[Kyosaur]

In this day and age it depends on how much money you have, which is a very sad thing. If you dont buy a hosted listing, your server isnt likely to go anywhere. Also, if your server doesnt have a good internet connection / isnt on a decent computer, its going to be tough getting players.

If you have a hosted listing, good internet/a suitable computer (better yet a VPS), i'd say about 2 months. Thats assuming your server has an eye catching name, and features to keep players coming back.