All,
I currently have my own domain and am using Proton mail as my mail
provider using this domain. As such, my DNS MX records point to
their mail servers, as well as several TXT records for domain
validation (i.e. spf, dmarc, etc). I currently have a single page
static website for the domain hosted at another provider and the
DNS A record points to that server (Proton Mail is not a hosting
provider). However, this server will be decommissioned in a few
weeks and I would prefer not to have to pay for a separate hosting
plan just host a simple static web site.
The main purpose of this domain is for
email use, but it would be nice to have the domain resolve to an
actual website, if someone were to go there with a browser. Does anyone have any ideas on where I can point my
DNS A records to for a simple static website, ideally for free? I
don't want to poke holes through my router and host it at home.
Most Domain registrars have a "mail forward" feature but I have not come across a "web forward" to a "static" page (object) that you could host on one of the free storage providers.
Based on what I know, your options are:
- AWS (one year free tier) -- Host a free tier VM or an S3 bucket (as someone suggested) if you have not exhausted the offer. Beware that the Public IP assignment will change if you "stop" the VM for any reason (reboot is fine). Downside -- need domain knowledge of the networking setup and after a year you will have to start paying upwards of $30/month for the VM.
- Oracle Cloud free tier (forever) https://www.oracle.com/cloud/free/ I have not explored the free tier option so I cannot give any opinion. Downside -- need domain knowledge of the networking setup.
- Take a look at the vendor offerings at https://lowendbox.com. You can lease a small Linux VM for as low as $10/year; shop around and read the user feedback about the vendor. I have a VM hosted by RackNerd LLC and am quite happy with its service. The best deals: Thanksgiving Black Friday and Cyber Monday offers. Upside - you get direct SSH access to your VM! Downside -- there is no firewall or upstream protection, the provider may stop your machine if they determine you are the cause of their network issue(s).
- Cloudflare has a free DNS hosting option. You have to configure your DNS NS records (at your Domain Registrar) to Cloudflare NSs and manage *all* your DNS records on Cloudflare. This may be your solution -- take a look at this discussion https://community.cloudflare.com/t/website-hosting-request/578559
Let us know what works for you so others can benefit from your solution.
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Arun Khan