6 replies to this topic

[Nathan Malone]

I am wondering if it is possible for me to set up my pc to act as a server and, if so, what I would need to do to do this. It already has Apache/PHP installed and working correctly and it is set up so that http://localhost/asdf.xxx works correctly but I was wondering if it is possible to have www.mysite.com run off the server. Any help is appreciated!

[Jill]

I'm not sure, but most ISPs won't allow you to do that unless you pay them an extra fee. You might want to check. I think you can do it with Roadrunner/Comcast for a fee.

[Randy]

Several problems arise with most ISP's Nathan, the main one being what Jill mentioned. So many people used to do this that the ISP's now look for it. If you get caught they will likely turn off your Cable/DSL service and also attempt to charge you an exhorbitant amount for having provided the service to you in the first place.

Second issue is the DNS problem. Even if you have an IP number that hasn't changed in forever, it always could change without any advance notice. There are dynamic DNS providers that provide ways around this problem, but it's iffy and they all cost.

You would need more than just Apache and PHP. There's more software running on the average server than just those two. Minor things like Bind are pretty much a requirement. As would some sort of Database software such as MySQL.

Lastly, you would have to have an exceptionally fast DSL/Cable stream to even think about it if your site was going to be anything close to commercial level. The average high-speed connection is really only high speed on the download side of things. Uploading speeds typically run in the 90-200 kbps range. A typical server will run in the 2 Gigabyte per second range on the upper end.

So with a typical DSL/Cable set up even having 1 or 2 visitors to your site at one time is going to make it load slowly. If you're not using your connection for anything else at that moment.

It's simply not worth the effort these days with colo servers being so terribly inexpensive.

[Jill]

I was just talking to my sister who does this through roadrunner with a small business account. She pays $109 a month. And it's really only for light traffic.

[projectphp]

An online server, IMHO, is both cheaper and safer. Stick with that method.

[Randy]

Yup agreed ProjectPHP.

Jill, does your sister know that she can get a real server for about half that amount?

[Jill]

Yep! She actually has a dedicated server that's a "real" one. They just do the home one for fun, I think. Testing and stuff.