I have bought a domain and now I would like to turn my computer into a web host. I would like to use Apache web server. Can someone please lay down detailed instructions on how to set up my computer to host my web site? Thanks!
Basically you just need to tell the person you registered your domain with what your ip address is. This is called the A record in the DNS settings. You may have problems if you don't have a static IP address. In which case you can purchase one from your ISP or use a dynamic DNS service like DynDnS.
May I know the operating system are you using in your local system? You can install XAMPP, this includes Apache, PHP and MySQL. Also, before you convert your system to web server, make sure your ISP has no problem. Many ISPs' do not allow this. Also, you will need a dedicated IP address from your host. Kailash
in your ADSL you have one IP Dynamic, so the IP change every 24h or every your connection reload. For add a domain to your Home Server, you must to have a Dynamic Hostname. Register your domain in DynDNS.com or no-ip.com. You solve this problem with this solution.
In addition, you will also need to forward port 80 on your router to your computer, in order to serve HTTP pages. Let us know if you need any help!
Chances are that your ISP is going to block port 80 and if they don't they likely have a provision preventing you from hosting a server on your home connection. You're going to spend more money per month on electricity running a computer 24/7 to serve pages than you would by just getting a standard shared hosting account but I do wish you the best of luck.
You will need - permission from your ISP - DNS server installed on your PC There will more troubles with that so I assume few$$ is not a fortune to spend on the web hosting needs with good host
As Rumsfo says - it's going to cost more money and be more trouble to go this route to try and "save some money" ... trust me ... just get an account with a reputable provider.
Mike's right. It's pointless to try and do this. For example, I had a server at home for testing. My home connection and the power costs were making it too costly to do. So, I got a dedicated server elsewhere, and I'm saving on my powerbill.
LOL why do all the posts suggesting electricity costs > shared host costs come from people selling shared hosts? If you set up a home server you are not getting shared hosting you are getting a private server. Now anyone want to compare electricity costs with the cost of a server? The more real problem I would have thought is bandwidth in addition to which ISPs I have used before have a much lower upload speed than download speed since they are intended for a user not a server. That has maybe changed since last time I looked in UK, US etc. Bet it hasn't changed in many other places though.
Probably because those of us that sell hosting probably realize what it costs to keep a server online 24/7 where as the average consumer doesn't even think about it. If you do, then you're already above average. A fully un-managed un-configured private server for which you will have to spend more of your time (time=money) setting it up and getting it secured and online and then keeping it that way. If you need a private server then sure it may not be a bad thing to do but just to put a site online it's overkill and way more work than necessary. Sure - electricity is around $10~30/month depending on the server and your local rates, now if you buy hardware just for this server that bumps the cost up quite a bit ($300~1,000+) or if you use something old and junky such as your old P4 you have laying around maybe it's "free" but then again you have nobody to lean on but yourself for server administration. Either you learn it all or you already know it or you pay somebody else to do it (more money)... And most ISPs prohibit hosting servers off of consumer grade connections meaning you have to pay extra for the same connection as a "business class" connection before they will even allow you to do so = more cost. I mean if the OP wants to do it, more power to them - the reason we are pointing out the costs and difficulties is because many simply think they plug an old computer in and boom they're hosting their own stuff and it's as simple as that and they don't think about server management or electricity costs.
afraid.org provides free dynamic dns for your domain and most dynamic ips these days don't even change for months so you should be all set.
You can use no-ip.com service which is absolutely free. No-ip provide dns client that automatically update new ip address in your domain dns zone when you reset router or ip address change. You also need to forward port 80 from your router to you local machine where your web server reside. To enable this your router must have port forwarding feature. Hope this help..