dev

what do you want the website to do?

digitalocean.com, virtual private server VPS, droplets.

domain name, web hosting

1. buy a domain name. Create an account at a domain registrant (registrar). Buy a custom domain name at either Network Solutions, hover, godaddy, or Google domains.

2. buy a web hosting service. Create an account at a webhost (web hosting service), this is a server connected to the internet. Your webhost will give you the server records in the account settings. A, TXT, CNAME.

your webhost will give instructions on which records to change: either nameservers e.g. ns1.example.com, an IP address for use with A records e.g. 199.45.678.67, or CNAME records e.g. ghs.google.com.

3. next go back to netsol. Configure the DNS records of your new domain to point to a server connected to the internet. Your webhost gives you that server info: IP 199.45.678.67

SSL and TLS

SSL and TLS are protocols that provide secure communication between a client (like a web browser) and a server. They encrypt data, authenticate the server, and ensure data integrity, making sure information transmitted between them is secure.

note: a protocol for encrypting, securing, and authenticating communications is SSL, and an updated protocol is TLS, transport layer security. A use case for TLS is securing communications between a client and a server.

The S in HTTPS stands for secure. HTTPS is just HTTP with SSL/TLS. A website with an HTTPS address has a legitimate SSL certificate issued by a certificate authority, and traffic to and from that website is authenticated and encrypted with the SSL/TLS protocol.

Weebly is a webhost/sitebuilder, by Cloudfare. To help make the internet more secure, Cloudfare offers free SSL certificates. Enabling SSL ensures that visitors can browse your website safely and securely. If using a domain name from a company other than Weebly, e.g. netsol, then there is an extra step in order to get SSL up and running on your Weebly site. At netsol you need to configure your domain to point to the IP address e.g. 199.45.678.67

technical note: to manage your domain's DNS records, you must delegate the domain to use the web host's name servers, and update your domain's delegation at its registrar.