Websites
Website Hosting and Maintenance: What's Included When We Manage It
Written by the Dizayn team
What does website hosting and maintenance include?
When we manage a site's hosting, we handle the server, the domain and its configuration, the SSL certificate, publishing changes, code backups and watching that Google and Bing keep indexing your pages. You just ask us for changes; you don't have to log into any hosting panel.
Hosting on your own vs. managed hosting
| Hosting plan on your own | Managed hosting | |
|---|---|---|
| What you buy | Space on a server | A site that works, loads fast and shows up on Google |
| Who sets up the domain and SSL | You or your provider | Us |
| Updates and changes | You | Us, on request |
| If the site goes down | You open a ticket with the host | We fix it |
| Google indexing | Nobody checks it | We check Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools |
Where the sites we manage live
We use platforms with a global delivery network (CDN) and automatic SSL instead of a shared server. The Studio Yume and Vexon sites run on Vercel and Luvory runs on Cloudflare Workers. Each site's code lives in a repository with full history, so any change can be rolled back.
What we check
- That the site responds on all its important pages, on phones and desktops.
- The domain and DNS: that the site, email and Google and Bing verifications keep working, and that the domain doesn't expire.
- The SSL certificate, so the "not secure" warning never shows up.
- Indexing in Google and Bing: pages with errors, broken redirects, new pages not indexed yet.
- That every change is tested live before we call it done. In our experience, something that works on a computer can fail on the real server.
What to avoid
- The domain being in the name of whoever built your site. The domain is yours; if you switch providers, it has to go with you.
- Having no access to anything. Even if we manage it, your business should have access to the domain, Search Console and Google Business Profile.
- Moving the domain without a plan. A badly done DNS change can leave the site or email down for hours. If you're switching providers or platforms, follow the redesign checklist for keeping your rankings.
We can manage hosting for the site we build you or for one you already have. See our web design service or get in touch for a quote.
FAQ
- What is managed hosting?
- It's when someone else takes care of the server your site lives on: sets it up, maintains it, renews the security certificate, publishes changes and watches that the site keeps working. You don't have to log into any panel.
- How is it different from buying hosting from Neubox or GoDaddy?
- With a hosting plan you buy space on a server and you (or your web provider) handle everything else. With managed hosting someone is responsible for the site loading fast, staying secure and staying on Google.
- Where do the sites Dizayn manages live?
- On platforms with a global delivery network and automatic SSL certificates, such as Vercel and Cloudflare. For example, the Studio Yume and Vexon sites run on Vercel and Luvory's on Cloudflare Workers.
- Is the domain in my name?
- Yes. The domain is yours and should be registered to your business. We manage the configuration (DNS, email, Google and Bing verifications) with the access you give us.