Difference between Domain and Hosting

Domain and hosting are an inseparable unit in making a website. Both have different functions and tasks. However, not everyone knows what a domain is and what hosting is. Misinformation like that can sometimes be an obstacle when a web developer explains technical things about the website creation process.

This article will discuss both in simple terms. The goal is to provide a little overview of the domain and hosting so that it is easy to understand.

What is Domain?

Domain is the name of the address of a website that is useful for making it easier for someone to visit it. An example of a domain name is nusagates.co.id which a person can visit via a browser. A domain is like a nickname for a website. While the real name is an IP address such as 192.168.1.12.

In general, domains are divided into two, namely local domains and international domains. Local domains are domains that indicate a locale or country such as .id for Indonesian domains, .my for Malaysian domains, and .sg for Singapore domains. While international domains do not refer to any country such as .com, .net, or .org.

What is the Use of the Domain?

Domains are useful for simplifying the naming of a website. Dengan digunakannya nama domain maka seseorang akan lebih mudah untuk mengingat alamat sebuah website daripada mengingat alamat IP. Contohnya adalah seseorang akan lebih mudah mengingat nama nusagates.co.id daripada mengingat alamat IP 192.168.1.12.

Domains are also useful for easy server management. One server that only has one IP address can be used for several websites using different domain names. For example, the nusagates.co.id website and the nusagates.com website are hosted using one server with one IP address.

What is Hosting?

Hosting is a place or container that is used to store website data. Images, text, audio, video or other data that can be accessed through the website is stored on the hosting. To be able to run a website, a computer requires web server technology such as Nginx, Apache, Litespeed, IIS, or others. A web server is a kind of software that is installed on a computer that is specifically used to run websites. The computer that is used as a web server can be said to be hosting.

Hosting has several types, including shared hosting, VPS, dedicated servers, cloud servers, and so on. A more detailed explanation of each type of hosting will be discussed in another article.

Difference between Domain and Hosting

Domains and hosting can be analogous to homes and street addresses. The street address to get to the house is the domain while the house building is the hosting. An IP address is like its latitude and longitude coordinates.