Web hosting options
Below is a review of popular web hosting options available to most units and some faculty, staff and students at the University of Washington. This is a roundup of information, found on various UW websites, and presented as a starting point for your own research. This is not meant to be a prescriptive tool, sales pitch, or endorsement of any option. Please do your research and select the best product for your project.
Web hosting options from UMAC
University Marketing and Communications (UMAC) provides eligible units with free, centralized WordPress web hosting. UMAC’s hosting service provides units with a free of charge, branded WordPress site with a “www.washington.edu” address. They provide support and training for content authors.
Web hosting through University Marketing and Communications
- Important note
- UMAC cannot host other content management systems, static content, content that does not fit within the intended use of our content management system, WordPress themes other than UMAC’s WordPress theme, plugins other than those already installed, domains, or subdomains
- Eligibility
-
- Top level units such as the President, Provost, and Regents.
- Central administration units such as University Advancement.
- Campaign, donor, stewardship, fundraising, or similar websites.
- Administrative units without a parent unit, or without the means to host their website.
- Academic units without a parent unit, or without the means to host their website.
- Strategic initiatives and programs.
- Independent centers, academic or administrative, affiliated with the UW, without a parent unit, without means to host themselves, and/or without grant-based requirements for co-branding.
- Use case
- You need a marketing website, with a “www” address, and are willing to maintain a WordPress site using UMAC’s theme
- Set up
- UMAC can provide you with a site and/or help you get the site off the ground, depending on need
- Maintenance
- UMAC will take care of the hardware and software, you are responsible for the upkeep of your site content
- Accessibility
- UW’s WordPress theme is continually updated and UMAC partners with Accessible Technology Services on new features; you are responsible for the accessibility of the content you create within the theme
- Security
- The systems that run this service are monitored by UWIT and protected by UMAC
- Ease of use
- Low complexity; perfect for someone who knows WordPress, knows our theme, and wants a marketing website
- Cost
- Free
- More information
- UW Brand Portal page on UMAC web hosting
Web hosting options from UWIT
UW Information Technology (UWIT) has several different options for web hosting – almost everyone will find something to meet their needs. Options cover a wide range in complexity, accessibility, security, and cost.
Web hosting options from UWIT
- Eligibility
- Departments
- Use case
- Your unit has an IT department who can set up and manage your server(s) for you
- Set up
- UWIT will provide you with the server and operating system, you provide the software and everything you need to get up and running
- Maintenance
- UWIT will take care of the basics of the virtual machine, you are responsible for everything else
- Accessibility
- You are responsible for making your website accessible; we recommend using the UW’s WordPress or Drupal themes as the basis for your site
- Security
- UWIT will monitor your server
- Ease of use
- Medium to high complexity
- Cost
- There is an initial cost for setup, plus monthly costs based on allocation; overall low-medium cost
- More information
- UW IT Service Catalog entry for Standard Hosted Server
- Eligibility
- Departments
- Use case
- Your unit does not have an IT department and you are not able to manage your server
- Set up
- UWIT will set up everything you will be using
- Maintenance
- UWIT will take care of the hardware and software, you are responsible for the upkeep of your site
- Accessibility
- You are responsible for making your website accessible; we recommend using the UW’s WordPress or Drupal themes as the basis for your site
- Security
- UWIT will monitor your server
- Ease of use
- Low to medium complexity
- Cost
- There is an initial cost for setup, plus monthly costs based on allocation; overall medium-high cost
- More information
- UW IT Service Catalog entries for UNIX Managed Servers and Windows Managed Servers
- Eligibility
- Students, instructors, departments, staff
- Use case
- You want to set up a website for your department using either HTML or a web application such as WordPress or Drupal and can maintain the site yourself
- Set up
- Turn on shared hosting for your NetID and then you set up what you want to
- Maintenance
- UWIT will take care of the hardware and software on the server, you are responsible for the upkeep of your site and the software (WordPress, Drupal, etc.) that supports it
- Accessibility
- You are responsible for making your website accessible; we recommend using the UW’s WordPress or Drupal themes as the basis for your site
