Want To Know More About Web Hosting? Here’s 15 Web Hosting Jargon Explained.

  1. Web host
  2. A company that provides the technologies and services needed for your website to be found by your visitors on the internet. Web hosts own a number of physical servers that are used to store the files that make up your website.
  3. Traffic
  4. The number of visits your website receives.  The more traffic you have, the more popular your website is. Web hosts provide servers that can accommodate specific quantities of traffic.
  5. Uptime
  6. The amount of time your website is available to your visitors Although most web hosts promise 99%uptime, you should know that means your website will be down 87 hours a year (1% of a year in hours). What you are essentially looking for is at least 99.99% uptime. That’s just 52 minutes of downtime during the year.
  7. Physical server
  8. Physical servers are powerful computers located inside a secure data center. These servers run operating systems and applications just like any ordinary computer would. They also contain internal hardware resources such as RAM, CPU cores, hard disk drives, solid-state drives, etc.
  9. Cloud server
  10. Cloud hosting is wherein your website data is spread out amongst a bunch of physical servers.  These servers are then connected together in a virtual environment. Since you’re able to use so many servers to power your website, you essentially have access to infinite RAM, CPU power, disk space, etc.
  11. Bandwidth
  12. Bandwidth is the term used for the amount of data your website transfers to your website visitors. The reason bandwidth is important is because the more bandwidth you have, the faster data can be sent to your visitors. During traffic hours, you’re going to need a significant amount of bandwidth.  So, it’s a good option to always buy a package that includes unlimited bandwidth.
  13. Domain
  14. A domain is the name of your website. It’s what people type into a browser when they want to view your website. Usually, a domain name is a mixture of letters and numbers. They usually end in extensions such as .com, .net, .info, etc.
  15. Virtual machine
  16. A virtual machine is a software developed on a physical server. In the hosting world, it is used to act as a dedicated server.  It has its own operating system. It also has a certain amount of resources (RAM, disk space, CPU power) allocated to it by the physical server(host). Thanks to its resources, virtual machines are now used as servers to host websites, applications, etc.
  17. Dedicated server
  18. A dedicated server is an entire physical server solely dedicated to your website’s needs You gain access to 100% of its resources, and only you are able to use it.
  19. VPS
  20. VPS stands for “virtual private server.” A virtual server is created by splitting a physical server into tens or hundreds of pieces. Those pieces are known as virtual servers and are allotted a specific amount of the physical server’s  RAM and storage resources. 
We hope this post helped clear some of your doubts about web hosting. If you’re looking for a hosting company that provides tailored hosting solutions to clients who want to scale their website to the next level, then look no further. CloudItNow – Toronto’s leading hosting company, has been providing VPS hosting, dedicated hosting, and shared hosting services to clients all around the world.

Is Cloud Hosting Really Better Than VPS Hosting? Here’s What You Need To Know

VPS stands for “virtual private server.” A VPS server is engineered by splitting a physical server into tens or hundreds of pieces.

Each of those pieces is known as a virtual server and is allotted a specific amount of the physical server’s  RAM and storage resources. 

Whereas in cloud hosting, your data is spread out amongst an array of physical servers.

These servers are then connected together in a virtual environment. 

So just to reiterate, with VPS, your data is stored inside a segment of a physical server.

And, with the cloud, your data is stored inside the segments of each and every physical server located inside the virtual environment.

3 reasons why you would use Cloud instead of VPS:

  1. Better performance

 With VPS, your website (amongst others) is still stored on a physical server. 

During traffic hours, your server might face high demands of RAM and CPU power from one of the websites stored by said server. 

As a result, your website will receive fewer resources than that website.

Needless to say, your page speed and uptime will be negatively affected.

  1. Better uptime

VPS servers face downtime. And, when it does, there’s nothing you or the server can do anything about it. 

On the other hand, the very moment a cloud server faces downtime; your site is immediately migrated to one of the other servers located in the virtual environment.

  1. Easier scalability

As you continue to gain traffic, there will be a time when you need extra RAM and CPU cores. 

With VPS servers, you won’t immediately be able to gain the resources because there are only so many resources that a physical server can allocate to you. 

On the cloud, however, resources are not restricted to a single server. Need resources? Boom, you’ve just gained access to a second physical server.

3 reasons why you would use VPS instead of a cloud:

  1. More customizable: 

With a VPS server, you essentially have root access.

In addition to having access to more settings, you can easily ask your host for an extra feature, and an adjustment will be made for you.

However, although you can configure firewalls and play around with some settings, it’s possible your host won’t allow some of the changes. 

Especially because they also have to be applied to every single server that stores your data.

  1. More secure

On a cloud-based system, whatever security feature you decide to add to your website will have to be added to every single server

Again, that’s pretty hard. In comparison, using VPS hosting means your site is stored entirely on a single physical server. 

