Web Hosting

Web hosting is a service that allows you to publish a website onto the internet. In basic terms, if you imagine that a website is a house, then hosting is the property it’s built on.

Every website is made up of files and you need a hosting service to store them so that they can be viewed online. It’s a simple process: the files are uploaded onto a server (a powerful computer), and the company that owns the server then points the web address to the files.

The first step would to be to check out our detailed Product Knowledge Base. Where we have plenty of information about hosting websites, so it’s likely that the answer to your problem could be there.

If you can’t find the answer, you can get in touch with us through our Contact Page, which lets you contact us through email, live chat, or phone. Keep in mind that some of the ways to contact us are only available during UK office hours, so please make sure you’re picking the right way for the right time!

If your domain name is already registered with 123 Reg and you’re not using it with another one of our services, then you can attach it to your web hosting package when you order.

If your domain is registered with another company, there are two ways to use it with your hosting package:

Transfer it to 123 Reg and then attach it to your package. Most companies will allow you to transfer, and we have a detailed guide on transferring domain names. You will need to wait for the transfer to complete before you purchase your hosting, and this can take up to a few days depending on the type and location of the domain.

Leave the domain name where it is and point it at your hosted site on 123 Reg. We have detailed instructions on how to point your domain name to 123 Reg. You will still need to register a domain name when you purchase your web hosting, but we won’t charge you any additional fees. It will take around 24-48 hours for your other domain name to show on your new site.

This means that there’s no limit to the amount of data that your website can transfer, provided it complies with our Acceptable Use Policy. Getting the right amount of bandwidth for your website is incredibly important, as it will determine how well your site performs when presented with a certain level of traffic.

Think of it like the shopping tills at a busy supermarket. By only having one or two tills open, the rate at which customers are processed will be incredibly slow and queues will build up. However, by having every till open, more people will be processed at a faster rate.

You can host your site on a Linux or a Windows server – both have their advantages.

You don’t need to choose the same operating system that runs on your computers at home or at your business.

Most of our customers choose to host on Linux servers, which is usually a safe bet if you’re not sure what you need. Linux servers give you plenty of free software and programming options. With Linux packages, you can use PHP, MySQL and it’s true that WordPress runs best on Linux-based hosting.

Of course you can. As long as our hosting meets the requirements for your application, you can install almost anything. However, we can’t allow applications that require root or administrator-level access as you share the server with other customers, and any changes your application makes might also make changes to their websites.

If you would like to install your own applications, we recommend you take a look at our VPS packages and run Linux, as that will give you the freedom you need, complete with full root access.

We go above and beyond to keep our systems safe from hacking, hardware failures, software failures and physical damage. All our servers are located in our own highly secure data centre.

Access to the servers is tightly controlled and limited to just essential personnel. Power is drawn from the National Grid through two different sources, and we also have uninterruptible power supplies as well as on-site generators just in case.

Along with our physical security measures, you can also take peace of mind by knowing that all your data is kept safe behind a secure firewall with multiple layers of protection.

Your SSL Certificate will be automatically installed once you’ve assigned a primary domain to your hosting package. For further details, please visit our Support article: How to activate my free SSL Certificate?

If you decide that the package you've bought isn't right for you for any reason, please give us a call within the first 14 days. We'll refund you what you've paid for your hosting, excluding any additional fees for domains.

Domain names can't be "unregistered" once you've chosen them. You will need to let them expire if you do not want to use them anymore.