Domain Name & Web Hosting FAQ
This FAQ makes a wonderful guide or tutorial for those new to making their own web site.
Domain Names vs Web Hosting
1) What is the difference between a domain and a web host?
A domain name is only the address of a web site, such as example.com. You need to register this so that no one else can have that domain name for a period of time. You can do this through registerfly.com, enom.com, godaddy.com, etc.
On the other hand, a web host is a provider of web hosting services. They market virtual web hosting plans which provide you with space to host your web sites, email addresses, etc. Web hosting is required to have your web site running. Basically, it’s where your files are stored and where people on the Internet access it. Some companies give you limited hosting when you register a domain. However, if you need quality hosting, meaning fast speed and powerful features, etc., you will have to pay additional. Hosting plans can be found through findmyhosting.com.
To provide an analogy to real life, if your address were 123 Example Street, that would be your domain name. Your web host would be the estate site owner who rents the property out to you.
2) How are the two tied together?
First, you think of a domain name you want, like example.com. With some hosting companies, you can register the domain with them. However, it’s often a good idea to register it separately with a dedicated domain registrar. Once the domain is ready, use a hosting plan with some company to get nameservers to use for your domain’s DNS settings. You put those in where you registered the domain so that it would point to your host’s server. It takes 1-3 days for the changes to propogate through the Internet.
Nameservers are like ns1.example.com, ns2.example.com.
3) What is DNS?
DNS (Domain Name Servers) convert domain names to IPs and/or IPs to domain names. So you can type in example.com and it will be directed to an Ipaddress such as 123.123.123.123.123.
To provide an analogy to real life, DNS is like the directory which you find in the information counter at an office block.
4) What is the first step?
Registering a domain name. If you do this under a web host, make sure to check whether they register it under your name or theirs. Some have been known to "hijack" your domain name, preventing you from moving.
5) What does registering a domain name do for me?
It gives you a personal space on the web. One good utilization is having personal email accounts at whatever name you choose. In addition, a domain name gives you web site a unique address at which your clients and visitors can find you.
Sometimes if you ask a web design company or designer to register your domain name, they could also hijack your domain name, registering the domain with their name or as one of the contacts.
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