Hot Deal? Host your Web Site from Home

[volfan]

ZoneEdit

I just kind of stumbled upon this site and was wanting a concensus on the feelings about this. It seems hot to me! They offer Free DNS service for any domain, with editing and domain management from a Web page. DNS, e-mail, Web parking and URL forwarding. The thing that really caught my eye was this:

Dynamic DNS - Full dynamic DNS support allowing cable modem, dsl, and dial up users to run web sites on your home pc.

. I may check this soon and let people know how it goes.

Oh, and I am not affiliated with this company, just thought it was pretty cool stuff.

 

[WarSong]

Zoneedit kix arse! I have been using them for almost 2 years now. The real hot deal in this thread is the free dns hosting (first 5 domains free). Unless they changed, the dynamic dns requires a separate dynamic dns client such as dns2go or one from dyndns.org. You then url forward your domain name to the free dynamic dns address.

 

[msh111]

I haven't looked at the site, but is it similar to no-ip.com?

 

[WarSong]

no-ip is dynamic dns like dns2go and dyndns. zoneedit hosts and manages dns for a domain name.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

Issues:

1) If you have a moderately busy web site a single cable or DSL connection will not provide nearly enough bandwidth
2) If your site is slow enough to be handled by a cable/DSL connection it's dirt cheap to get professional hosting.
3) Before running a site from your home machine, you damn well better be well versed on security for Apache, IIS or whatever server you're running.
4) You're almost guaranteed to be violating the AUP of your broadband provider and can kiss your account good-bye.

 

[rochlin]

I don't know where the idea came from that running a webserver violates your usage agreements.

I complained to ATTBI nee mediaone, my cable service provider, that some people were running a commercial Porn site on my node (sucking up the bandwidth). They said that didn't violate their usage policy as long as the site didn't involve minors or other community standards breaches.

They were blocking port 80 for a while, which made things inconvenient, but they've opened it now.

So, by all means, check with your provider. But there's a good chance running a webserver is perfectly OK. Of course, running a good firewall is a primo idea because peole WILL try to hack you.

 

[slycat]

hosting yer own website from your dsl/cable connection is NOT a violation and if your provider
disallows it, they suck, and u should switch.

however, u might not want to do that unless you have a very small, less visited site.
also, for me, the crux was paying for electricity since a system will need to be turned on 24/7...
in the end, its cheaper and less hassle to go with a hoster.

my 2c

 

[boru36]

Is there any webpage that can easily and clearly walk me through what I need to do to host a website ON my computer. See, I have a BUNCH of videos that my friends and family want.........but I can't send 500 meg files and I can't post 500 meg files to a web provider without paying through the nose.

So I need to know how my friends and family can directly access my computer and download my files.

Any help from anyone?

Thanks!!!

 

[Redmenace]

Borus,
Have a look at this. Works for me and the price is right... Simpleserver

 

[boru36]

Will I enter a url in SimpleServer to direct my friends too, OR will I just give them my IP address......the IP of my cable connection?

 

[WarSong]

You don't have to use it just for hosting web sites. I use it to have a convenient address to use to netmeeting and/or ftp to my box. It's great for remote admin. A normal broadband connection can handle 2 or 3 simultaneous connections which is plenty for most personal sites.

 

[kantonburg]

What about using the microsoft websever is you just want something easy to use. I mean if you want to just throw files up then thats the way to go.

 

[sat4fun]

Thanks for the SimpleServer link, just what I needed. Very cool toy.

 

[blstriker]

Yup, Zoneedit.com rocks. That's what most people on my site use. That's what I use.. My site is hosted at home and runs pretty decently. It's not a terribly busy site, but it's not that small.

 

[WarSong]

oh yeah, it's also good to url forward to the long url your isp gives you for free webspace. or to free webspace sites like geocities. and you can set up subdomains. so you can have www.your_domain.com forward to the free webspace your isp gives you (and cloak the real address) and then have ftp.your_domain.com (for example) forward to your dynamic dns which points to your home box's IP to ftp into.

did i mention zoneedit rox?

 

[Strik9]

Boru,
Yep, you use your ip address as the url.

 

[volfan]

I do think it's cool too. It's good to hear the positive responses about it. I hope all of you asking questions about how to get a web server going on your computer know that Windows 2000 Professional has IIS 5.0 built in. You just have to go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > Add/Remove Programs > Add/Remove Windows Components. You will have to insert your Windows 2000 CD and select Internet Information Services to add it. It's really pretty easy to setup and administer. You can find more info here or just do a google search on how to get started. It's a great thing to learn if nothing else.