Author: risc-v

bookmark_borderRISC-V ISA Overview

Posted on by risc-v

A RISC-V ISA is defined as a base integer ISA, which must be present in any implementation, plus optional extensions to the base ISA. The base integer ISAs are very similar to that of the early RISC processors except with no branch delay slots and with support for optional variable-length instruction encodings. A base is carefully restricted to a minimal set of instructions sufficient to provide a reasonable target for compilers, assemblers, linkers, and operating systems (with addi tional privileged operations), and so provides a convenient ISA and software toolchain “skeleton” around which more customized processor ISAs can be built.

Although it is convenient to speak of the RISC-V ISA, RISC-V is actually a family of related ISAs, of which there are currently four base ISAs. Each base integer instruction set is characterized by the width of the integer registers and the corresponding size of the address space and by the number of integer registers. There are two primary base integer variants, RV32I and RV64I, described in Chapters 2 and 5, which provide 32-bit or 64-bit address spaces respectively. We use the term XLEN to refer to the width of an integer register in bits (either 32 or 64). Chapter 4 describes the RV32E subset variant of the RV32I base instruction set, which has been added to support small microcontrollers, and which has half the number of integer registers. Chapter 6 sketches a future RV128I variant of the base integer instruction set supporting a flat 128-bit address space (XLEN=128). The base integer instruction sets use a two’s-complement representation for signed integer values.

Although 64-bit address spaces are a requirement for larger systems, we believe 32-bit address spaces will remain adequate for many embedded and client devices for decades to come and will be desirable to lower memory traffic and energy consumption. In addition, 32-bit address spaces are sufficient for educational purposes. A larger flat 128-bit address space might eventually be required, so we ensured this could be accommodated within the RISC-V ISA framework.

The four base ISAs in RISC-V are treated as distinct base ISAs. A common question is why is there not a single ISA, and in particular, why is RV32I not a strict subset of RV64I? Some earlier ISA designs (SPARC, MIPS) adopted a strict superset policy when increasing address space size to support running existing 32-bit binaries on new 64-bit hardware.

The main advantage of explicitly separating base ISAs is that each base ISA can be opti mized for its needs without requiring to support all the operations needed for other base ISAs. For example, RV64I can omit instructions and CSRs that are only needed to cope with the nar rower registers in RV32I. The RV32I variants can use encoding space otherwise reserved for instructions only required by wider address-space variants.

The main disadvantage of not treating the design as a single ISA is that it complicates the hardware needed to emulate one base ISA on another (e.g., RV32I on RV64I). However, differences in addressing and illegal instruction traps generally mean some mode switch would be required in hardware in any case even with full superset instruction encodings, and the different RISC-V base ISAs are similar enough that supporting multiple versions is relatively low cost. Although some have proposed that the strict superset design would allow legacy 32-bit libraries to be linked with 64-bit code, this is impractical in practice, even with compatible encodings, due to the differences in software calling conventions and system-call interfaces.

The RISC-V privileged architecture provides fields in misa to control the unprivileged ISA at each level to support emulating different base ISAs on the same hardware. We note that newer SPARC and MIPS ISA revisions have deprecated support for running 32-bit code unchanged on 64-bit systems.

A related question is why there is a different encoding for 32-bit adds in RV32I (ADD) and RV64I (ADDW)? The ADDW opcode could be used for 32-bit adds in RV32I and ADDD for 64-bit adds in RV64I, instead of the existing design which uses the same opcode ADD for 32- bit adds in RV32I and 64-bit adds in RV64I with a different opcode ADDW for 32-bit adds in RV64I. This would also be more consistent with the use of the same LW opcode for 32-bit load in both RV32I and RV64I. The very first versions of RISC-V ISA did have a variant of this alternate design, but the RISC-V design was changed to the current choice in January 2011. Our focus was on supporting 32-bit integers in the 64-bit ISA not on providing compatibility with the 32-bit ISA, and the motivation was to remove the asymmetry that arose from having not all opcodes in RV32I have a *W suffix (e.g., ADDW, but AND not ANDW). In hindsight, this was perhaps not well-justified and a consequence of designing both ISAs at the same time as opposed to adding one later to sit on top of another, and also from a belief we had to fold platform requirements into the ISA spec which would imply that all the RV32I instructions would have been required in RV64I. It is too late to change the encoding now, but this is also of little practical consequence for the reasons stated above.

It has been noted we could enable the *W variants as an extension to RV32I systems to provide a common encoding across RV64I and a future RV32 variant.

