Subdomain Names

What is a subdomain vs. a registered domain name? What are the pros and cons of using a subdomain name? Keep reading to find out how subdomains work, the differences between a domain versus a subdomain, and how to register your subdomain for free.

If you plan to have expanded offerings on your web site, you can make use of subdomain names. These are often called "third-level" domains. They are a part of a main domain, but offer something specialized. An example is if you set up a subdomain for a blog. Instead of just being yourdomainname.com, your blog would be known as yourblog.yourdomainname.com. You could also add other subdomains, such as mymusic.yourdomainname.com or myproductcatalog.yourdomainname.com. This way, you can differentiate between services.

You should understand subdomains are not usually offered through your domain name registrar. Usually, subdomains are supported by your web host. A web host is the person you "rent" your cyber home from. You use space on their servers. Subdomains require some extra maintenance and extra disk space on the server, so it is important that you choose a web host that can provide the support you need for subdomain names. You should also realize you might have to pay extra for subdomains. If you plan to have a great deal of subdomain names, it might be worth it to get a dedicated server, or even to buy your own servers. However, you would need technicians that could help you manage these properly, and provide the know-how to keep everything running smoothly.

It is important to make sure you have adequate disk space and bandwidth to support subdomain names, since your website could experience slowness or down time if it is too taxed by what is happening.

Free Web Hosting and Subdomain Names

Of course, many people who enjoy free web hosting are familiar with subdomain names. Often, if you get free hosting for a web site or a blog, you will have to be part of someone else's domain name. Lunar pages is a company that does this. Instead of being yourname.com, you might be yourname.lunarpages.com. Blogger is another well-known way of setting up a free web hosting presence. Instead of being called yourblog.com, it is actually yourblog.blogspot.com. The advantage, of course, is that you get free hosting. Additionally, these types of web presences are usually easy to set up. There are usually a number of free website templates to choose from, and a degree of customization available. However, what you can do with such a web site is usually limited.

The disadvantages to being part of a subdomain is that your brand can be swallowed up by the main domain name. This can be a problem for a business. Additionally, it is possible that you have to let the domain name advertise on your site -- and keep most of the money. The web host still has bills to pay, and ads from your site can help offset the costs of letting you have free web hosting. Another issue is that you may not get the best web support. When you have free domain name registration as part of a subdomain, you often get what you pay for.

In the end, subdomain names can be quite useful. Carefully consider how you would use them, and whether they would be much good to you before deciding what to do with them.

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