Domain names & website hosting QUME 185

2 Topics covered What an Internet Service Provider (ISP) does What a Hosting Provider does What a Domain Name is how to get one how to use one the typical costs

3 Internet Service Provider (ISP) Provides Internet connectivity accounts, Web access, etc. Can include web server space ( not under your own domain name! )

4 A general domain name You can use the server space provided by your ISP. Typical URL formats: www3.telus.net/public/username members.shaw.ca/username

5 Hosting provider Server space for your own website (with your own domain name) Most individuals and small businesses purchase a hosting service Some companies provide web hosting services exclusively Internet connectivity usually purchased separately, usually from a different provider

6 Your own domain name A form of branding, and more businesslike: Portable and permanent: does not depend on the ISP

7 Using a domain name Domain Name Service (DNS) server is needed to host it This is the role of the Hosting Provider Options for hosting Parked ( i.e. register only ) Shared hosting (By far the most common) Co-locating your own server on the premises of a hosting provider ( expensive!) Server on own premises (need reliable server & fast connection)

8 Shared hosting Very common arrangement for individuals and small businesses Accounts usually provide reasonable bandwidth and storage space and sufficient addresses. Bandwidth requirements will depend on how large the files are that people will access from your site, and how many people use the site. Typical cost: $20 per month.

9 Dedicated Server, Co-located The server is just for your use. You purchase (or lease) server hardware and software. The hosting service manages it for you. This is called a Co-located server Typical costs: $275 - $475 per month.

10 Your own server Costs can vary widely Need reliable components Need reliable, high- bandwidth connection Multiple redundancies! Extensive technical knowledge required

11 The domain name system How is a domain name made up? An actual name followed by the TLD Top-Level Domain (TLD) refers to the suffix attached to the domain name amazon.com viu.ca bbc.co.uk island.net sierraclub.org nasa.gov

12 Domain name system ICANN – The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers CIRA – Canadian Internet Registration Authority Use an accredited registrar to register a domain name

13 Choosing a domain name Select a name that is (ideally): descriptive and/or memorable user-friendly not too long Can resolve more than one domain name to the same website, e.g. the.com and.ca forms (i.e. aliasing)

14 WHOIS query (or lookup) WHOIS – a record of who owns a domain name. This is public information, widely available:

15 Obtaining a domain name Decide which top level domain or domains you want, ie.com,.ca or.org Perform a WHOIS lookup Decide on your ideal domain name(s) Many certified registrars to select from: local ISP many others

16 Registering a domain name Registrant has the right to use the domain name Cost per year is typically under $20

17 Making your website available All files must be on a web server Use File Transfer Protocol (FTP) to send the files to the server WS_FTP (Windows) Fetch (Mac) Use the Web Folders method (Windows) Website software often includes utilities to upload files Some programs allow direct editing on the server BBEdit (Mac) for example

18 Typical FTP Session

19 On the server… The Server has a folder or directory structure similar to your PC For example, your domain name is you have a folder called pets in your space on the server you upload your HTML file called cats.htm into this folder find this page on the web at

20 end

21 Finally… Design, build and launch your website Publicize your URL and domain name

22 When is a web page not on the Web? Viewing your web page locally View your html file locally (ie. not on the Internet) In Internet Explorer select File – Open (type in file name or browse your local drives. You can also drag and drop from a folder or double-click) The file looks exactly as it would if it were on the World Wide Web, but only you can see it – it is not publicly available until it is put on a web server

23 How does the domain name system work? The Internet functions using IP addresses, not names, so a DNS (Domain Name System) server is necessary if you are going to make a website available DNS is an Internet Standard for resolving the names of individual machines into IP addresses and vice versa An IP address looks like: Each machine on the Internet has a unique IP address DNS is the process of turning the name you register into an IP address so that the computers, which use only numbers, can translate the name into the numbers they understand.

24 DNS in action Finding your IP address Resolving an IP address into a name See today’s web page for useful links