RISC-V has been designed to support extensive customization and specialization. Each base integer ISA can be extended with one or more optional instruction-set extensions, and we divide each RISC V instruction-set encoding space (and related encoding spaces such as the CSRs) into three disjoint categories: standard, reserved, and custom. Standard encodings are defined by the Foundation, and shall not conflict with other standard extensions for the same base ISA. Reserved encodings are currently not defined but are saved for future standard extensions. We use the term non standard to describe an extension that is not defined by the Foundation. Custom encodings shall never be used for standard extensions and are made available for vendor-specific non-standard extensions. We use the term non-conforming to describe a non-standard extension that uses either a standard or a reserved encoding (i.e., custom extensions are not non-conforming). Instruction-set extensions are generally shared but may provide slightly different functionality depending on the base ISA. Chapter 27 describes various ways of extending the RISC-V ISA. We have also developed a naming convention for RISC-V base instructions and instruction-set extensions, described in detail in Chapter 28.

To support more general software development, a set of standard extensions are defined to provide integer multiply/divide, atomic operations, and single and double-precision floating-point arith metic. The base integer ISA is named “I” (prefixed by RV32 or RV64 depending on integer register width), and contains integer computational instructions, integer loads, integer stores, and control flow instructions. The standard integer multiplication and division extension is named “M”, and adds instructions to multiply and divide values held in the integer registers. The standard atomic instruction extension, denoted by “A”, adds instructions that atomically read, modify, and write memory for inter-processor synchronization. The standard single-precision floating-point exten sion, denoted by “F”, adds floating-point registers, single-precision computational instructions, and single-precision loads and stores. The standard double-precision floating-point extension, denoted by “D”, expands the floating-point registers, and adds double-precision computational instruc tions, loads, and stores. The standard “C” compressed instruction extension provides narrower 16-bit forms of common instructions.

Beyond the base integer ISA and the standard GC extensions, we believe it is rare that a new instruction will provide a significant benefit for all applications, although it may be very beneficial for a certain domain. As energy efficiency concerns are forcing greater specialization, we believe it is important to simplify the required portion of an ISA specification. Whereas other architectures usually treat their ISA as a single entity, which changes to a new version as instructions are added over time, RISC-V will endeavor to keep the base and each standard extension constant over time, and instead layer new instructions as further optional extensions. For example, the base integer ISAs will continue as fully supported standalone ISAs, regardless of any subsequent extensions.

bookmark_borderRISC-V Software Execution Environments and Harts

Posted on by risc-v

The behavior of a RISC-V program depends on the execution environment in which it runs.

Risc-V Board

A RISC-V execution environment interface (EEI) defines the initial state of the program, the number and type of harts in the environment including the privilege modes supported by the harts, the accessibility and attributes of memory and I/O regions, the behavior of all legal instructions exe cuted on each hart (i.e., the ISA is one component of the EEI), and the handling of any interrupts or exceptions raised during execution including environment calls.

Examples of EEIs include the Linux application binary interface (ABI), or the RISC-V supervisor binary interface (SBI). The implementation of a RISC-V execution environment can be pure hardware, pure software, or a combination of hardware and software. For example, opcode traps and software emulation can be used to implement functionality not provided in hardware. Examples of execution environment implementations include:

• “Bare metal” hardware platforms where harts are directly implemented by physical processor threads and instructions have full access to the physical address space. The hardware platform defines an execution environment that begins at power-on reset.

• RISC-V operating systems that provide multiple user-level execution environments by mul tiplexing user-level harts onto available physical processor threads and by controlling access to memory via virtual memory.

• RISC-V hypervisors that provide multiple supervisor-level execution environments for guest operating systems.

• RISC-V emulators, such as Spike, QEMU or rv8, which emulate RISC-V harts on an under lying x86 system, and which can provide either a user-level or a supervisor-level execution environment.

A bare hardware platform can be considered to define an EEI, where the accessible harts, memory, and other devices populate the environment, and the initial state is that at power-on reset. Generally, most software is designed to use a more abstract interface to the hardware, as more abstract EEIs provide greater portability across different hardware platforms. Often EEIs are layered on top of one another, where one higher-level EEI uses another lower-level EEI.

From the perspective of software running in a given execution environment, a hart is a resource that autonomously fetches and executes RISC-V instructions within that execution environment. In this respect, a hart behaves like a hardware thread resource even if time-multiplexed onto real hardware by the execution environment. Some EEIs support the creation and destruction of additional harts, for example, via environment calls to fork new harts.

