Bandwidth is the measurement
of the amount of data transmitted over an internet connection
in a given time. The majority of web hosting companies will
set monthly limits. Some of these hosts will allow overselling
which means your site will remain up but you receive a bill
for the extra amount used others will simply pull the plug
until next month.
Bandwidth explained: Bandwidth is the amount of
data transfer that you are allowed to have for a hosting package
i.e. Let's say you have a web page that is 48KB in size, now
each time a user opens your site and goes to that page S/he
downloads 48 KB of information on to their computer. If a
100 users view that page one time each then there has been
a total of 4800 KB of data transferred from the server on
which your files are stored for the computer of users.
Size of web Page: 48 KB
Number of users who viewed the web page: 100
Total amount of data transferred: 48KB * 100 = 4800 KB
Bandwidth is the term that is used to denote the amount of
data that has been transferred from your web space.
The amount of bandwidth that you require while choosing
a host depends on two factors:
The size of your site The popularity of your site
If your site
is not very huge and you do not have any audio/video downloads
and it's not very popular i.e. not a lot of people visit your
site then you do not really require a lot of bandwidth, on
a average a web site uses up only 500 MB of bandwidth per
month. Or if your site is small but extremely popular then
you might have to go for a web hosting package that offers
high bandwidth.
On the other hand if your web site is huge, providing audio/video
downloads, as well as being very popular then you would certainly
require a huge amount of bandwidth. Let's say you have a video
file that is 150 MB in size and in a single day a 100 visitors
download the file. This means that 15 GB of bandwidth will
have been used. If you multiply that by 30 days for the month
it comes to 450 GB.
Unlimited
Bandwidth
Many website hosting companies
offer "unlimited bandwidth" as part of their web hosting
packages.
It's absolutely true, you can have unlimited bandwidth. However,
you will need an unlimited amount of money by your side! Jokes
apart, if you ever come across such a host it would be best
to turn around and run back the way you came from.
Any web hosting company claiming "Unlimited Bandwidth"
is simply lying. There's no such thing as "Unlimited Bandwidth".
In the real world, we've never seen any broadband company offering
an internet connection as "Unlimited Megabytes Per Second."
So, how could a web hosting company, which normally doesn't
even own its own access lines, claims to customers that it will
give them "Unlimited Bandwidth"? I have yet to come
across a hard disk with unlimited disk space either.
Just think, if you can get unlimited bandwidth for $25-30 a
month then why aren't big companies like Sun, Microsoft etc.
not hosted there? In fact, why isn't everyone hosted there?
For that matter, if unlimited is a standard feature then why
don't all website hosting companies offer it? Is it because
the hardware is expensive? No, it's because some hosts are honest
and don't give in to such gimmicks.
There are a lot of ways
you can be duped by these ' unlimited' hosts; here are just
a few of them:
The secret of 'unlimited' is actually buried in the Terms
of Service by the host. Do not be surprised to find that
unlimited only equals 900mb or so
The host may restrict the sort of files that you can host
on their server. Generally image galleries and audio/video
files attract a lot more downloads thereby resulting in
higher bandwidth consumption. So if there are no files of
this type, your site won't really require a lot of bandwidth.
Some newly opened hosts use it as a scam. They take your
money and after a few months when their server starts to
become slow or reaches its limit, they run. with your money!
Some hosts outline in their Terms of Service that you
can have unlimited bandwidth as long as you qualify for
it. i.e. Your site must use less then, let's say 2 GB of
bandwidth in order to qualify for the unlimited bandwidth
feature. As soon as your site goes over that limit they
either start charging you for it or cut off your downloads
altogether.
In life it's absolutely true that you you always get what you
pay for, and it's no different for web hosting.
If a host is using a cheap advertising gimmick like 'unlimited
bandwidth' they maybe lying about a few other things too.
In short: Website Hosting Companies offering "Unlimited
Bandwidth" to attract customers need to be avoided. Most
of the time, high bandwidth sites on these "Unlimited"
plans will be disconnected, and no refund given or will end
up with a large bill at the end of the month that they had not
counted on. Normally, the web hosting company will simply say
that the site violated its Acceptable Use Policy or Terms of
Service.
So Why Do Unlimited Bandwidth
Plans Exist?
Most websites only consume a very small amount of bandwidth
and disk space. Web hosting companies that provide unlimited
anything as a plan feature are banking on the fact that you
won't use very much. Unlimited is a marketing trick to get your
business. The web hosting market is very competitive. Although
selling plans that pretend to be unlimited can seem dishonest,
it does not mean that the hosting company will not provide good
service. Check in the hosting company's Terms of Service: there
will probably be a note about what "unlimited" really
means.
When Are Unlimited Plans
Ok?
If you have a small website and know that it will not consume
too much space or bandwidth, then unlimited plans make your
choices a bit easier to understand. Most plans that offer unlimited
will have some restrictions such as no audio or video downloads.
The reason audio or video downloads are typically not allowed
in unlimited hosting plans is because these types of files consume
significant bandwidth and disk space which exposes the host
to the risk of having to add more hard drive space and bandwidth,
which costs them more money. If you choose an unlimited plan
and you know your needs won't be very intensive then you won't
run into any problems.
When Are Unlimited Plans
Not Ok?
If you intend to have a lot of
visitors to your site, lots of downloads, including audio or
video files, do not choose an unlimited plan hoping to get unrestricted
bandwidth. You will find yourself with problems. Your web host
is not going to run at a loss for long - they could shut down
your website or even charge you extra (read the terms of service).
So What Is The Best Thing
To Do?
The best course of action is to
plan ahead. Remember, you can always buy more bandwidth or disk
space if you need - often for just a few extra Dollars.
Only consider an unlimited hosting plan if you know your disk
space and bandwidth requirements are very low. If, on the other
hand, you have an ecommerce site or a site that you expect to
grow in size and bandwidth in future, avoid any plans that offer
unlimited bandwidth or disk space.
Remember it is impossible for any provider to actually provide
an unlimited amount of bandwidth or disk space.
