basic web hosting

1. 12 Web Hosting and Maintenance
Lesson Introduction
In the previous lesson you have learnt about event driven JavaScript functions and
use of JavaScript Libraries such as JQuery. This week you will lean on web server
systems for hosting web sites and maintaining websites remotely and dynamically.
This week focus on various hosting platforms, frameworks and maintenance facilities
commonly in use.
Learning Outcomes:
After completion of this lesson, the learner will be able to host websites in remote
locations and maintain the sites.
This lesson enables you to
• Describe Web hosting platforms and methods
• Use remote login methods for hosting sites
• Create and maintain web content on remote sites
• Apply ftp, sftp and ssh clients
Lesson Outline
• UNIX and Windows hosting
• Web servers, Server Packages and utilities (Apache, IIS, WAMP, LAMP etc..)
• Domain name registration and hosting options
• Web server ports and configurations
• Remote login protocols and facilities
• GUI web server control and cPanel
• File permissions, indexing and structuring
• Web maintenance client applications

2. 12.1 Web Servers and hosting
In previous lessons you have learnt about event driven JavaScript functions and their
libraries. So, in this lesson, we will discuss how to host websites on different platforms
with maintenance facilities.
12.1.1 Web Hosting
In generally, the term Web hosting is refers to the activity or service of providing storage
space to individuals or organizations, for their websites that are accessible via World
Wide Web. Any website to be available for viewing on the World Wide Web, it has to be
on a computer that is connected to the Internet. The computer your site is on is known
as its host.
A web host, or hosting service provider, is a business that provides the technologies and
services needed for the website or webpage to be viewed in the Internet. Websites are
hosted, or stored, on special computers with special software service called servers.
You have to pay to an organization to put your documents on their webserver, which
called as web hosting. Hosting service providers are hosting your site on their servers.
When Internet users want to view your website, all they need to do is type your website
address or domain into their browser. The DNS ensures you get associated with the
correct computer. Their computer will then connect to your server and your webpages
will be delivered to them through the browser.
In the world of web site hosting there are two main types of operating system platforms
on which you may host your web site, namely: UNIX and Windows (UNIX hosting and
Windows hosting).
12.1.2 Windows Hosting
Windows hosting means hosting of web services that runs on the Windows operating
system and design their own sites using Microsoft technology means Windows-specific
technologies such as ASP, .NET, Microsoft Access and Microsoft SQL server (MSSQL).

3. You should choose Windows hosting if you plan to use ASP (Active Server Pages) or
ASP.net as server scripting, or if you plan to use a database like Microsoft Access or
Microsoft SQL Server.
Some of the Windows-specific technologies such as ASP, .NET, Microsoft Access and
Microsoft SQL server (MSSQL) are listed below.
ASP .net - Active Server Pages
• Active Server Pages is a server-side scripting technology developed by Microsoft.
• With ASP you can create dynamic web pages by putting script code inside your HTML
pages. Commonly used language is C#. The web server executes the code before the page
is returned to the browser. Here on ASP .net, HTML, JavaScript, CSS and XML types of web
languages are enabled.
• ASP is a standard component in current Windows OS’s. It can be activated on all
computers running Windows.
• Many web hosting providers are offering ASP, as it is becoming a more and more popular
technology.
• Currently ASP.net is more popular among Microsoft community.
MySQL
• MySQL is also popular database software for web sites.
• MySQL is an inexpensive alternative to the expensive Microsoft and Oracle solutions.
12.1.3 Unix Hosting and Linux Hosting
Unix hosting means hosting of web services that runs on the Unix operating system. Unix
was the first (original) web server operating system, and it is known for being reliable and
stable. It is less expensive than Windows.
Linux hosting means hosting of web services that runs on the Linux operating system.
Linux also belongs to same family of Unix, there are other variants like, FreeBSD,
OpenBSD, Fedora (linux version) and CentOS.