The term hart was introduced in the work on Lithe to provide a term to represent an abstract execution resource as opposed to a software thread programming abstraction. The important distinction between a hardware thread (hart) and a software thread context is that the software running inside an execution environment is not responsible for causing progress of each of its harts; that is the responsibility of the outer execution environment. So the environment’s harts operate like hardware threads from the perspective of the software inside the execution environment.

An execution environment implementation might time-multiplex a set of guest harts onto fewer host harts provided by its own execution environment but must do so in a way that guest harts operate like independent hardware threads. In particular, if there are more guest harts than host harts then the execution environment must be able to preempt the guest harts and must not wait indefinitely for guest software on a guest hart to ”yield” control of the guest hart.

 

bookmark_borderRISC-V Hardware Platform Terminology

Posted on by risc-v
RISC-V hardware platform

A RISC-V hardware platform can contain one or more RISC-V-compatible processing cores to gether with other non-RISC-V-compatible cores, fixed-function accelerators, various physical mem ory structures, I/O devices, and an interconnect structure to allow the components to communicate.

A component is termed a core if it contains an independent instruction fetch unit. A RISC-V compatible core might support multiple RISC-V-compatible hardware threads, or harts, through multithreading.

A RISC-V core might have additional specialized instruction-set extensions or an added coprocessor. We use the term coprocessor to refer to a unit that is attached to a RISC-V core and is mostly sequenced by a RISC-V instruction stream, but which contains additional architectural state and instruction-set extensions, and possibly some limited autonomy relative to the primary RISC-V instruction stream.

Risc-V Boards
Risc-V Boards

We use the term accelerator to refer to either a non-programmable fixed-function unit or a core that can operate autonomously but is specialized for certain tasks. In RISC-V systems, we expect many programmable accelerators will be RISC-V-based cores with specialized instruction-set extensions and/or customized co processors. An important class of RISC-V accelerators are I/O accelerators, which offload I/O processing tasks from the main application cores.

The system-level organization of a RISC-V hardware platform can range from a single-core micro controller to a many-thousand-node cluster of shared-memory manycore server nodes. Even small systems-on-a-chip might be structured as a hierarchy of multicomputers and/or multiprocessors to modularization development effort or to provide secure isolation between subsystems.

bookmark_borderRISC-V ISA Introduction

Posted on by risc-v

RISC-V (pronounced “risk-five”) is a new instruction-set architecture (ISA) that was originally designed to support computer architecture research and education, but which we now hope will also become a standard free and open architecture for industry implementations. Our goals in defining RISC-V include:

• A completely open ISA that is freely available to academia and industry. • A real ISA suitable for direct native hardware implementation, not just simulation or binary translation.

• An ISA that avoids “over-architecting” for a particular microarchitecture style (e.g., mi crocoded, in-order, decoupled, out-of-order) or implementation technology (e.g., full-custom, ASIC, FPGA), but which allows efficient implementation in any of these.

• An ISA separated into a small base integer ISA, usable by itself as a base for customized accelerators or for educational purposes, and optional standard extensions, to support general purpose software development.

• Support for the revised 2008 IEEE-754 floating-point standard.

• An ISA supporting extensive ISA extensions and specialized variants.

• Both 32-bit and 64-bit address space variants for applications, operating system kernels, and hardware implementations.

• An ISA with support for highly-parallel multicore or manycore implementations, including heterogeneous multiprocessors.

• Optional variable-length instructions to both expand available instruction encoding space and to support an optional dense instruction encoding for improved performance, static code size, and energy efficiency.

• A fully virtualizable ISA to ease hypervisor development.

• An ISA that simplifies experiments with new privileged architecture designs.

The RISC-V ISA is defined avoiding implementation details as much as possible (although com mentary is included on implementation-driven decisions) and should be read as the software-visible interface to a wide variety of implementations rather than as the design of a particular hardware artifact.

The RISC-V manual is structured in two volumes. This volume covers the design of the base unprivileged instructions, including optional unprivileged ISA extensions. Unprivileged instructions are those that are generally usable in all privilege modes in all privileged architectures, though behavior might vary depending on privilege mode and privilege architecture.

The second volume provides the design of the first (“classic”) privileged architecture. The manuals use IEC 80000-13:2008 conventions, with a byte of 8 bits.

bookmark_borderRISC-V ISA modules

Posted on by risc-v
RISC-V ISA modules

The RVWMO memory model has been ratified at this time. The ISA modules marked Ratified, have been ratified at this time.

