips.

  5. http://www.freegr.net/
    http://freegreece.net/free-web-host.htm

    Δίνουν δωρεάν το αρχικό πακέτο, με χώρο 25ΜΒ και μηνιαίο bandwidth 500ΜΒ.
    Ακόμα υπάρχει PHP και mysql.
    Για wordpress, τα παραπάνω είναι αρκετά.
    Οπότε, αν θέλετε να ξεκινήσετε με Webhosting και το δικό σας ιστολόγιο, είναι μια πολύ καλή ευκαιρία.

    Αν κάποιος το έχει δοκιμάσει, ας το αναφέρει.

  6. You can also try some more affordable options, especially suitable when you want to learn about webhosting. As they are small companies, you have the chance to talk with real people who are happy to help you out.
    E-Space, http://www.my-e-space.net/
    Telnap, http://www.telnap.com/

    You can get away with less than 20 euros per year, with adequate hosting for your WordPress blog.

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