Using your shared web hosting for the first time

Using your shared web hosting for the first time

So, you are the new and proud owner of a shared web hosting account and you wonder where to start from. One good place you can start from is the Getting Started guides your webhosting provider probably offers. However, if you feel that even the thinnest Getting Started guide is too thick for you because you are impatient to start using your shared web hosting account, here is a really brief primer on some of the most important features of a shared web hosting account a beginner should know:

1. Learn the URL of your control panel. One of the things you can’t do without is the URL of your control panel. In some cases it might be the same (or at least similar) to the domain name of the website of your webhosting, but very often (due to security considerations), your shared web hosting package will be hosted on a different server and the URL will be very different. Chances are that you will get the URL (including the port and all other relevant details) in the email you will receive right after you open your account with that particular web host.
2. Learn how to add a domain. Unless you have explicitly chosen a single domain webhosting package, most shared web hosting packages allow to add additional domains to your account. Usually it is done from the control panel (cPanel or something else) and the option is called something like “Add an additional domain”, “Add a new domain”, “Addon domains”, or “Add a subdomain”. Technically speaking, a subdomain is different from a domain but since the domain you will be adding will be treated as a subdomain to your account, don’t get shocked by the terminology.
3. Learn how to configure mail. As with additional domains, unless you have explicitly chosen a web hosting package without any mail features, you will have the chance to use your shared web hosting account to configure a mail server for your domain. Actually, more often than not, you will need to configure the mail accounts, their passwords and quotas. As a user of a shared web hosting package, you will hardly have to configure a mail server, so there is no reason to worry how you will handle this.
4. Learn how to use the file manager. The file manager is a nice feature you should get familiar with. It is true that if you use an FTP client, you will have many of the functionalities a typical file manager offers but since there will be a lot of tasks you will be performing on the files in your shared web hosting account, it makes sense to find the file manager and learn how to use it.
5. Learn how to read statistics. Statistics are vital because they give you information about how your web site is performing. Logs are one source of statistical data. In addition to raw logs (which are hardly the most entertaining type of reading) usually there are also analytical tools, which present the data from the logs in a more readable form.

Almost any shared web hosting provider offers times more features than that. Some of these features (i.e. MySQL databases) are useful but they require more advanced knowledge and you will hardly be able to use them right from the start. Other tools (i.e. Apache handlers, cron jobs, etc.) are also useful but they are too sophisticated for a beginner. Therefore, unless you really need them, you’d better not touch them at all because there is a high risk to make a mess.