The modules marked Frozen are not expected to change significantly before being put up for ratification. The modules marked Draft are expected to change before ratification.

The document contains the following versions of the RISC-V ISA modules:

RISC-V ISA modules
RISC-V ISA modules

 

 

 

bookmark_borderHigh speed AD module -12 Digital – 65MHz Data Sampling Digital analog signal development board

Posted on by risc-v

High speed AD module -12 Digital – 65MHz Data Sampling Digital analog signal development board BNC- AD9226 – FII-BD9226

Product Features:

Digital interface：Standard PMOD Interface，work with any fpga board that has PMOD interface;

Analog interface：BNC Interface output；

Number of channels: single channel;

AD Conversion Chip：AD9226 Chip；

DA Number of conversion bits：12bit；

Maximum sampling rate: 65MSPS；

Analog signal input amplitude: ±5V (peak-to-peak 10V)

Module power supply: +5V single power supply;

Test points: up to 7 test points;

Operating temperature: -40 ° C ~ 85 ° C, to meet the industrial temperature range;

Provide information and DDS case code;

bookmark_borderov5640

Posted on by risc-v

What is OV5640 ?

ov5640 is a 1/4-inch, 5-Megapixel SOC Image Sensor which is developed by OmniVision Technologies Inc.

The OV5640 delivers a complete 5-megapixel camera solution on a single chip, aimed at offering cost efficiencies that serve the high- volume autofocus (AF) camera phone market. The system-on-a- chip (SOC) sensor features OmniVision’s 1.4 micron OmniBSI™ backside illumination architecture to deliver excellent pixel performance and best-in-class low-light sensitivity, while enabling ultra compact camera module designs of 8.5 mm x 8.5 mm with  <6 mm z-height.

The OV5640 provides the full functionality of a complete camera, including anti-shake technology, AF control, and MIPI while being easier to tune then two-chip solutions, making it an ideal choice in terms of cost, time-to-market and ease of platform integration.

500M Camera module ov5640 – FII-BD5640 PMOD Interface

The OV5640 enables 720p HD video at 60 frames per second (fps) and 1080p HD video at 30 fps with complete user control over formatting and output data transfer. The 720p/60 HD video is captured in full field of view (FOV) with 2 x 2 binning, which doubles the sensitivity and improves the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Additionally, a unique post-binning re-sampling filter function removes zigzag artifacts around slant edges and minimizes spatial artifacts to deliver even sharper, crisper color images. To further improve camera performance and user experience, the OV5640 features an internal anti-shake engine for image stabilization, and it supports Scalado™ tagging for faster image preview and zoom.

The OV5640 offers a digital video port (DVP) parallel interface and a high-speed dual lane MIPI interface, supporting multiple output formats. An integrated JPEG compression engine simplifies data transfer for bandwidth-limited interfaces. The sensor’s automatic image control functions include automatic exposure control (AEC), automatic white balance (AWB), automatic band filter (ABF), 50/60 Hz automatic luminance detection, and automatic black level calibration (ABLC). The OV5640 delivers programmable controls for frame rate, AEC/AGC 16-zone size/position/weight control, mirror and flip, cropping, windowing, and panning. It also offers color saturation, hue, gamma, sharpness (edge enhancement), lens correction, defective pixel canceling, and noise canceling to improve image quality.

OV5640 Application

    1. MobilePhones
    2. Digital Still and Video Cameras
    3. Entertainment

OV5640 Product Features

  • ¬1.4 µm x 1.4 µm pixel with OmniBSI ¬ support horizontal binning and technology for high performance (high vertical sub-sampling sensitivity, low crosstalk, low noise,
    improved quantum efficiency)
  • ¬ post binning resampling filter to minimize spatial/aliasing artifacts
    ¬optical size of 1/4″ on 2×2 binned image
  • ¬automatic image control functions: ¬ embedded JPEG compression
    – automatic exposure control (AEC)
    – automatic white balance (AWB) ¬ support for anti-shake
    – automatic band filter (ABF)
    – automatic 50/60 Hz luminance detection ¬ digital video port (DVP) parallel output
    – automatic black level calibration (ABLC) interface and dual lane MIPI output interface
    ¬programmable controls for frame rate, AEC/AGC 16-zone size/position/ ¬ embedded 1.5V regulator for core weight control, mirror and flip, cropping, power windowing, and panning
    ¬programmable I/O drive capability,
    ¬image quality controls: color saturation, I/O tri-state configurability hue, gamma, sharpness (edge enhancement), lens correction, defective ¬ support for black sun cancellation pixel canceling, and noise canceling
    ¬embedded arbitrary scalar supporting
    ¬support for output formats: RAW RGB, any size from 5 MP and below RGB565/555/444, CCIR656, YUV422/420, YCbCr422, and ¬ auto focus control (AFC) with compression embedded AF VCM driver
  • ¬support for LED and flash strobe mode ¬ embedded microcontroller
  • ¬support for internal and external frame ¬ suitable for module size of synchronization for frame exposure 8.5 x 8.5 x <6mm with both CSP and mode RW packaging
  • ¬support horizontal binning and vertical sub-sampling