So, whatever security feature you add to the server will be added to the whole website.

  1. No technical expertise needed

With cloud hosting, you’ll need to be very tech-savvy to take advantage of the configuration settings provided to you. 

Cloud hosting generally costs more than VPS. It would be quite a shame if you are unable to tweak the settings to improve your site’s performance. 

Since VPS servers are just part of one large physical server, most of the settings are straightforward and easy to implement.

So to round it all up, if your website is small and doesn’t generate enormous amounts of traffic, you might want to stick to VPS hosting. 

However, if you own a very large site that contains a huge number of web pages, then go ahead and buy a cloud hosting package.

If you’re looking for a hosting company that provides tailored hosting solutions to clients who want to scale their website to the next level, then look no further.

CloudItNow – Toronto’s leading hosting company, has been providing VPS hosting, dedicated hosting, and shared hosting services to clients all around the world.

Top 3 WordPress Plugins To Boost Your Site’s Performance Instantly

Plugins are used to add awesome features to your WordPress website. 

They are software coded using PHP. It contains an array of functions that can help your website gain new superpowers.

Here’s the best part, there are thousands of WP plugins out there.

 And,  although you might want to add as many as you wish, it’s recommended just to add the few best ones.

Hopefully, after you read this post, you’ll know exactly what to add.

  • Yoast SEO

The ultimate Swiss knife for SEO strategists.

Your website has one goal only. And that is to rank high on Google search.

Yoast SEO makes the path easy by suggesting the best keywords, evaluating your headlines, and optimizing your text.

It also tells Google what your website is all about by creating an XML sitemap to explain the structure of the site’s content.

Here’s what you didn’t know: Google updates its algorithm 500-600 times a year.

 It’s hard to keep updating your strategy that many times.

Well, you don’t have to because Yoast is updated every two weeks, so your site is always optimized for Google’s most recent version of its algorithm.

  • OptinMonster

Need a helping hand for maximizing conversions? Here you go.

 OptinMonster helps people build email lists quicker than ever by:

  • Creating popups to advertise, collect emails, perform checkout, etc.
  • Creating and customizing a campaign. No coding skills are required.
  • Adding lead magnets such as “50% off discount for 24 hours only”.
  • Making sure your email campaigns reach the right type of people.
  • Provide analytics so you can enhance your campaign.
  • Work together with email service providers like Mailchimp.
  • Retarget existing customers who have shown engagement before.

There are 9 types of campaigns that you can create. And every one of them is designed to increase conversion rates.

  • Sucuri

If your site can’t protect itself from threats, why improve its performance?

Almost a hundred thousand sites are hacked every day. But don’t worry; you don’t need to be a security guru to guard your website as long as it lives.

Sucuri takes care of that for you.

In addition to including a firewall and an antivirus, Sucuri also implements a CDN layer that speeds up your website. How cool is that?!

Sucuri regularly scans your site for malware and sends you an email if it detects any suspicious activity.

And, in case the worst happens, and your website gets hacked, Sucuri has post-hack security options. Phew!

So which of these plug-ins are you going to install today?

Is it going to be OptinMonster so you can make the big bucks?

Or is it Sucuri to safeguard your beloved website?

If you’re looking for a hosting provider that has WordPress pre-installed and will also install plugins for you, then check out CloudItNow – Toronto’s top hosting provider.

Some Hosts Provide Lightning Speed, Some Don’t; What’s The Secret?

Google says that less than a one-second delay will result in eight million fewer searches per day.   

Their studies have proven that more than half of your visits are abandoned if your website takes over 3 seconds to load.

Here are 3 secrets that hosting providers might hide from you which could have a drastic effect on your site’s performance.

Secret #1: Web hosts promise 99% uptime, but that promise falls short during traffic hours

You might lose system availability during peak traffic hours.

Unfortunately, this may result in fewer conversions because users will leave your site if the pages are not running smoothly.

That’s money being taken out of your pocket due to your hosting server facing downtime.

Here’s the kicker, there’s a chance your paying customer might leave you for your competitor if they feel as if they can no longer rely on you.

Secret #2: If you live far away from the server, you might face a reduction in page speed. This is where data centers take the stage.

Data will have to travel long distances if your server is far away from your location.

Consequently, the process of obtaining files and data can be lengthy.

Your pages will have bad load times along with high latency.

The result? Your visitors will get disappointed with the slow speeds, which will prompt them to leave your site and never return again.

But don’t worry, the best hosting providers out there always invest in a huge number of data centers in several different countries.

 This makes sure that there are no long distances between you and the nearest data center.

Secret #3: All packages should offer unmetered bandwidth, but the cheaper packages usually don’t.

Bandwidth is the term used for the amount of data your website transfers to your website visitors

The reason bandwidth is important is because the more bandwidth you have, the faster data can be sent to your visitors.

