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Articles > What To Look For In WordPress Hosting
What To Look For In WordPress Hosting
Although WordPress claims to be simply a blogging platform and not a "content management system" or "CMS" it has steadily become the platform of choice for many individuals, organisations and businesses publishing content on the Internet.
WordPress blog hosting has become a necessary feature for most web hosting companies. In fact, many web hosts proudly advertise that they offer free WordPress hosting and a search for "WordPress hosting uk" will turn up many potential hosts.
If you choose to go with dedicated WordPress hosting, as opposed to a web host that offers a variety of scripts for installation such as Drupal, Joomla or various blogging systems, you will often benefit from a greater level of customer service.
For a web host that offers multiple scripts for installation in addition to WordPress, it is difficult, if not impossible, to stay current with the proficiency and expertise necessary to quickly and expertly navigate troubleshooting issues with each release of each platform.
Focusing on WordPress blog hosting gives the web host a depth of knowledge and expertise on the subject. They can often assist you in upgrading, disabling plugins or other problems when another host would simply send you to the WordPress forums. They may also be able to assist you in finding the best techniques for specific Wordpress SEO.
Because WordPress is so ubiquitous, most web hosts are familiar with the resource drain of hosting this blogging platform and have implemented basic caching scripts for increased performance. Unfortunately, your site may still suffer from slow loading and other related problems if your host allows other, more intensive, CMS software to be hosted on your server.
Dedicated WordPress hosting minimises this problem with a deeper familiarity with WordPress-specific caching and speed-up techniques.
The secret of many web hosting companies is that those individuals who use minimal resources are used to subsidise the "power users". Depending upon how sites are allocated amongst the host's bank of servers, a handful of sites that cause unreasonably high amounts of server stress can negatively impact sites that offer a cleaner and more streamlined experience.
The basic requirements for hosting WordPress are often minimal. For example, WordPress 3.1 requires a server running PHP 4.3 and MySQL 4.1.2. More recent releases require a minimum of PHP 5.2.4, MySQL 5.0 and the mod_rewrite Apache module. Even these requirements are easily met by most servers. If your site will rely on multiple plugins, or custom code, then additional requirements may be necessary. Again, a multi-purpose web host will likely refuse to provide any assistance with plug-ins, however a WordPress-specific host may provide additional insight or advice on running software within WordPress.
These minimal requirements for hosting WordPress have resulted in many businesses offering free WordPress hosting. This can be a tremendous value, but be sure to search for reviews and testimonials for the site before making a commitment. Check the Terms of Service, or TOS, and if your project has any unusual components, for example, you plan to host an extensive photo library, then you should consider discussing your plans with a representative from the host.
As you can see, while many web hosts are able to host WordPress, it may be in your best interest to look for dedicated WordPress blog hosting. These hosts often have a greater understanding of the rapidly evolving WordPress software, and can provide a greater level of assistance when dealing with problems.
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