Looking to have the best and lowest hosting plan? Then, you might have come across shared hosting servers.
Even though shared website hosting promises a low-cost hosting price per year and convenience, it, like any other type of hosting, is not without hiccups. Problems such as downtime, excessive loading speeds, and possible security breaches can still jeopardize your website. Having the know-how to resolve these problems can go a long way toward maximizing productivity.
This article tackles the most common issues associated with shared website hosting and gives tips and tricks on solving them effectively.
8 Common Shared Hosting Issues
1. Subpar Loading Speeds
Slow-loading websites not only have the potential to tank SEO rankings but also make visitors wait for excessively long amounts of time.
Causes:
The optimization level of images and codes is excessive. Moreover, your website’s server usage is massively impacted by hosting on multiple websites along with a plethora of unoptimized plugins.
Solutions:
- Cut down unnecessary plugins and scripts.
- If your website makes use of unrealized or raw-quality images, they should be compressed and optimized by tools such as ShortPixel or TinyPNG.
- Instead of relying on server resources alone, use a CDN and browser caching to quicken content delivery.
- If the website is expecting more traffic, one can either switch towards pole-level shared hosting plans or make a move towards VPS hosting plans.
2. Unreachable Website
When a user attempts to reach a non-accessible website, they immediately receive an error message, which is a major concern.
Causes:
- A crash in the server along with unexpected routines or system maintenance is the first case to create excessive downtime.
- Not being able to utilize adequate form bandwidth can cause restrictions, making it unreachable.
- There are also scenarios where the website configurations have the potential to contain errors.
Solutions:
- You can look for the status report of your hosting service provider or reach out to their helpdesk to get more information.
- Nextly, optimize your website to lower your resource consumption.
- If your website frequently surpasses resource thresholds, consider upgrading your hosting plan.
- To get instant alerts, enable uptime monitoring tools such as UptimeRobot or Pingdom.
3. Server Error (500 Internal Server Error)
500 Internal Server Error is the error code that pops up when you try to access your website.
Causes:
- Your .htaccess file might be corrupted, or file permissions might be set incorrectly.
- You might have surpassed your PHP memory limit.
- There could be a clash of plugins or themes.
Solutions:
- Check if changing your .htaccess file achieves the desired outcomes (make sure you generate a new file through WordPress settings afterward).
- Set a larger PHP memory limit in the php.ini file or wp-config.php.
- Switch off new plugins and themes that are added most recently to check for conflicts.
- Reach out to your hosting service provider in case the issue does not get resolved.
4. Database Connection Errors (Error Establishing a Database Connection)
Database connection errors make your website unable to retrieve any content, as it does not connect to the database.
Causes:
- Database username, password, and hostname may not be configured properly.
- Your database file may be corrupted.
- The database may be affected by server downtimes.
Solutions:
- Ensure that the database username and database password used are correct, which you can check in wp-config.php. (Users of WordPress)
- Finish the database repair in phpMyAdmin, or utilize the WordPress database repair feature.
- Check your hosting provider’s status page for database server issues.
5. Problems with Email
This includes problems such as being unable to send or receive emails on your hosting email service.
Causes:
- SMTP settings are not being configured properly.
- Limits on the email account have been hit.
- Blacklisting the IP due to how spammy it looks.
Solutions:
- Adjust the SMTP settings to comply with your hosting provider’s instructions.
- Ensure limits on your hosting plan are not reached and make space by deleting old emails.
- Take advantage of email management tools by Google Workspace/Zoho Mail instead.
6. Security Issues (Hacked website with malware)
The presence of malware can lead to your website getting hacked, defaced, or blocked from search engines.
Causes:
- Poor passwords and usage of outdated software.
- The absence of SSL encryption and other forms of security.
- Weak themes or plugins installed by unauthorized parties.
Solutions:
- The solution is simple: always keep your themes, plugins, and content management system (CMS) like WordPress updated.
- To block abusive traffic, install a Web Application Firewall (WAF). Use security systems like Sucuri and Wordfence to monitor malware.
- Strong passwords and SSL encryption on all accounts would also help.
6. Problem Exceeding Resource Limits
CPU & RAM usage alarming messages usually limit your scalability. Sometimes the shared hosting providers put a limit on your service due to the excessive usage of such resources.
Causes
- Spending beyond the limit:
- Serving high volumes of traffic or resource-heavy scripts that draw too much from your account.
- Not putting enough attention on your database queries and plugins.
- Multiple scheduled tasks (i.e., cron jobs) battling against each other.
Solutions:
- Streamline database queries and disable unused plugins.
- Lower resource utilization by implementing server-side caching.
- If needed, upgrade your hosting plan to increase resource allocation.
7. Domain & DNS Problems (Website Is Not Resolving)
With domain and DNS issues in shared servers, your website isn’t loading, and the domain seems inactive.
Causes:
- Mistake in the DNS configuration.
- Expiration of the registered domain name.
- Recent DNS alterations that have not yet propagated.
Solutions:
- Investigate if your domain is active, and renew if required.
- Check your DNS records from the hosting control panel.
- Wait for around 24-48 hours for DNS changes to propagate.
Final Thoughts
Opting for shared hosting is ideal for small and medium-sized websites, although there can be unforeseen complications due to resource sharing and resource constraints. Dealing with these issues is necessary to keep your website running fast, secure, and fully functional.
In case you find yourself constantly troubleshooting issues on shared hosting, it might be the right time to switch to a VPS or a cloud hosting solution. These options often provide you with more resources and control, which achieves a more stable and reliable experience online.
Indeed, the most important part of this is determining which hosting provider features your necessities. While there are several to choose from, some companies like MilesWeb put their focus on providing feature-packed shared hosting services and support, enabling you to talk around the clock. They can be extremely useful if you want a reliable shared hosting solution before making the jump to VPS or a cloud server. The right choice can significantly change how well your website runs.