4. We run a derivative of Unix called Linux. We run 64-Bit Enterprise Linux servers. Linux
servers are known for their value, stability and wide feature set. You do not have to be
running Linux to use a hosting provider with Linux Servers. It is simply the software used
by the server to share out a website.
12.2 Web servers, Server Packages and Utilities
Here we discuss the particular software called a web server that responds to client side
requests that comes from a web browser, by giving resources like XHTML Pages. Through
this section you will get to know about two web servers the open source Apache HTTP
Server and Microsoft’s Internet Information Services (IIS) which you can install on
your own computer for testing your web pages and web applications. Web server is a
computer where the web content is stored. Basically web server is used to host the web
sites but there exists other web servers also such as gaming, storage, FTP, email etc. Web
server responds to the client request (browser) in one of the following two ways:
• Sending the file to the client associated with the requested URL
• Generating response by invoking a script and communicating with database
When client sends request for a web page, the web server search for the requested page
if requested page is found then it will send it to client with an HTTP response. If the
requested web page is not found, web servers will the send an HTTP response: Error
404 Not found. If client has requested for some other resources then the web server will
contact to the application server and data store to construct the HTTP response.
12.2.1 What is ISP?
An Internet service provider (ISP), also sometimes referred to as an internet access
provider (IAP), is a company that offers its customers to access to the internet. The ISP
connects to its customers using a data transmission technology appropriate for delivering

5. internet protocols such as dial –up, DSL, cable modem, wireless or dedicated high-speed
interconnections.
ISP may provide Internet email accounts to users, which allow them to communicate with
another by sending messages through their ISP servers.
In the following section it discusses how to install the software you need for running web
apps using Apache HTTP Server, Apache is a powerful web server supports in both
windows and Unix platforms. It is open source software and freely available. There are
packages, which could install Apache with other components such as PHP, Python, etc.
12.2.2 Apache web server on Linux
Generally, Apache web server bundle is delivered with most Linux variant installation
packages. Here, in the following video you can learn how to install it from scratch. Here it
uses Ubuntu as the operating system and apache2 web server package where it is more
similar in other Linux/Unix variants and webservers as well. Further the next video shows
how to configure it from Operating System bundle.
Apache2 installation Demo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-q8Jj4aAWYw
Apache web server configuration Demo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrPNg4tWjUI
12.2.3 IIS (Internet Information Server)
Internet Information Services (IIS) is the Windows Web service that means IIS is web
server that can be installed on Microsoft windows computers, once you installed IIS server
to your own computers you can publish your web pages and web applications on your local
computers. Internet Information Services is not installed on current Windows OS’s by
default. The following video
IIS Installation Demo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I32AnqJzD58
Publishing web site in IIS
• Create a home page for your Web site.
• Name your home page file Default.htm or Default.asp.

6. Activity 12.1: Write the differences and similarities of Windows hosting and Linux hosting.
• Copy your home page into the default Web publishing directory for IIS (wwwroot). The
default Web publishing directory is also called the home directory, and the location
provided by Setup is Inetpubwwwroot.
• If your network has a name resolution system (typically DNS), then visitors can simply
type your computer name in the address bar of their browsers to reach your site. If your
network does not have a name resolution system, visitors must type the numerical IP
address of your computer.
Publish content on your FTP site
• Copy or move your files into the default FTP publishing directory. The default directory
provided by Setup is InetpubFtproot.
• If your network has a name resolution system (typically DNS), then visitors can type
ftp:// followed by your computer name in the address bar of their browsers to reach your
site. If your network does not have a name resolution system, visitors must type ftp://
and the numerical IP address of your computer.
12.3 Domain name registration and hosting options
12.3.1 What is a Domain Name?
A domain name is a unique name for a web site, like microsoft.com and
w3schools.com. A domain name is a unique name that people type in the browser to
open a particular website. For example, domain name for w3schools is w3schools.com.
It's the name by which your site will be known on the web and the way individuals can
discover it. It is the primary thing that your clients will type in their program to get to your
site or on the other hand find it through web search tools, for example, Google or Bing.

