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GDOK
Newbie here.
I am building an small scale ecommerce website and know nothing about hosting.
What I do not understand is what are the drawbacks to hosting the site yourself? Is it a cost issue? Security? If someone could please give provided me with a few of the positives/negatives it would be really helpful.
Also if one were to host themselves what would all be needed in terms of equiptment? Can I just host off of my P3 PC?
Thanks
I am building an small scale ecommerce website and know nothing about hosting.
What I do not understand is what are the drawbacks to hosting the site yourself? Is it a cost issue? Security? If someone could please give provided me with a few of the positives/negatives it would be really helpful.
Also if one were to host themselves what would all be needed in terms of equiptment? Can I just host off of my P3 PC?
Thanks
webfeat
Hello,
If you know nothing about hosting, that is reason enough to not host the site on your own.
Firstly, is this site just for you or will you have clients?
A host handles things such as these:
1) High speed internet connection to your box: A host has a much bigger data pipe than one you can get from a local DSL or cable provider. In the end, this means you and your visitors will see high performance on your site. Especially if you're doing ecommerce, the last thing you need is for the site to bomb out while clients are giving you their payment information.
2) Data Centers: Your site will be protected from power outages, natural disasters, etc. What happens if the power goes out in your neighborhood for 12 hours? Your site goes down and all potential business is lost. Do you have a power backup?
3) Security: Hackers, viruses, software bugs (to name a few) will quickly become your enemy and take you offline for days if you don't know how to protect your server from them.
There are many other factors to consider, but basically, it's best if you left this to a host who already has all this in place. This enables you to focus more on your business.
Thanks,
Anthony
If you know nothing about hosting, that is reason enough to not host the site on your own.
Firstly, is this site just for you or will you have clients?
A host handles things such as these:
1) High speed internet connection to your box: A host has a much bigger data pipe than one you can get from a local DSL or cable provider. In the end, this means you and your visitors will see high performance on your site. Especially if you're doing ecommerce, the last thing you need is for the site to bomb out while clients are giving you their payment information.
2) Data Centers: Your site will be protected from power outages, natural disasters, etc. What happens if the power goes out in your neighborhood for 12 hours? Your site goes down and all potential business is lost. Do you have a power backup?
3) Security: Hackers, viruses, software bugs (to name a few) will quickly become your enemy and take you offline for days if you don't know how to protect your server from them.
There are many other factors to consider, but basically, it's best if you left this to a host who already has all this in place. This enables you to focus more on your business.
Thanks,
Anthony
solidnetsys
GDOK,
I wouldn't recommend hosting a site by yourself if:
1) You're new to hosting and system administration, and
2) The site is "prime-time", that is, you're going some serious cash into it.
Security, redundancy, bandwidth, and power failures are just a few reasons why I wouldn't recommend it. However, if you're just getting your site going and you're not expecting any significant traffic right away, then it could be a cool learning experience. At the very least it will help you know what to look as far as hosting goes once your site gets more popular.
John
I wouldn't recommend hosting a site by yourself if:
1) You're new to hosting and system administration, and
2) The site is "prime-time", that is, you're going some serious cash into it.
Security, redundancy, bandwidth, and power failures are just a few reasons why I wouldn't recommend it. However, if you're just getting your site going and you're not expecting any significant traffic right away, then it could be a cool learning experience. At the very least it will help you know what to look as far as hosting goes once your site gets more popular.
John
Royalty Hosting
Some ISP also disallow "home" hosting.
PWH-Mike
Yea there are a few that wont allow you to host and they will constantly turn your line on and off just so you stop. Hosting on your own through just DSL or cable line is tooooo slooooooow thats the main resone i wouldnt do it my self i do have a site tht i host here at home off of my cable connection but it is more just for me to use when i want to get files from other loactions 
generouswebhosting
never host any site that you are conducting business through off your own home line. That is very foolish , unless you can spend $100,000 on security/firewalls,etc.
Hosting off cable/dsl is most likely against your TOS for your internet provider. It could result in account termination.
Also, the upload speed which matters the most is usually a lot less then the download speed for home lines. For the server you would need the upload speed to be the best.
It is way to insecure to host off your home. If your serious about a website or business you will shell out the money to get a real and professional host who does this for a business.
Hosting off cable/dsl is most likely against your TOS for your internet provider. It could result in account termination.
Also, the upload speed which matters the most is usually a lot less then the download speed for home lines. For the server you would need the upload speed to be the best.
It is way to insecure to host off your home. If your serious about a website or business you will shell out the money to get a real and professional host who does this for a business.