 

Product Specifications

active array size: 2592 x 1944

power supply:

– core: 1.5 V ±5% (with embedded 1.5 V regulator)
– analog: 2.6 ~ 3.0 V (2.8 V typical)
– I/O: 1.8 V / 2.8 V

power requirements:

        •           -active:140 mA
        •           -standby: 20 µA

temperature range:

-operating:-30°C to 70°C junction
-stable image: 0°C to 50°C junction

output formats:  8/10-bit RAW RGB output

lens size: 1/4″

lens chief ray angle: 24°

input clock frequency: 6 ~ 27 MHz

shutter:  rolling shutter / frame exposure

maximumimage transfer rate:

QSXGA (2592×1944): 15 fps

1080p: 30 fps

1280 x 960: 45 fps

720p:  60 fps

VGA (640×480):  90 fps

QVGA (320×240): 120 fps

sensitivity: 600 mV/lux-sec

maximum exposure interval: 1964 x tROW

max S/N ratio: 36 dB

dynamic range: 68 dB @ 8x gain

pixel size: 1.4 µm x 1.4 µm

dark current: 8 mV/sec @ 60°C junction temperature

image area: 3673.6 µm x 2738.4 µm

package dimensions:

– CSP3: 5985 µm x 5835 µm

– COB: 6000 µm x 5850 µm

OV5640 Functional Block Diagram

 

Related products

4k 500M Camera Module – ov5640 – FII-BD5640 PCIE Interface

500M Camera module ov5640 – FII-BD5640 PMOD Interface

bookmark_borderRisc-V Processor

Posted on by risc-v

The main features of FII-IPcore :

  1. Fully supports the RV32IMFAC instruction architecture and provides a rich set of storage and interfaces, including: ITCM 64K(Instruction Tightly Coupled Memories) and DTCM 64K(Data Tightly Coupled Memories) for separate storage of instructions and data, and 2M bytes External super RAM support as well .
  2. 3-stage pipeline architecture
  3. support machine mode only
  4. From instruction fetch ,Decoder ,Execution to memory operation modules are 100% Manually developed by using pure verilog HDL, scalable and easy to be understood.
  5.  The flexible RISC-V IPCORE is suitable for customized ASIC for specific domain, Also can be used as embedded CPU with in FPGA.
  6.  Interrupt controller, supports 16 high-priority, low-latency local vectored interrupts.
  7. includes a RISC-V standard PLIC (platform-level interrupt controller ), which supports 127 global interrupts with 7 priority levels. provides the standard RISCV machine-mode timer and software interrupts via the CLINT(Core Local Interruptor)
  8. 2 UART
  9. 3 QSPI
  10. I2C
  11. 3 PWM
  12. 10M/100M/1G ethernet
  13. Watchdog
  14. 32 GPIO
  15. 4 7-seg display interface
  16. External Serial Flash
  17. Debug Interfaces: JTAG
  18. 12-Bit ADC
  19. Four data lines I2S and can support maximum of 8 audio outputs or 4 stereo channels
  20. Hardware Crypto Engine for Advanced Fast Security, Including: AES 128, CRC, Checksum etc
Risc-V CPU
Risc-V CPU

A lot of our Risc-V experiments and our Risc-V courses are based on our own FII-CPU on our FII-PRX100 platform:

Codasip is proud to be a founding member of the RISC-V Foundation, joining industry leaders such as Google, Oracle, HP, AMD, Nvidia, and many others.

The power of RISC-V board is that it defines an ISA that helps a healthy HW and SW ecosystems develop, allowing each vendor to deliver their own unique value.

Cloud server will use Risc-V Processor in the near future. If you want to have a cheap cloud hosting with no downtime, please go to PowerHoster.

bookmark_borderWhich domain register is the cheapest domain register ?