7. Your domain name should be important because it is the name that people have to
remember and type in to get to your website.
• Domain names must be registered. When domain names are registered they are added to
a large domain name register, and information about your site - including your internet IP
address which is stored on a DNS server.
• DNS stands for Domain Name System. A DNS server is responsible for informing all other
computers on the Internet about your domain name and your site address.
12.3.2 Registering a Domain
Most people will register their domain name with their web host in an "all-in-one" hosting
solution.
•Domains can be registered from domain name registration companies such as
http://www.dotdnr.com or GoDaddy etc.
• These companies provide interfaces to search for available domain names and they offer
a variety of domain name extensions that can be registered at the same time.
• Domain Name Registration provides registration services for .com .net .org .biz .info .us
.nu .ws .cc and .tv domains.
12.3.3 Different Types of Web Hosting Options
In tins section basically we discuss about 3 main hosting options. These are Shared
Servers, Virtual Private Servers, and Dedicated Server.
Shared Server Option: A Shared Server is a computer managed by your web facilitating
organization that enables numerous sites to be hosted on one computer. One basic
preferred standpoint is monthly rental fee that is being charged to the end client. In the
event that you have a web site that is quite straightforward and utilized for the most part
to advertise, at that point this might be the best choice cost aspect.

8. A particular one web site completes a considerable measure of handling, gets huge
amounts of guests, it can viably back off alternate sites on the web server. The computer
assets are being shared among everybody.
Dedicated Server: This is heading off to the total outrageous contrasted with a shared
server and is likewise the most costly approach. You are basically paying a huge monthly
rental fee to leased line for your own particular computer every month. This alternative is
ideal on the off chance that you are doing on the web mission basic activities and your site
is acquiring a considerable measure of cash basic to the business task.
Virtual Private Server Hosting: This is another option for hosting a web site that might be a
center ground between a “shared Server” and a “dedicated Server”. This is essentially
taking the web server and cutting into a settled number of virtual servers with dispensed
computer assets for each. Along these lines you don't need to stress on the off chance that
another person is hindering the web server for you are just utilizing a piece of it. It is more
costly than a shared server yet more affordable than a dedicated server.
12.4 Web server ports and configurations
Previously on Linux Webserver configuration video you may have seen how to configure
the webserver with their ports and IP addresses. In this section we discussed about Web
server ports and configurations further. When considering any server machine that makes
its services available to the Internet using numbered ports, one for each service that is
available on the server. Most of the time the default port is used as 80. Each of the most
well known services is available at a well-known port number. The following video
demonstrates the on how to configure windows port for apache web server. Next video
demonstrate on configuring both IIS and XAMP together.
Configure Apache ports on windows: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=St49oetWUMI
Configure IIS ports: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62eAVotw9F4

9. Activity 12.2: Self study about SFTP software and compare and contrast the features of SFTP
and SSH protocols while distinguishing their facilities.
12.5 Remote login protocols and facilities
Remote login that allows users to login to host machines on a network and users can act
like they were physically at the host machine location. According to the user’s authority
level they can read, add, edit and delete files. There are two remote login protocols are
TELNET and SSH.
TELNET: The protocol TELNET is a TCP/IP standard for setting up a connection to a remote
machine. TELNET enables a user’s to sign in to a remote machine over the Web by first
making a TCP connection and pass the detail of the application from the user to the remote
machine.
Using TELNET protocol, an application program on the client's machine turns into the
customer. The client's console and its screen likewise append specifically to the remote
server. The remote logging activity depends on timesharing, whereby an approved client
has a user name and a password to Logging to Remote Servers.
SSH: The protocol Secure Shell abbreviate as SSH, it is another remote login protocol,
which is based on UNIX programs. SSH protocol utilizes TCP for communications but is
more powerful and flexible than TELNET and allows the user to more easily execute a
single command on a remote customer.
SSH utilizes encryption to secure the connection between a customer and a server. All
client confirmation, outputs, commands, and documents transfers are encrypted to protect
against attacks in the network. The following video demonstrate the use of secure shell
client for remote server access and for ftp.
Remote server access through secure shell: https://www.experts-
exchange.com/videos/633/Using-Secure-Shell-SSH.html

