just another quick 2 cents worth, i run an intranet webserver for 50 people useing php script. the platform is a pII 400 90Mb ram, running redhat 8.0 with apache. just pointing out hardware wise, if your only catering for a few people it doesnt take much. and its been up and running for 9 months with only one reboot (and thats because i pulled the wrong cable, derrr!).

spikes

Sure TheOgre, would love a lesson

Lesson: IP Routing 101

Given:

- A webserver (listening on port 80) with an internal IP address of 192.168.0.5
- A mail server (using POP3 and SMTP) with an internal IP of 192.168.0.10
- A firewall/router (in this example, running IPFW and NATd on FreeBSD)
- An Internet connection using Optimum Online
- A properly registered domain (with a MX record) pointing to a dynamic IP
- A DNS redirector for the domain. In this example, our webserver is listening on port 6900, and the DNS redirector has been configured for this already.

Configuring IP routing for mail and web using IPFW on FreeBSD:

Edit your firewall config file and add a rule that allows all incoming traffic on TCP port 80 to be redirected to the internal IP of the webserver (192.168.0.5):

# fxp0 = outside (WAN) interface
add [rule #] allow log tcp from any to 192.168.0.5 6900 via fxp0

Then create a firewall rule allowing anything incoming on TCP ports 25 and 110 to be redirected to the internal IP of the mail server:

add [rule #] allow log tcp from any to 192.168.0.10 25 via fxp0
add [rule #] allow log tcp from any to 192.168.0.10 110 via fxp0

Save the changes and close the file.

Now we edit the natd config file to actually tell NATd where to route the packets. In FreeBSD, the file to edit is /etc/natd.conf.

#The format is: redirect_port proto inside_ip:port port(listening port)
# Allow mail traffic to the mail server:
redirect_port tcp 192.168.0.10:110 110
redirect_port tcp 192.168.0.10:25 25
# Redirect www passthrough to the web server:
redirect_port tcp 192.168.0.5:80 6900

Restart your net services, and you're done.

-OR-

If you use a LinkSys/DLink/NetGear router, just configure the port forwarding portion to redirect the ports to the IP:port and you're done :)

(I haven't done this in awhile on Linux, so I don't remember the commands for routing with DNAT and/or SNAT. Google has LOTS of examples, so I won't try to duplicate them here.)

I never understood why you'd run a web site from home. The electricity, hardware, and software you spend (if you go with non-open source) costs more per month than a web host where you'd only pay $5.00 a month. I guess I can see why someone would want to do it, if you have special needs (something hosts don't provide) but if it's a basic site, I don't think it's worth it.

My two cents.

I run one of my sites from home as a way to demonstrate to my clients some of the services I offer (some of them are interested in hosting their own sites, rather than paying for webhosting, among other projects that utilize a web server.) Out of the 9 machines on my network that are on 24/7, the CPU power to run httpd isn't costing anything extra, not to mention I use httpd for other projects I'm working on, so to make it available to the outside is worth it to me in the long run. The extra bandwidth usage for the hits aren't anything worth noticing, mainly because I don't advertise the site.

As far as others are concerned, maybe they want to do it for fun, or to see how it works (the hacker idiology at work :), or for other personal reasons. A few of my associates started hosting their own sites for fun, and have since started their own hosting companies they run out of their house (on T-lines, not cable/DSL.) Who knows? Maybe some of the people in here will someday open their own business doing hosting. It makes it easier if you already know what you're doing, and learning it now might also help them in other ways (at the workplace, etc.)

For me, the electricity is already being consumed. The time it took me to get everything online is incidental for my purposes, since I wind up getting reimbursed for it sooner or later...

Ultimately, I think it would be smarter to stick with a host. Simply because of the preformance you'll be providing your viewer, as well as your personal security. Unless you have an extra box laying around and you're going to use that for hosting your site, and nothing else... I don't think it's that great of an idea. The second a website is placed online, it becomes a target, and when you get some viewers looking for trouble, and they see it's hosted on your home computer, ew that could become ugly. Also, your DSL is pretty fast, but nothing really in comparison to the lines that data centers have... on top of that data centers have the back up power, fire supression systems, security, and wicked fast lines... and when you can get that for only $5 a month? I'd say go for it.

My 10 cents.. best of luck to you!

Smarter for whom? Smarter for ME? Smarter for CSCGAL? Smarter for Everyone?

While that statement might be true for some, don't make it a blanket statement for everyone. I know a lot of people that don't HAVE the extra $5 it would cost them every month. They have everything else except the cash flow, so why shouldn't they if they know what they're doing?

I for one am sure as hell not going to pay a hosting provider for something I can do on my own, especially when the content is mainly for me and my clients, considering it's mostly projects I'm working on. I already pay for 4 hosting accounts that are for business - I'm not about to pay for one that I use for fun/testing/projects/learning.

I think the best advice for someone contemplating hosting their own website would be to do their homework, investigate the possibilities, the costs, the hours involved in the maintenance, security, and the LEARNING involved with the whole project. If you want a shopping cart with SSL and certificates and other bells & whistles, then I'd recommend paying for a hosting provider. If you're curious to see how it's done and want to have fun with it, GO FOR IT! You won't learn anything about it until you actually get a server up and running. (Just make sure you read your ISP's TOS and understand the consequences that might be imposed on you if you get caught.) And anyone who tells you not to for no good reason other than to hear themselves speak should be ignored. If they have a good reason, fine, but otherwise, tell them to go away.

Oh, and regarding your comment about "The second a website is placed online, it becomes a target...", any COMPUTER that goes online on a high-speed (broadband) connection becomes a target, regardless of what services it's running.

Aside from that, I think this thread has gone off on a tangent and should be locked.

i just noticed you guys were talking about hosting ... so here it goes

i use Shaw Cable in canada and when i purchase a domain, it always asks for me a DNS ... i can't figure out where to get a DNS. i host a website over IP only ... i have a router and i can forward port 80 properly and everything ... i know what i'm doing ... can you give me a clue on how to get a DNS and what to do please?

You'll need DNS to resolve the domain name to IP addresses, where to point mail and so forth. I would recommend somewhere like EasyDNS or ZoneEdit fo that particular reason. Nice web-front ends to managing DNS entries. See http://www.easydns.com or http://www.zoneedit.com.

Regards,

Martyn

Thanks, that'll work!