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Choosing the Right Host for Your Site When choosing a host for your website, there are both subjective and objective aspects to consider. Many of the objective aspects are covered in the hundreds of articles that have already been written, but less often will you find the subjective aspects; those that are driven more by feelings and perception or your specialized needs. There are many characteristics that you should generally expect all web hosts to include: 1. High Availability: All the features in the world are worthless, if your site is not available when your visitors try to access it. This incorporates many different components. Do they use quality servers and hardware? Do they have multiple redundant connections to the Internet? Do they have a lifecycle management program in place to ensure that you are not being hosted on a server built in 1987? (Most data centers plan for servers to have a 3 – 4 year lifecycle.) 2. Guarantee: Don't settle for them telling you that they have the best hardware and networks; ask them to back it up. Most hosts include a money-back guarantee of some sort. Given that it takes time to register or transfer domain names, develop your site, and upload it, make sure that the host you choose offers you enough time to really evaluate their services. Thirty days is a pretty common guarantee. Be sure to test the speed of their support responses during this period (and during different hours of the day), even if you don't need it immediately. You do not want to find out too late that the host doesn't quite live up to your expectations. More...