Hosting a webserver

[Rod Roark]

On Tue, 04 Jul 2000, "Wizaerd" <wizaerd@wizaerd.com> wrote:
> ... USWEST isn't very forthcoming about giving
> me (leasing me) a static IP so all I can do with this server is dork around
> on it for my own usage.  I'm unsure if USWEST measures bandwidth so if I
> start using this server for real, there could be repurcussions.

You should be able to get residential or business class SDSL with a
static IP.  Check with http://www.dslreports.com/ for ISPs.  I have
been happy with Phoenix Networks, which does not prohibit servers of
any kind.

> I have some friends who are looking to start a website, and have contacted
> me in regards of where to host it.  What I'd like to do is take my
> experience in setting up this home server and apply it to a real server.
> 
> SO my questions are:
> 
> Is there any affordable co-location areas here locally where I could put a
> linux based webserver?

Well, first try to figure out how much bandwidth you'll need. 
Colocation services generally provide a ton of bandwidth and charge
accordingly.  I suspect you'll be better off with SDSL initially.

> What hardware requirements would you reccommend for a real production
> webserver?

You don't need much, but don't get a "mystery meat" computer.  Know
your motherboard, memory, etc.  Your bottleneck is likely to be
bandwidth, not CPU.  SCSI components are a waste of money until you
need more than 2 hard drives.  A UPS is a must.

> While I've had basic experience in sendmail, what would be the
> reccommended approach for providing POP3 as well as SMTP services?

Mandrake comes with Postfix and daemons for pop3 and IMAP, which are
all easy to administer and work well.

Enjoy!

-- Rod
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