Next time you're updating your Facebook status or checking out the latest viral YouTube video, take a minute to consider everything that has to happen for you to be able to enjoy your favorite websites. First, you need electricity. Next you need communications infrastructure capable at transmitting data over long distances at very high speed. Then you need digital electronics and a personal computer, and all the programming languages and protocols that allow your PC to function and communicate with other computers. Don't forget the World Wide Web itself. Last but certainly not least, your favorite websites need a server or servers on which to be hosted. These servers must store all the data that comprise the websites you visit, and serve it up to any and all web browsers that request it.
The importance of web servers and web hosting services in this overall picture cannot be overstated. These servers, as it turns out, are a bit like your home PC or laptop on steroids. They run faster, they store more information, and they have souped-up hardware. They live in a rack along with twenty or thirty other servers, which lives in a data center along with hundreds or maybe thousands of other server racks. The lightning fast growth of the Internet has required a corresponding growth in web servers and hosting. Nowadays there are an incredible number of choices for the webmaster-to-be seeking hosting services. One of the best choices for many new and experienced webmasters alike is Windows virtual hosting.
The servers we talked about earlier, despite their differences from run-of-the-mill PCs and Macs, bear some functional similarities. Modern web servers are powerful and speedy, to be sure, but they are still built using the same basic components; hard drives, processors, RAM, network interface cards, etc. They also need software and an operating system. Many webmasters choose Windows for their web hosting server. There are many reasons for this. Some are purely technical, relating to specific concerns for their website (i.e. if a website uses Visual Basic or .NET programming, Windows is the only OS that will support it). Some prefer Windows simply because they are used to the Windows interface, and they'd rather not learn a new OS like Linux or FreeBSD. Either way, Windows Server is a proven operating system for web hosting.
Instead of renting an entire web server, many webmasters with small to medium sized sites opt for the savings of a virtual plan. With a virtual plan, a single physical web server is reconfigured with software to act like a bunch of separate servers. These virtual private servers (VPS) afford the privacy, flexibility and control that come with purchasing a dedicated server hosting plan, at a fraction of the cost. Windows virtual hosting, then, is an attractive alternative to a dedicated plan, which would be overkill for all but the largest and most complex websites. Indeed, these Windows VPS plans are some of the most popular on the market, and they are used to host millions of websites.
A site like Facebook or YouTube generates such massive amounts of data that tens of thousands of servers, in server farms all over the world, are dedicated to just one of these mega sites. Chances are your website won't require anywhere near that much storage space or bandwidth. Whether you're just getting started with your first web venture, or you're a seasoned webmaster looking for a new hosting solution, a Windows virtual plan delivers the features and the savings to bring a smile to your face. We have several Windows VPS plans available at shockingly low prices. You can even customize the amount of storage space on your plan, as well as the bandwidth requirements. So check them out and find the one that's just right for you.