Posted on by risc-v

.COM Domain Name Only $8.99

 

 

What is a Domain ?

To put it simply, a domain is an identifiable name that you use to access a site. Behind the scenes, the Internet operates on a series of numbers. Every single computer, mobile device, and website has a unique IP address. The IP address, also known as the Internet Protocol address, is what devices use to access a site’s server and download data so that it appears on your screen.

IP addresses are very long and difficult to remember. So, domains were developed to make things easier for the average Internet user. The domain name is registered to the IP address. Whenever a visitor types your domain into their browser’s address bar, the computer does a quick scan of the Domain Name System server, which is like a massive Internet phone book. The server tells the computer what IP address the domain is attached to and brings the browser to that digital space. All of this happens within seconds.

While it sounds complicated, the process is relatively simple. At the end of the day, domain names make the Internet much more accessible. Instead of remembering a random string of numbers, you can use a memorable domain to access your favorite site.

A domain name is your web address online and it’s an important component of any online presence. Finding a domain name for your website is as easy as typing it on the search bar above. If a domain name is available, simply register it. If it isn’t available, our Domain Search tool provides you with other options.

Why do I need a website for my business?

Even small local businesses that only serve their hometown need a site. That’s because the web is the first place people go when looking for a product or service. A website helps every business:

  • Promote and sell their products and services
  • Connect with new customers (and keep existing customers)
  • Build credibility
  • Compete with bigger businesses
  • Control their brand and keep their marketing fresh and current

Best of all, a website is much easier and more affordable than you might think. GoDaddy offers a complete selection of online tools for building websites, along with hosting, email and marketing options to grow their business on the web.

What About a Domain Extension?

Domain extensions are the letters that go after your domain in your URL. They’re also called top-level domains, or TLD. Some examples would include “.com” or “.gov.” Domain extensions serve a number of different purposes. Primarily, they are used to identify the site’s mission or geographical location. For example, “.com” is for commercial sites while “.gov” is reserved for government-related sites.

Extensions are coordinated and regulated by the International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which is commonly referred to as ICANN. This organization is responsible for coming up with new top-level domains. While everyone is familiar with “.org” and “.net” domain extensions, there’s actually over a 1,000 to choose from. ICANN’s new generic top-level domain program added a ton of unique extensions that can help your site stand out.

Extensions are an important part of your domain because it’s the thing you’re paying for. You can register virtually any domain name that you want as long as it doesn’t infringe on someone else’s rights or is already taken. However, there are only so many domain extensions that you can use. In most cases, the popularity of the extension is what determines registration and renewal costs.

Is the Domain the Same as Hosting?

New website owners often confuse domains with hosting. While they both play an important role in getting your site viewed by the masses, they’re two totally different things with their own separate costs. The domain is what’s used to direct visitors to your site. Hosting is where your site is actually stored. Visitors access the hosting server, where all of your site’s content and data is, through the domain.

Many web hosting providers offer registrar services as well, which is usually the source of confusion. However, you don’t have to register your domain with your hosting provider. You can use multiple companies and services. Though, registering the domain with the hosting provider does offer some benefits. For one, you’re only billed by one company. This can help you stay organized and make it easier to keep track of expenses. Secondly, many providers offer a free domain for your first year if you’re a new member.
What is a Domain Name Registrar?

The registrar is the company that handles all of the assigning duties for your new domain. They will register your domain name and assign it to your site’s IP address. The registration and renewal fees cover these services. These companies have to be accredited by ICANN to officially qualify as a registrar.

It’s important to remember that you’re paying for registration services when you buy a domain. Once you have paid those fees, the domain is yours. Registrars do not own the domain or the domain extension. If you’re unhappy with the service you receive, you can always transfer your domain to another company. As long as you keep up with renewal fees, you don’t have to pick a new domain when you change companies. The domain you choose is yours to keep for as long as you want it.

How Much Do Domains Typically Cost?

The price of a domain is influenced by many different factors. The biggest is the popularity of the domain extension and overall availability. For a cheap domain, you can expect to pay around $15.00 a year. During your first year, prices can be as low as $0.99. Many registrars and hosting companies offer attractive introductory fees to get new customers in the door.

After your first year, you will have to renew your domain on a yearly basis to keep it active. At this point, you will be paying the normal price, which is usually between $10.00 and $20.00 for cheap domains. Some registrars also allow you to register the domain for many years at once, which is a great option if you don’t want to worry about forgetting to pay renewal fees.

