How to Make Your Own Web Server

Level of difficulty: Intermediate

Before thinking of selling an unused computer lying around in the house, consider turning it to a personal dedicated Web server. It does not matter if the computer is not as powerful, for as long as it is fully functioning and it is not too outdated, it should still work fine as a Web server.

Materials Needed:
- 2 computers
- blank writable CD
- CD burner
Step 1
The first thing to do is to download an Operating System that works well and takes up minimum RAM and hard disk space. An Operating System to consider is Ubuntu. A lot of popular Web server providers and Web companies use this OS. It offers an OS specifically for computers to be used as Web servers. Other Operating Systems can be used as well. If Ubuntu is chosen, download the OS from its official website. Make sure to download the Server Edition.
Step 2
Burn the installation file to a blank CD.
Step 3
Put the installation CD into the disk drive. Turn on the computer. Boot from the CD by pressing the key instructed during the BIOS. The instruction should look something like this: 'Press (key) to change boot order'. Press the specified key to select the drive.
Step 4
Choose preferred language and hit enter.
Step 5
Click 'Install Ubuntu Server' and follow the on-screen instructions.
Step 6
When the system detects more hardware and the'Partition disks' prompt appears, select 'Guided – use entire disk'.
Step 7
Select the disk to partition. When asked if the changes are to be written on the disk, select 'Yes' and hit enter. The drive is then formatted and the partitions are set up.
Step 8
Give full name, hit continue, and supply a username.
Step 9
Provide a password. Choose a strong password. A strong password typically consists of at least 7 alphanumeric characters. Re-enter the password.
Step 10
The Package Manager is then configured. Provide with proxy information if necessary. If not using proxy, leave blank and hit continue.
Step 11
A prompt to install more server software appears. Select OpenSSH server and press the spacebar.
Step 12
After the installation has finished, remove the CD and press enter.
Step 13
After the installation has finished, remove the CD and press enter. The system should reboot.
Step 14
Install Apache, MYSQL, and PHP to the Web server. The Apache serves as a Web server. The MySQL serves as a database server, and PHP serves as a server-side language. To download the said applications, type in the command, 'sudo aptitude install apache2 php5-mysql libapache2-mod-php5 mysql-server' and press enter. This automatically downloads and installs the said programs.


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