[Runcorn]

I have a vps and i was wondering whether i am able to host my forum on it ?

[JohnLedingham]

If Linux, yes.
Even Windows is Acceptable, you just need to install an Apache Server

[Runcorn]

Which gives the best experience ? windows or linux ?

[ChromeAmazing]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Runcorn Which gives the best experience ? windows or linux ?

Linux.

[rymax99]

If you have no history with Linux, then you're going to have a rough time. You might want to consider buying webhosting from a decent company if you don't have time to properly learn how to use Linux.

[Runcorn]

I have time.But is it that complex ?

[ThePhenix]

You might need to learn to use putty(And obviously linux) and stuff like that.

[Vince]

I would not recommend this because it's fairly complex. Setting up the webserver isn't all that difficult, but for the forum to function properly you also need to install a mailserver that can send outbound mails, and that's the tricky part. That usually also involves messing with DNS, which is not fun.

[Crayder]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChromeAmazing Linux.

I just want to point out that this is false. It all depends on the hardware. Linux on a low spec machine is going to suffer more than Windows on a high spec machine, it's pure logic. It also depends on the operating system. There isn't just one version of Linux or Windows.

[Jake187]

The problem with this is you're hosting a live online service on your machine, if you do not know how to properly secure it which when it comes to PHP / Apache / MySQL etc it requires a decent amount of configuring and knowledge. These are not things you're going to learn in the matter of a few days or weeks, you need to spend at least a good month or so with a test server testing the methods and tutorials and documents you read online that help you secure your online service properly.

If you do not know how to use any Linux systems I highly suggest you avoid using it on a live website until you have learned how to actually properly and securely set up a web server. But the obvious question yes you can easily host a forum on your own VPS.

[SickAttack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jake187 The problem with this is you're hosting a live online service on your machine, if you do not know how to properly secure it which when it comes to PHP / Apache / MySQL etc it requires a decent amount of configuring and knowledge. These are not things you're going to learn in the matter of a few days or weeks, you need to spend at least a good month or so with a test server testing the methods and tutorials and documents you read online that help you secure your online service properly. If you do not know how to use any Linux systems I highly suggest you avoid using it on a live website until you have learned how to actually properly and securely set up a web server. But the obvious question yes you can easily host a forum on your own VPS.

Some SSD Cloud Hosting companies provide straightforward Guides & Tutorials for their customers; documentation that covers security matters, how to setup PHP, Apache, MySQL, Mail Servers and many more other articles. You can do all this without any knowledge on Linux whatsoever, all you really need is common sense and the willingness to solve any inconveniences you might encounter. Oh, and a provider that supports non-experienced members!

I know a lot of people who host their forums and websites on VPSs. So the answer to your question is: Yes, it's totally possible.

[rymax99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crayder I just want to point out that this is false. It all depends on the hardware. Linux on a low spec machine is going to suffer more than Windows on a high spec machine, it's pure logic. It also depends on the operating system. There isn't just one version of Linux or Windows.

Not really, no. I can't think of any non-corporate environment where you'd want to use Windows for your web server rather than Linux. Linux generally uses a metric fuckton less resources than Windows does, so ESPECIALLY on lower-end machines, you're going to benefit from using Linux for your web server stack.

[$Marco$]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Runcorn I have time.But is it that complex ?

It's not, and use Linux.

[Jake187]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SickAttack Some SSD Cloud Hosting companies provide straightforward Guides & Tutorials for their customers; documentation that covers security matters, how to setup PHP, Apache, MySQL, Mail Servers and many more other articles. You can do all this without any knowledge on Linux whatsoever, all you really need is common sense and the willingness to solve any inconveniences you might encounter. Oh, and a provider that supports non-experienced members! I know a lot of people who host their forums and websites on VPSs. So the answer to your question is: Yes, it's totally possible.

I know a lot of companies that offer basic tutorials but remember this is "basic" knowledge. A good example is configuring your SQL correctly to fit the needs of your server and when it comes to a forum this can really benefit in using less resources, I know for a fact this isn't something that can be done in the matter of minutes it takes actually testing and configuring to figure out the best settings. I am also talking about tightening security and doing things properly, a lot of tutorials are extremely outdated nowadays and lack the actual benefits of new technology.

PHP / Apache / MySQL and other servers are always advancing and security and configuring settings are always changing and a simple tutorial even from a year ago is still likely going to miss key things that could be done to tighten security correctly. I also don't really suggest managed support either because they aren't going to secure your whole server it takes hours for even for a system administrator, they're simply going to help you if you run into problems or need help setting up something.

[Potassium]

To be honest, I host forums on my vps and I don't know very much about this kind of thing, so if I can do it then anyone can. It just takes time to learn how to do what you need to do.