10. 12.6 GUI web server control and cPanel
To manage hosting environment most of the website owners use different kind of web
hosting control panels. These control panels facilitates the server administration and allows
users to manage multiple websites easily. There are some of the activities that most of the
control panels support.
• Web server administration
• DNS management
• Email management
• Database administration
• FTP management
12.6.1 cPanel
cPanel is one of the most widely used control panels for web hosting. It is a web-based
interface and it is an online Linux-based web hosting control panel that provides a
graphical interface and automation tools designed to simplify the process of hosting a web
site. One of the widely used and well-known control panels is cPanel. There are also other
alternatives that you could consider such as Plesk, ISPConfig, etc., cPanel provides a 3 tier
structure that utilizes capabilities for administrators, resellers, and end-user website owners
to control the various aspects of website and server administration through a standard web
browser.
It is easy to use, highly customizable and majority of the hosts are configured to serve its
multiple layouts that are available. It comes with various pre-installed options, and from it
you can manage email and FTP accounts, your add-on and subdomains, MySQL database,
applications, security, and statistics. Everything that we’ve talked about in this guide you
can find in cPanel. After installing and answering a few questions to customize your cPanel,
you are ready to use it. It has an interface for website owners and server owners. Besides
the already mentioned pre-installed options, you can add almost anything you want to. In

11. the Web Host Manager part of the cPanel, you can do all things that are related to
administrative server hosting. There you can add and manage your accounts, create
hosting plans, reseller accounts, change security features, configure server, scale your
hosting capabilities and much more. While it is easy and intuitive enough for beginners,
cPanel is powerful enough to meet the needs of more advanced users.
12.7 File permissions, indexing and structuring
Files that are on machines with Unix and Linux operating systems can have file permission
that means operating system knows how to deal with request to access the files. Read,
Write and Execute are the three access types.
• Read - Indicate as r, users can only read files that have read access, these files are
displayed to the users. users can’t do any modifications to these files
• Write - Indicate as w, users can do any modifications according to their requirements to
the files that have write permission
• Execute - Indicate as x, files with execute access can be executed as programs by the user.
There are three types of user groups associated with these access types.
• User - The owner of the file.
• Group - Other files, which are in the same folder or group.
• World - Everyone else.
cPanel can use to manage file permission
12.8 Web maintenance client applications
Website Maintenance includes all the activities expected to ensure the operational integrity
of a website. Whatever these activities don't happen, the outcomes can be embarrassingly
obvious.
It is important to maintain your web site or keep updated all the activities of your web
application to any business. Website is a worldwide window into your business and it can

12. Activity 12.3: Download and install FileZilla software and get familiar with the web
maintenance facilities supported by the software.
have a big impact on how the value of your product or service is perceived. A well-
maintained website is critical for real-time service industries. All businesses need regular
website maintenance to attract and retain customers, maintain search engine rankings and
present new information, products and services to the public. Website maintenance is also
required to maintain the value of the website over time.
Owning a site, accompanies have certain obligations. You can’t just build it and forget it.
Well you have to do regular website maintenance, it is a must if you want your site to be
successful and up to date without any fault.
Please refer the video and the content of the following site to obtain more information on
web maintenance.
http://www.diffily.com/articles/maintenance.htm
Summary
Now you have completed learning lesson 12. We have discussed about Web
hosting, web servers and configurations, remote management of websites and
maintenance of websites.