Write down what your future host must provide

Lesson 16 of 24

Create a hosting requirements and comparison record using the working local site, without opening a hosting account.

Before you start

Your course site remains local. This lesson prepares the questions needed for a later hosting choice. No provider, paid plan or affiliate link has been selected.

1. Describe the working site

Open the hosting worksheet. Record what Cedar Lane currently needs: WordPress, pages, images, forms and the plugins you have actually used. If a later lesson is unfinished, mark that feature as planned instead of treating it as working.

Site requirements in the marked local planning worksheet.

2. Record the software requirements

Use Tools → Site Health → Info in WordPress to find the actual software details. Put only the useful version numbers into your private record. Do not paste a full diagnostic report into public screenshots; it may contain paths and other details unrelated to the lesson.

Version record in the marked local planning worksheet.

3. Ask for a proven recovery path

List what a useful backup service must cover: files, database, uploads, retention and a restore into another copy. Ask how you can download a recovery copy and how long a restore takes. A backup button is not proof that a restore works.

Backup questions in the marked local planning worksheet.

4. Separate website hosting from email

Write down the difference between a website, a mailbox and a service that sends form notices. A host may provide some of these, or none. A local mail catcher proves only the local test. Leave real sender and inbox selection for the later provider edition.

Mail and form requirements in the marked local planning worksheet.

5. Plan access and a test copy

Record how the owner and helper should receive separate access. Require a safe test copy and a way to keep it out of public search. Ask how HTTPS, updates and account recovery work. Do not assume an advertised control covers the whole process.

Access and staging requirements in the marked local planning worksheet.

6. Compare ongoing cost and exit options

Prepare a side-by-side list for future quotes. Include renewal, storage, traffic limits, backup or restore charges, email costs, support and the effort of leaving. Put not quoted where details are missing; do not fill gaps with an estimated price.

Comparison fields in the marked local planning worksheet.

7. Keep the present decision clear

Read the completed requirements with the actual local site beside you. Print or save the worksheet. The result today is a requirements record, not a provider recommendation or a claim that the site has moved online.

Practise

Build a list another person could use to compare two future hosts. Point out every unknown instead of giving it a made-up value.

Check your result

The record separates software, recovery, email, access, cost and exit needs. It does not imply a hosting account exists.

If something goes wrong

Missing a real value? Leave it marked not supplied and record who must check it. Do not replace an unknown with a guessed price, address or completed status. Notes remain on this browser only; print the full worksheet if you need a separate copy. Do not put passwords or recovery codes in it.

Optional notes

Words used in this lesson

Hosting: A service that runs website files and data so visitors can reach them.
Staging: A separate copy used to test changes before a public release.
Restore: Rebuild a working site from a saved recovery copy.

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