Self Hosting our Web-site?

We are getting very frustrated with our ISP. Is it a good option to purchase our own server and run it ourselves...we are a very small business and work from home.no e-comerce, data files,library,private members area etc





Thanks
Self Hosting our Web-site?
Did you mean you get frustrated with hosting company rather than ISP or your ISP also hosts your site ?





In any event, It is possible to host business web site yourself at home and it is definitely done, but it may cost you more in terms of maintenance and is not very practical for few reasons:





1) Most residential Internet providers give you dynamic IP address - you have to pay extra for static IP.





2) Speed. Residential connections (cable and DSL) have very low upload speed - which is what your customers will experience when they will access your site.





3) Reliability. If you dog steps over the cable, or you have power outage or flood, or your network connection is simply down, you site is dead and you have lost customers and down time.





4) Noise. Server hardware typically has loud fans. It is not funny and can be a real problem.





5) Maintenance. Server has to be backed up and monitored regularly. Hosting companies normally take care of that.





--


Look for another hosting company - there are plenty of good reputable ones. GoDaddy for example, or APLus to name a few.





Good luck.
Self Hosting our Web-site?
Unless you are located very remotely you should have a few options as to your service provider. Even with a server you will still have to have a ISP
Reply:I do exactly what you are referring to including a mail server and an FTP. I use DynDNS for ip address tracking as I have a base level dynamic ip DSL connection and can%26#039;t get upgraded because the local telephone co doesnt want to upgrade the equipment with fiber coming in.





I used an old desktop for the webserver with a linux installation and was able to get it configured and on its feet fairly easily. There are other options like Windows and IIS that are easier to configure in my opinion but for cost control we used linux.





very do-able
Reply:the only thing you can run yourself is a server computer and the OS. the ISP is like the phone company. a server is almost another hassle. if it goes down then you will have to fix it. there like cars, you could get frustrated with a lemon
Reply:First, YES, having your website ANYWHERE except your ISP is a really good idea... it%26#039;s the principle of %26quot;Don%26#039;t put all your eggs in one basket%26quot; at work...





http://www.hesitantrhino.com/build-your-...





You CAN host the site on your own computer... and not only that, the software to do it is free...


http://apache.org


http://mysql.com


http://php.net





But now here%26#039;s where the trouble starts...





Problem Number One: You need a way to have a domain registrar point to the domain name servers on your machine. Domain Name Servers? Well, unless you%26#039;re running a Linux box configured as a server, or a high-end version of Windows (Home or Pro editions won%26#039;t do it), then you%26#039;re out of luck.





Problem Number Two: Your contract with your ISP probably specifically prohibits you from running any kind of server on your account. That%26#039;s fairly common. If they catch you, your account can be suspended without notice.





The good news? While you%26#039;re getting your business off the ground, go with a free web host that doesn%26#039;t force you to put up with their ads (if you%26#039;re going to have ads, you should be profiting from them)...





http://www.hesitantrhino.com/free-web-ho...





While you%26#039;re working on building awareness of your website and your business, have a Plan B in mind. Once the revenue from product sales, affiliate programs, and ads justifies paying for a web hosting account, make the move. Meaning, know in advance how to back up your data and your files so that the move will be painless. And also, get your domain name registered someplace BESIDES the place where you%26#039;re hosting, so that pointing it to a new server will be easy.
Reply:That%26#039;s a great question and is more of a business question than anything else.





Unless you understand everything everyone has mentioned above I%26#039;d suggest simply going with a web hosting company. Your ISP is not necessarily your web hosting company, but they can be. For example, you could have Cox Cable as your ISP but Yahoo Web Hosting for your website.





I own a web hosting company myself geared toward small business owners and entrepreneurs. Unless you%26#039;re prepared to spend A LOT of time learning about servers, computer hardware, and spending more money, it%26#039;s much simpler to go with a web host.





Think of it like this. Would Donald Trump spend time maintaining his own servers or would he outsource that and focus all his attention on his business and acquiring wealth?





To be honest with you, I OWN a web hosting company and I probably don%26#039;t know as much about it as some of the posters above me. But I am a business person. I leave the tech stuff to others who are way more qualified than me and I spend my time delegating and coming up with business decisions and direction.





Hope this was helpful,


John


CEO and founder of http://www.eventurebiz.com


A Social Entrepreneurial Web Hosting Company

vb