Unmetered bandwidth means your hosting provider doesn’t set a limit on how much bandwidth you can use.

And, trust me, once you generate lots of traffic, you’re going to need a significant amount of bandwidth.

It can be tricky to find the best hosting provider for your needs. 

Especially when you’re on a tight budget.

Hopefully, this post helped make the search a little easier.


If you’re looking for a hosting provider that keeps all of these secrets in mind, then check out CloudItNow – Toronto’s top hosting provider.

3 Tips For Choosing The Best Hosting Provider Today

I think you’ll agree with me when I say:

It’s REALLY hard to find the best hosting provider that offers not only a free domain but also cloud hosting services, 99% uptime, and other amazing benefits all in one package.

Well, it turns out that it does not have to be so hard if you do your research. In fact, these tips that I’m about to show you are used by people all the time!

Tip #1: Make sure your provider offers lots of hand-holding

For beginners, this can make or break your website. 

The best hosting providers can manage your website for you, and some of them even offer managed WordPress hosting in almost all their plans.

Some providers only offer support during business hours. Always check for 24/7 tech support and phone support.

Here are a few tasks that your host MUST perform to their very best:

  • Make sure your system is configured correctly for your load
  • Patch your software as needed
  • Manage backups, among other tasks.

Tip #2: If your site takes more than 3 seconds to load, people will not be happy.

Some hosts provide 99% uptime but do not promise high loading speeds during traffic hours.

Try to find a host that uses SSD persistent data storage to maintain low latency. Your host should also always maintain fast and reliable connections.

  • VPS hosting usually provides the best uptime rates and higher speeds.
  • Check all the data centers to determine the lowest latency.
  • Use WP Engine if you are using a site powered by WordPress

Tip #3: Not all hosts include the best technology that is designed to provide utmost security

A large number of companies are engaging in most of the standard security practices, but that doesn’t tell you how secure they are compared to competitors.

It’s important to look at all the different security measures that  your hosting offers.

  • Firewalls
  • Security Protection
  • Spam Filter
  • Domain Name Privacy
  • DDoS Protection
  • High-Quality SSL Certificate
  • AntiVirus

I hope today’s post gave you an idea of how to select the best hosting provider.

If you’re looking for a hosting company that provides tailored hosting solutions to clients who want to scale their website to the next level, then look no further.

CloudItNow – Toronto’s leading hosting company, has been providing VPS hosting, dedicated hosting, and shared hosting services to clients all around the world.

Why VPS Hosting Is The Perfect Solution For Your Web Hosting Needs

VPS stands for “virtual private server.” A virtual server is created by splitting a physical server into tens or hundreds of pieces.

Those pieces are known as virtual servers and are allotted a specific amount of the physical server’s  RAM and storage resources. 

Take the best parts of shared and dedicated hosting, and boom – you now have VPS hosting.

Here’s 5 reasons why you may need VPS hosting:

  • You’re generating more traffic than ever and need a stronger server.
  • You’re tired of slow page speeds because of low storage and RAM allocations.
  • You want security (firewalls, DDoS protection, malware monitoring).
  • Dedicated hosting is too expensive for you.
  • You need more CPU cores so your applications can run seamlessly.

Pros and cons of using VPS hosting

Pros:

  1. High amounts of bandwidth to handle all your traffic: 

Hosting providers may offer unmetered bandwidth as a part of your VPS hosting package. 

So, in other words, you don’t have to pay for each GB of bandwidth that your website uses.

  1. Customize your server to your heart’s content:

 Select whatever type of software you want to install, choose the operating system that best suits your needs, and gain control over 100% of your server’s resources.

  1. More affordable than dedicated:

Perhaps your site is still not at an enterprise level. 

Well, you can still get most of the performance and benefits of dedicated hosting with VPS hosting. 

Get the best of both worlds at a low price. It’s a win-win.

Cons:

  1. Not for beginners:

Managing a VPS requires proper technical expertise. 

After you’ve gained root access, you need to take responsibility to conduct maintenance, software updates, security checks, and more.

  1. More expensive than shared hosting:

For small websites with low monthly revenue, it might be difficult to pay a few more dollars every month for VPS hosting. 

You should probably stick to shared hosting until you start bringing in the big bucks.

  1. Incorrectly allocated resources: 

If another site on your physical server uses up all the resources, your site might face issues.  

It’s possible that your web host may have oversold the space to another system. So, be aware of how many sites are on your server.

VPS hosting is likely to be the perfect fit for you considering you bring in heaps of traffic. If you’re looking to know specifically what type of hardware and software is used by a VPS server, then look no further. CloudItNow – Toronto’s top hosting company, provides excellent VPS hosting packages to help scale your website to the next level.

Here’s a link to their VPS server product page that will give you a brief overview of what is typically included inside a good VPS hosting package.