Now, those prices reflect the average cost of cheap domain names. If you’re looking to invest in a popular domain, you might have to spend a pretty penny. Popular extensions can cost hundreds of dollars a year. If you want to buy an existing domain, the price goes even higher. Some .com domains have sold for several million dollars. In our digital world, domains are a hot commodity, so some of the best and most recognizable have a significant price tag.

The Cheapest Domain Register
The Cheapest Domain Register

Just as the name suggests, PowerHoster is probably the best domain name registrar for cheap domain name registration (at reasonable cost) you have. Started in 2000, PowerHoster is already the leader in the domain name business.  The company has been providing popular TLDs at cost-effective price along with unparalleled services one needs alongside domain registration.

PowerHoster is an ICANN-accredited domain name provider in wildwest domains name. The company has more than 10 million domains under management.

GoDaddy is the world’s largest domain name registrar and PowerHoster share the same servers and support team as Godaddy and the leader in the domain name industry. It boasts of 17 million customers and 55+ million domains under management worldwide. The company provides popular top-level domains (TLDs), both general and country-specific domains at a reasonable price. You can get a great domain name from GoDaddy and start an online business or personal website for the general audience worldwide or local audience with your country’s domain name.

Besides, GoDaddy offers easy domain transfers, auctions for bidding, premium domains and discount domain club for interesting discount offers.

What Does the Domain Price Include?

The price that you pay for a domain should include all of the basic services that the registrar has to do. This includes registering your new domain and assigning it to the IP address. The registration and renewal price should also include the ICANN fee. ICANN charges a very small annual fee for every domain on the web. It’s also charged for transfers. Currently, the ICANN fee is only $0.18.

Some registrars also offer additional services. The most popular is domain privacy, which helps to keep some of your personal information on the WHOIS database private. This comes with an additional cost. You may also encounter hidden fees. Make sure that you read the fine print to ensure that the registrar you choose doesn’t have unnecessary fees tacked on.

What are all these new domain extensions?

Domains like .SHOP, .BLOG, .STORE and .TECH are considered as “generic Top Level Domains” or gTLDs, while .QUEBEC, .NYC and .LONDON are categorized as geographic TLDs. These new TLDs were created to provide more naming options and as a way to diversify the list of sites on the internet.

For example, instead of using JohnSmithAccountant.Com or PizzaShop.Ca, register a domain name like JohnSmith.Accountant or MemorableMementos.Shop to create a more memorable name for your website.

How to Choose a Solid Domain Name

Your domain is very important when it comes to your site’s brand identity and Internet presence. It’s the first thing visitors will encounter when they visit your site. Before you buy domain name services, take some time to come up with a good idea that you can stick with. Here are a few tips on how to choose the best domain name for when your setting up a site or starting a blog.

Represent Your Site

A domain name should always represent the site. It should give visitors a good idea of what to expect before they click. The most popular method for choosing a domain name is to use your personal name or company name. You could also include your location, market niche, or any other identifier.

Make It Easy to Remember

Domain names are meant to be memorable. Steer clear of hyphens or random numbers. The fewer the characters, the better. You don’t want to confuse your visitors or make them accidentally visit a site that’s not yours. Try saying your domain name out loud. If it’s easy to pronounce, it’s easier to remember.

Make Sure That It’s Legal and Available

Before you try buying a domain, you need to make sure that it’s available. Do a quick Google search and take a look at the WHOIS database. The database includes every registered domain. If you find that the name you want is already taken, you can also use the database to find some contact information for the owner.

Another thing to consider is the legality of the name. The last thing you want to deal with after paying for a domain is a lawsuit. Make sure that the name doesn’t include any trademarks.

Use a Domain Name Generator

If all else fails, you can use a domain name generator. Advanced generators can help you come up with a great domain name in only a few minutes. They use basic information about your site to create options that are relevant and memorable.

Consider Domain Hacking

Domain hacking is a fun way to make your domain stand out. It involves using the domain and the extension to create memorable words or phrases. Some examples include “burri.to” or “fun.zone.” Just use your imagination and get creative. Hacked domains are easy to remember and can be used for marketing.

bookmark_borderWhat are the biggest differences between Linux Hosting and Windows Hosting?

Posted on by risc-v
Difference between window hosting and linux hosting

Once you start comparing the Linux vs. Windows hosting server, you’ll see the biggest difference when you log in. Linux use a command-line interface, where users enter strings of text to perform actions, compared with the familiar point-and-click interface used by Windows servers.

