Web hosting glossary

31 hosting terms, each explained in a sentence or two. Bookmark it for the next time a checkout page or setup guide loses you.

A record

A DNS record that maps a domain name to an IPv4 address. It's what makes example.com reach your server. Point a domain to a VPS →

AAAA record

The IPv6 version of an A record. Only add one if your server actually serves traffic over IPv6.

Bandwidth

The amount of data your site can send to visitors in a month. Most small sites use a tiny fraction of what hosting plans include.

CDN (content delivery network)

A network of servers around the world that keeps copies of your static files, so visitors download them from somewhere nearby instead of from your origin server.

Cloud hosting

Hosting with dedicated CPU and RAM that's managed for you. It sits between shared hosting and a VPS: more power than shared, without the server administration. Hostinger cloud hosting →

CNAME record

A DNS record that makes one name an alias of another, such as www.example.com pointing to example.com.

Control panel

A web dashboard for managing hosting: files, databases, email, DNS. Hostinger's is called hPanel; cPanel and Plesk are common elsewhere.

DDoS protection

Filtering that absorbs floods of junk traffic designed to knock a site offline, before it reaches your server.

DNS (Domain Name System)

The internet's address book. It translates a domain name into the IP address of the server that hosts it.

DNS propagation

The time it takes for DNS changes to be seen everywhere, as resolvers' cached copies expire. Usually minutes for a record change, up to 48 hours for a nameserver change.

Domain registrar

The company you buy and renew a domain name through. It doesn't have to be the same company that hosts your site.

FTP / SFTP

Protocols for uploading files to a server. SFTP runs over SSH and is encrypted; prefer it whenever it's available. Upload a React app to Hostinger →

hPanel

Hostinger's own control panel, used to manage hosting, domains, email, VPS servers and billing.

Introductory price

The discounted price for your first billing term. The plan renews at a higher regular price, so check both before you buy. How to pay less at renewal →

IP address

The numeric address of a server on the internet, like 203.0.113.10 (IPv4) or a longer IPv6 address.

KVM

Kernel-based Virtual Machine, the virtualisation technology behind Hostinger's VPS plans. Each KVM server gets its own guaranteed CPU, RAM and disk. Hostinger VPS plans →

Let's Encrypt

A free, automated certificate authority. Tools like Certbot and Caddy use it to give your site HTTPS at no cost.

LiteSpeed

The web server software used on Hostinger's shared and cloud hosting. It's compatible with Apache's .htaccess files and has built-in caching for WordPress.

MX record

A DNS record that tells other mail servers where to deliver email for your domain. Hostinger business email →

Nameserver

The server that holds a domain's DNS records. Changing nameservers moves the management of every record for that domain to a new provider.

NVMe storage

Solid-state storage connected over a fast interface. Noticeably quicker than older SATA SSDs for databases and busy sites.

PM2

A process manager for Node.js apps. It restarts your app if it crashes and starts it again after a reboot. Deploy Next.js with PM2 →

Reverse proxy

A server, such as Nginx or Caddy, that receives visitor requests and forwards them to your app. It usually handles HTTPS, caching and static files too.

Root access

Full administrator control of a server. You get it on a VPS; you don't on shared hosting.

Shared hosting

Many websites sharing one server's resources, with the server managed for you. The cheapest and simplest way to put a site online. Hostinger web hosting →

Snapshot

A point-in-time copy of a whole VPS disk that you can roll back to. Useful before upgrades, but not a substitute for off-site backups.

SSH

Secure Shell, an encrypted way to log in to a server's command line. Use key-based login rather than passwords. Secure a new VPS →

SSL / TLS certificate

The certificate that enables HTTPS, encrypting traffic between visitors and your site. Hostinger includes free SSL on its hosting plans.

TTL (time to live)

How long, in seconds, resolvers may cache a DNS record. Lower it before a migration so changes take effect quickly.

Uptime

The share of time a server is reachable. 99.9% uptime still allows around 43 minutes of downtime a month.

VPS (virtual private server)

A virtual machine with its own guaranteed resources and root access. You install and manage the software yourself. Hostinger VPS tutorials →