- Security
- UWIT will monitor these servers
- Ease of use
- Medium to high complexity
- Cost
- Free
- More information
- UW IT Service Catalog entry for Shared Web Hosting
- Eligibility
- Departments, students, instructors, staff
- Use case
- You want an easy to set up hosted WordPress website that is branded, has tons of features and plugins, and provides NetID integration
- Set up
- A basic site is created for you when you sign up
- Maintenance
- UWIT will take care of the hardware and software, you are responsible for the upkeep of your site
- Accessibility
- You are responsible for making your website accessible; we recommend using the UW’s WordPress theme as the basis for your site
- Security
- The vendor will protect and monitor these servers
- Ease of use
- Low complexity
- Cost
- Free
- More information
- UW IT Service Catalog entry for UW Sites
- Eligibility
- UW units
- Use case
- You want a scalable, secure Drupal or WordPress website, with multiple environments, but you do not have an IT team to help manage the infrastructure
- Set up
- Once signed up, self-service setup is offered
- Maintenance
- Pantheon will take care of the hardware; you are responsible for maintaining the software and the upkeep of your site
- Accessibility
- You are responsible for making your website accessible; we recommend using the UW’s WordPress or Drupal themes as the basis for your site
- Security
- Pantheon provides an excellent level of protection against threats
- Ease of use
- Medium complexity
- Cost
- Medium to high cost, depending on traffic
- More information
- UW IT Service Catalog entry for Pantheon
- Eligibility
- Departments
- Use case
- You want the ultimate in flexibility to build your infrastructure to meet your needs and you have a team that can help you do this
- Set up
- Depends on the product
- Maintenance
- From hardware to software, you do it all
- Accessibility
- You are responsible for making your website accessible; we recommend using the UW’s WordPress or Drupal themes as the basis for your site
- Security
- You are responsible for the security of your server and website
- Ease of use
- Depends on the product; generally complex
- Cost
- Depends on the product and usage of the product; generally high
- More information
- UW IT Service Catalog entry for Amazon Web Services
- Eligibility
- Departments
- Use case
- You want the ultimate in flexibility to build your infrastructure to meet your needs and you have a team that can help you do this
- Set up
- Depends on the product
- Maintenance
- From hardware to software, you do it all
- Accessibility
- You are responsible for making your website accessible; we recommend using the UW’s WordPress or Drupal themes as the basis for your site
- Security
- You are responsible for the security of your server and website
- Ease of use
- Depends on the product; generally complex
- Cost
- Depends on the product and usage of the product; generally high
- More information
- UW IT Service Catalog entry for Microsoft Azure
Non-UW web hosting options
While it is recommended to take advantage of either UWIT or UMAC hosting, there are many choices for web hosting. You are responsible for validating the security, accessibility, and overall reliability of the vendor you choose. This is not to say that all hosts are bad, but some are better than others!
Non-UW web hosting options
- Eligibility
- Anyone
- Use case
- You want an easy to set up, self-hosted, WordPress environment
- Set up
- Once signed up, self-service setup is offered
- Maintenance
- WP Engine will take care of the hardware; you are responsible for maintaining the software and the upkeep of your site
- Accessibility
- You are responsible for making your website accessible; we recommend using the UW’s WordPress or Drupal themes as the basis for your site
- Security
- WP Engine provides an excellent level of protection against threats
- Ease of use
- Low to medium
- Cost
- Low to medium
- More information
- wpengine.com
- Eligibility
- Anyone
- Use case
- You want the ultimate in flexibility to build your infrastructure to meet your needs and you have a team that can help you do this
- Set up
- Depends on the product
- Maintenance
- From hardware to software, you do it all
- Accessibility
- You are responsible for making your website accessible; we recommend using the UW’s WordPress or Drupal themes as the basis for your site
- Security
- You are responsible for the security of your server and website
- Ease of use
- Depends on the product; generally complex
- Cost
- Depends on the product and usage of the product; generally high
- More information
- cloud.google.com
These tools, and ones like them, may not be fully accessible and/or meet the UW’s security and privacy rules. You are strongly encouraged to use one of the previously listed options. If you must use one these services, be sure to discuss with the Information Security Office, Accessible Technology Services, and other offices within UWIT to make sure these offerings will be accessible and secure.