Some applications and features are only available for one specific type of hosting. For example, the popular cPanel hosting application runs only on Linux servers. Meanwhile, the Visual Basic or .NET programming languages are only available with Windows Hosting.

Windows Specific Applications

Windows applications which require a Windows server:

      • ASP Classic
      • ASP.NET
      • MSSQL (Microsoft SQL Server)
      • MS Access (Microsoft Access)
      • Visual Basic Development
      • C#
      • Remote Desktop (dedicated server only)

The main “advantage” or distinction of Windows servers is that they can run Microsoft software such as Access and MS SQL databases. Windows servers also offer web developers the use of Microsoft’s programming environments such as Active Server Pages (ASP), Visual Basic Scripts, MS Index Server.

What is the difference between window hosting and linux hosting
What is the difference between window hosting and linux hosting


Users can develop web site using the familiar interface of Microsoft tools such as, Visual Interdev, and Microsoft Access. With ASP users can develop a database-driven web site using Microsoft Access and Microsoft SQL as the database

Windows Dedicated Servers can support additional Windows-specific applications. For some applications, you may need to purchase a license and install the software on your Windows dedicated server.

  • Microsoft Exchange (requires license & Installation)
  • Microsoft SharePoint (requires license & Installation)

Linux Specific Applications

Applications that require a Linux-based server.

    • SSH
    • Scripts or applications that require specific Apache modules

Control Panels Windows servers and Linux servers use different control panels.

  • cPanel is available on all Linux-based hosting plans, such as Linux Shared, Reseller, VPS and Linux Dedicated Servers.
  • WHM (Web Host Manager) is available on Linux Reseller, VPS and Dedicated Servers.
  • Plesk is available on Windows Shared and Dedicated Servers.

File Names

Another difference  between Linux and Windows servers is that Linux files are case sensitive while Windows files are not.

For example:

  • On a Linux server, home.html and Home.html are different names.
  • On a Windows server, home.html, Home.html and HOME.HTML are all the same name.
Difference between window hosting and linux hosting
Difference between window hosting and linux hosting

Easy-to-understand cPanel hosting.

Whether you’re migrating a site, opening a hosting account or considering the options for cPanel hosting services, rest assured – that with cPanel hosting – you’ll be choosing the best control panel, and best hosting solution. Our cPanel hosting platform, with its intuitive, point-and-click interface, lets you manage all aspects of your website. Easily. That’s why the web-hosting-control panel of choice for many is a cPanel web host manager (WHM).

Expert help is here. For you.

When comparison shopping for web hosting – and you have additional questions about PowerHoster cPanel web hosting – you can always call one of our friendly, knowledgeable customer service individuals to help you make the right choice.

They’re smart. They know web hosting.

What is cPanel for hosting?

cPanel is a web hosting control panel that gives a web hosting customer/owner a user interface that is intended to help make managing their piece of a shared server and their website easier.

Do I need cPanel for managing a website?

You’re better off if you do. Although cPanel is one of several options for managing a website, its ease of use makes cPanel is an industry-leading control panel. It allows users to create websites using a variety of content management systems (CMS) including WordPress, Drupal, Magento and Joomla.

Is cPanel hosting available with a WordPress website?

cPanel and WordPress serve two different functions, yet they are compatible with each other; cPanel is a control panel that provides a simpler way for web hosting users to manage their piece of a shared server. WordPress is a website or blog-building application that can be downloaded and installed onto your server by using cPanel.

Does GoDaddy charge extra for a web hosting control panel?

Nope. All GoDaddy web hosting plans include the control panel at no extra charge.

What is the difference between cPanel’s powerful tools and Hosting?

Hosting is a term that refers to a user’s access to space on a server. cPanel is a control panel that give that user an interface to put their server space to work doing things like creating a website or housing files and data.

What alternative solutions does GoDaddy offer to cPanel (Odin, Plesk, Onyx, etc)?

GoDaddy offers a couple alternatives to web hosting cPanel. For web hosting GoDaddy also offer Plesk Onyx that is run on Windows servers. For hardcore developers, we have Virtual Private Servers (VPS) and Dedicated Servers available without a control panel. If you are a hosting reseller, we also offer WHMCS hosting so you may easily manage your server space and client accounts.

Is cPanel open source?

No. However, you may use cPanel to access and install over 100 applications, install different types of software, CMS, shopping platform or WordPress (which is open source).