- On which computer is the server installation.
The most normal thing is to use x86 architecture (32bits), in addition, you have to think about:
- What type of server program will be installed?
- What users load per day will receive.
- What kind of load, since it is not the same to load a simple web page, such as a web page with multimedia content.
Having clear the above we can estimate the power and characteristics of the computer that we need to use it as a server. The most powerful servers are 4-8 processors, with SCSI hard drives and as much RAM as possible, although with a computer that has a dual-core processor (2 cores) and 2GB of RAM with an S hard drive would be more than enough to have a web server in conditions.
- Choice of operating system
The first thing is to decide between Windows, Linux or some Unix type; the first 2 being the most popular. They have been classified into two types:
- Decent Server: Any Linux, Windows XP, Windows
- Professional Server: Windows Server
- Choose the server program
This is one of the fundamental axes.
Apache Server: It is certainly the best. It is the most used server, it is free and there is a version for Windows.
IIS (Internet Information Server): Comes with Windows XP Professional, 2000 and later. The problem with this server is that it needs enough resources and its performance is not as good as that of Apache.
- An Internet connection line
As we have said before, the Internet connection is the one that will limit the user load that can be put on our server. We must always take into account our needs and the type of website we have.
Open router ports
For the purpose of installing servers this communication with the outside we must open the necessary ports on the router, firewalls or proxies; In the case of a web server, it is port 80, which is the default port for HTTP transmission. If we also want to use our web server as an FTP server, we should also open port 21.6.
Hire domain
A domain or domain name is the name that identifies a website. Each domain has to be unique on the Internet. It is convenient that the IP of the server is redirected to a domain either: free ones – or domains .com .net .org for payment.
- Have a fixed or dynamic IP
If you do not have a fixed IP (it does not change) and on the contrary your IP is dynamic (it changes every time your provider assigns you a new one or you restart the router), you have to hire a dynamic DNS service, this is because the Internet is based on IP addresses, and not domain names. The server installation web requires a domain name server (DNS) to translate the domain names to IP addresses.
- Configure the firewall
Through your Internet IP, other users can access your web server and see the pages you put inside. You will have to keep in mind that the firewalls you have to allow incoming connections to the webserver. If you have a firewall you will have to create the appropriate rules so that the webserver can be accessed. If you do not have a firewall, it is advisable to install and configure one to increase the security of your website.