Web hosting?

[Abou_ghazi]

Hi everybody,

does any of you know any thing about making the PC a server (Windows 2000 advanced server)and run the website from it....?

[The Hobo]

This should really be in "General PC." I don't know whether 2k comes with IIS or not, but even if it did, I would suggest downloading and using Apache. It's easy to install and you can have it up and running in just under a few minutes.

[cpradio]

W2K comes with IIS and I completely suggest using it along with DNS2Go which allows you to have a free domain name point to your computer or for a fee you can setup a domain name to point to it.

-Matt

[The Hobo]

[abdul]

It depends on wether or not you want to use ASP/ASP.NET. IIS doesn't support languages like PHP, Perl, etc. So if you want to use something like PHP then I suggest you go with Apache. If you want ASP/ASP.NET, go with IIS. Apache is hard to configure but you'll find some tutorials on the Net about it. Apache is the most popular web server where IIS has a lot of security holes and stuff.
PS: Your posts are full of information, Mr. The Hobo.

[cpradio]

Originally posted by abdul
IIS doesn't support languages like PHP, Perl, etc.

True, but PHP supports IIS, that is why there are Window Binaries files on php.net and such. It is for IIS specifically. Please do not mislead him. I run PHP on IIS on my computer rather than installing Apache. Perl also supports IIS.

Originally posted by abdul
Apache is the most popular web server where IIS has a lot of security holes and stuff.

All security patches have been found and taken care of by Microsoft. They are called Critical Updates and if you click on the Start Button, then click on Windows Update (very top) you will be able to download every update available for your computer (which I highly suggest).

I have never heard of Apache being the most popular (this sounds a bit opionated). It is all in what you need. As I stated before ASP on IIS is ten times better than running Chilli!ASP on Apache (any ASP person will agree). Running PHP on IIS is not any different than running it on Apache (any php person who has done this will agree). Infact I find IIS to be more powerful than apache at times, as I can quickly interact with folders without having to know special system commands. Now the down side is in IIS there is no such thing as chmod, and thus if you need to have a folder so you and write to it you have to change it's folder permissions via IIS. Takes a little getting used to but nonetheless it works out.

-Matt

[abdul]

Didn't know PHP supported IIS. They probably put this feature recently because it didn't exist before. Yes, more than 50% web servers are Apache ones. If Microsoft releases one "critical" security patch, there will probably be another one and while Microsoft is releasing another patch for that security hole, some web servers running IIS might have been damaged.
Also, most web servers run on Linux or some other Unix clone which don't support IIS.

[cpradio]

PHP with IIS support has been around since PHP 3.0+ and maybe even before that. I agree IIS did have some massive security holes and every so often another little problem is found and corrected, but considering the fact he is running Windows, IIS will be the most stable and powerful for him without having to force him to learn system commands for Linux and Apache.

IIS has been around for ages now, and is now up to version 5 and Apache has the same reputation but was made for a system (Unix) that has over 30 years of experience. How do you think they started? They were full of holes at the begining too, but over the years they corrected them just as MS is doing.

Now I am not saying that IIS or Unix are bad (as I use a Unix server for my web sites, and IIS for my personal FTP/Webserver) but rather than considering he is already running W2K IIS will be ten times easier to work with and have a dozen support pages that he could browse through (I know, I know Apache has support too).

As much as I prefer Unix over Windows, I must say running Unix applications on Windows requires some work. A few years ago getting Apache on Windows was a challenege itself. Today, it is a breeze. Over time every program that has a bug is normally corrected within weeks of the finding. It just goes to show that nothing is ever bug free, but rather the unusual situation has not be runned yet causing the bug/error message to show itself.

Personally there are two ways you can look at this: From a programmer's point of view or from a client's point of view. A programmer would realize bugs exist and be okay with it as they know the feeling. A client on the other hand is never okay with a bug. They feel bugs are out of place because they never understand the hard work and dedication that is required to make the application they are using. Choose your side.

-Matt