Yes folks, today’s a double-poster.
A common question that I get is “How do I set up my own Ubuntu/RedHat/Windows web server?” And my answer us usually… YOU DON’T.
There are other people & companies who are very good at this sort of thing, and can do it better/more cheaply than you can in-house.
But if you want to tinker with a box to sooth your curiosity or to serve as an internal development environment, you should at least have access to some good information.
Below, you’ll find my list of favorites when it comes to this topic.
Using Linux (Free)
- Install a Local Web Server on Ubuntu
- Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) LAMP Server Setup
- Easy guide to installing a Web server (Apache & MySQL) on Ubuntu
- How To Install Apache + PHP + MySQL (RedHat)
Using Windows (Cha-Ching)
- Installing and configuring Apache on Windows XP
- Setting up your first web server on Windows with Apache, PHP and MySQL (Very Detailed)
- Geek to Live: How to set up a personal home web server
- Setting Up Your Own Web Server on a Windows Machine (Apache HTTP Server)
And PLEASE folks… if you’re going to run your own web server… do not install it on a mission-critical machine. As soon as you turn this puppy on, you’ll immediately become the target of bots and hackers.
You’re essentially creating a new, extremely vulnerable hole in your network.
Web server security is a very complicated thing to understand and manage. And if you’re not an expert, you’re probably going to get burned. So make sure your box is expendable.
Ignore my advice at your own peril. 🙂
FYI: The image at the top of this post is of a label written by Tim Bernes-Lee… on the very first Web Server at CERN.
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/scobleizer/2251820987/