In simple terms, ASP web hosting is a hosting service with ASP support.  Hosting with ASP support is often needed by web pages with advanced coding such as those that make web pages change based on the actions of the user.  These pages are also known as dynamic pages, where ASP codes can interact directly with the data base and call up the required web page depending upon the user’s request.  In fact you must have experienced visiting a web site where a form comes up asking you for a variety of information like name, age, place, etc.  Based on the data you filled in, it informs you whether you are qualified to view the next page or not.  If not, a reason will be provided.  One of the most common examples is online surveys where you need to enter your information.  Based on characteristics like sex, country, etc, the next page tells you whether or not you are eligible to participate in the survey.
 

What are active server pages?

Active Server Pages are not very different from normal HTML pages.  They just have some sort of scripts coding which make them dynamic and able to process the user’s request at the server level before sending the required page.  Because of their dynamic abilities, ASP pages can directly interact with the database and create queries for specific information to be shown.  ASP scripting is used mainly for accessing protected areas like members’ areas where you need to enter your user name and password first before you can proceed to your own user profile.

ASP pages work pretty much like a normal program but it is unique because page inputs are given by different users sitting at different locations.  On the basis of the users’ inputs, processing is done at different locations, preferably at the server, and the results are delivered to the users.  ASP coding can be as easy as showing current time and date and can be as difficult as handling multi level fields with advanced scripting.

Searching for a good ASP web host

If your web-site uses a database utility like Access, SQL server or Oracle, then you must look for the web host service provider that supports the database you are using.  Normally ASP web hosting services work fine with IIS running at Windows NT and Windows 2000.  Windows NT is more powerful and stable enough to handle heavy loads of information processing.  One good example is the site Microsoft.com, which is the busiest web site in the world and is running at the Windows NT platform with IIS.  You must look at the technical details of various web hosting service providers.  Their hosting server should be able to handle the database you are using, should have almost zero downtime and should have the required free system resources all the time to minimize the risks to your database.

ASP WEB HOSTING