How can I turn a computer into a web host?

Question

We have a computer upstairs that has no use and I would like to turn it into a server to host my wordpress blog and some open source projects. It runs XP but I'm also familiar with Ubuntu (desktop).

Also, how is it going to work with domain names? Am I going to have to re-register my domain name (already registered with wordpress)?

I'm doing my fair bit of search but all of this is confusing, thanks for your help!

Answer 1

you got not single a sensible answer so far.

I am not going to write you a tutorial on how to achieve what you want, except giving you a few important clues.

1) you are right, you need a static IP. Get one here for free http://www.no-ip.com/

2) get Abyss web server, it's free. Look in google for it.

That's it. Learn to use the 2 above things, they will take about a week if you know how to search google for info.

Answer 2

First to turning into a host you need Apache, I would recommend getting the package callede Xampp located at http://www.apachefriends.org

Then installing, then you restart, and your set, now it's a server, now set it up read the readme file.

then in the htdocs folder put your blog in there, and host it. (must know coding)

I do not recommend IIS get xampp, very user friendly...

Answer 3

Get XAMPP or Microsoft IIS. Or install it all seperately as needed, ie.:

PHP

Apache

MySQL

Mail services

etc

XAMPP is a bundle of PHP, Apache, MySQL and Perl. However it can sometimes be awful to use, some have more success in downloading and using them seperately.

Apache is the web server, IIS is another web server.

Answer 4

In Xp you have to Enable internet Information services. then you have to place the web site in the Inetpub /wwroot directory. HEre are the steps to install IIS.

If you are running Windows XP Professional on your computer you can install Microsoft's web server, Internet Information Server 5.1 (IIS) for free from the Windows XP Pro installation CD and configure it to run on your system by following the instructions below: -

1. Place the Windows XP Professional CD-Rom into your CD-Rom Drive.

2. Open 'Add/Remove Windows Components' found in 'Add/Remove Programs' in the 'Control Panel'.

3. Place a tick in the check box for 'Internet Information Services (IIS)' leaving all the default installation settings intact.

4. Once IIS is installed on your machine you can view your home page in a web browser by typing 'http://localhost' (you can substitute 'localhost' for the name of your computer) into the address bar of your web browser. If you have not placed your web site into the default directory you should now be looking at the IIS documentation.

5. If you are not sure of the name of your computer right-click on the 'My Computer' icon on your desktop, select 'Properties' from the shortcut menu, and click on the 'Computer Name' tab.

6. Your default web directory to place your web site in is 'C:\Inetpub\wwwroot', but if you don't want to over write the IIS documentation found in this directory you can set up your own virtual directory through the 'Internet Information Services' console.

7. The 'Internet Information Services' console can be found in the 'Administration Tools' in the 'Control Panel' under 'Performance and Maintenance', if you do not have the control panel in Classic View.

More Info located Here:http://www.webwizguide.com/kb/asp_tutori...

If your domain is already registered, there are a few steps that you must do to have your new web server visible to the world.

1) You must update your DNS records with your registrar to point to your Home IP Address (THe one assigned to your router)

2) You must the access your router and forward port 80 ( Http port) to the Lan IP address of the web server. This was all traffic from the WAN that is requesting a web page will be forwarded to your web server.

This is an overview. If you need more assistance email me and I can help.

Peace