Domain Names and Web Hosting – Understanding the Difference
I’m going to clear up a little bit of confusion here. This is something that many people have a difficult time understanding, especially whenever they are first starting out. I have to admit, I had a difficult time with this one myself so there certainly is no shame in misunderstanding this from the start. If you are wondering if a domain name and a web host or the same thing, here is an easy way for you to understand it.
A web host is a company that owns computers. These computers store data that is publicly available on the Internet. You are able to rent part or all of one of these computers in order to store your website files. That is the job of the web host, they rent you storage space so that your website is viewable on the Internet.
A domain name is a bridge that gets people from their computer to your web hosting company. Without this bridge, it is highly unlikely that they would ever be able to find the files that are stored at your web host. That is how the two of these things differ and in fact, they are nothing alike at all.
Perhaps this illustration will help if you still have any questions in your mind…
If you own a house at the end of Church Street, your house and Church street would be two totally different things. You can think of your house as being a web host. All of your “stuff” is going to be stored at your house. If you were to tell somebody how to get to your house, you would simply tell them to drive down Church Street. In doing so, they would be able to find your house.
Hopefully, this has cleared up any confusion as to the difference between a web host and a domain name.
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