ASP web hosting refers to web hosting companies who provide support for ASP (Active Server Page) developed by Microsoft.  If you want a dynamic data-driven web site you may wish to embed ASP code into your web site’s HTML Pages.  When a user is viewing a web site that is developed using ASP, the pages can change depending on the actions of the user. ASP code allows you to link your web pages to a database, where users can interact with the web page by logging in and using their own personal settings or they can interactively place orders on your web site.

What is ASP? 
ASP stands for Active Server Pages.  Active Server Pages are HTML pages with embedded ASP scripts that are processed on the server before the page is sent to the user.  ASP allows you to create dynamic database driven pages, a user can access data in a database, and interact with page objects such as Active X or Java components. 

How does ASP work?
When you type a URL in the Address Box or click on a web page you are asking the web server to send a file to your computer; if the file is standard HTML, then, when your web browser receives the web page it will look exactly the same as it did on the web server.  However if an ASP file is sent to your computer from the web server, firstly, the server will run the HTML code; and then, run the ASP code. For example: the ASP code could be the current date, or time; and other such information. 

How to find an ASP web host
You will need to find a web host who will host your website on a Windows 2000 or 2003 server.  It is safer to host your ASP pages on a Windows server as they are more stable and most ASP components work with IIS (Internet Information Services), specific to Windows.  You also need to consider if your web site uses a database (e.g. SQL, Access) and then make sure your web host provides support for the type of database your web site uses. We recommend using Host Spotlight to find ASP Hosting but there are many other hosting directories you can use to find web hosting services as well.

Please take a look at some of our other guides to help decide upon an ASP/Windows hosting company for general hosting company guidelines.