Where your website actually lives when it is online
Your website is a set of files on a server in a data center, your domain is the address that sends visitors there, and email runs as a separate service alongside it.
What you will know afterwards
- You know what a server is and what of your website sits on it.
- You can tell domain, hosting and email apart on an invoice.
- You know why the physical location of the server matters legally.
A website feels like something that simply exists. Technically it is a set of files, and those files sit on a computer that runs continuously and stays connected to the internet. That computer is called a server, and it stands in a data center.
Once you picture it that way, the invoices in this field stop being mysterious, and you know which questions to ask a provider.
A server is a computer that is never switched off
The difference from your office computer is smaller than people expect. A server also has a processor, memory and drives. It just sits in a room with climate control, several power feeds and several internet connections, so that it stays reachable when one of those fails.
The server holds your website files: text, images, layout instructions and, if you use a content management system, a database with your content. When someone types your address into a browser, the server sends those files to that person's device. Providing that service is what hosting means.
The domain is the address, not the place
Your domain is the name people type. Technically it is an entry in a worldwide directory that translates the name into the server's number. Domain and server are therefore two separate things. You can change the server and keep the domain.
That leads to the most important advice in this post. Make sure the domain is registered to your business and that you know where it is managed. A domain owned by somebody else is the most common reason a provider change turns expensive.
Email runs next to the website, not inside it
Addresses at your own domain are handled by a mail server, not by the website. The two only share the domain name. So moving the website affects your mailboxes only when both sit with the same provider.
This sounds like a detail, but it decides how a migration runs. Mailboxes hold years of correspondence, and all of it has to arrive safely before the old contract ends.
Three items that get confused
| Item | What you get | How it is billed |
|---|---|---|
| Domain | the address people use to find you | yearly, per domain |
| Hosting | space and computing power on the server, plus availability | monthly or yearly |
| mailboxes, storage, sending and receiving | usually per mailbox |
At bown these three sit together in one hosting and maintenance service, from EUR 39 per month excl. VAT, including domain, email and storage. Other providers split them across separate invoices. Both models are fine, as long as you know which item pays for which service.
Why the location of the server matters
Opening your website creates data, for example the visitor's IP address. If the server stands in the European Union, the General Data Protection Regulation applies directly, with no further legal construction such as standard contractual clauses for a transfer abroad. bown runs its own servers in a data center in the EU and manages them itself; the data center processes the data only on bown's behalf and only in the EU.
There is a second, practical point. Distance between server and visitor costs time. For customers in Austria, a server in Europe is also the technically closer answer.
How to recognize a usable offer
Ask four questions before you sign:
- Where does the server stand, and who manages it?
- Who is the domain registered to?
- Are email accounts included, and with how much storage?
- What happens if you move to another provider?
With those four settled in writing, the rest is routine. What comes on top during operation, meaning backups, updates and monitoring, is the subject of What ongoing maintenance for your website includes.
Frequently asked questions
Where are bown's servers?
In a data center in the European Union, under the General Data Protection Regulation. We manage the servers ourselves; the data center processes the data only on our behalf and only in the European Union.
Who should own the domain, me or my agency?
Your business. Ask to see the registered owner details before you sign anything.
Is email included in a hosting contract?
With us, yes. Hosting and maintenance start from EUR 39 per month excl. VAT, including domain, email and storage. The exact scope is agreed in writing.
Can I move to another provider later?
Yes. You need access to the domain, a copy of the files and the database, and a plan for the email accounts.