Web Hosting Talk : Web Hosting Main Forums : Web Hosting : Run a forum

[netriones]

I want to run a forum. Plan to have at least 10k+ members. How much bandwidth and webspace require? Thanks

[wbpro]

it depends of the number of users at the same time. I would recommend that you start with a semi dedicated at least for that kind of size, but if you have the budget go with a dedicated server, i recommend that you find a company that can manage it for you if you don't have to much experience managing servers.

How are you so sure you will have 10K members?

[HostMidwest]

Hmmm... I think it takes something like three Dual Xeons to run WHT? Correct me if I'm wrong?

WHT has ~90K members. So, you'd think it would take something on the order of 3/9= 1/3 of a Dual Xeon to run a forum with 10K members, assuming they had the same usage patterns as WHT.

So, I'd suggest looking for a Dual Xeon, or maybe just a Xeon somewhere. Be sure to get a SCSI system with somewhere around 1 GB of memory. You'll probably need about 500GB of bandwidth a month, assuming that the average member makes 200 pageviews a month, and the average pageview requires 25Kb.

Low-end cost: Nocster Reseller: ~$140/month +$10/month for DirectAdmin control panel. Requires advanced payment of 3 months.

Mid-range cost: ServerMatrix: $169/month +$20/month for CPanel.

High-end cost: FastServers.net: $298/month +$15/month for CPanel.

I guess a good question at this point is:

Are you really going to get 10,000 members right away? Or do you hope to eventually get them in the course of a few years? If that's the case, I'd say a standard hosting account with 5 GB of transfer could easily handle a forum with 100 active members, and you could probably stick with some sort of shared hosting until you get maybe several hundred active members.

[eLiTeGuRu]

Start off with a shared account. 50-100mb of space is plenty. 5-10 gig bandwidth should be suitable. Upgrade as you need to.

[netriones]

ok. I am not getting 10k right away. I am assuming my goal will reach 10k in a year or so. just want to get a idea the bandwidth and webspace etc to run the forum at this scale.I think I'll just start up with a 10G bandwith and 500M space good enough? Then as the membership exceed certain level. I can upgrade the hosting plan.

[ub3r]

Upgrade as your site grows. I recommend you start off with a shared hosting account, then upgrade from there to a VPS solution, and finally dedicated, or colocation.

[Martinez]

Registered members vs. active members are two different things. Concurrent connections is the key in most cases when it comes to hosting and potential problems.

Find a shared hosting provider who you like and who has plans that will allow you to grow if need be. Be selective as moving forums from host to host can have it's issues.

Good luck!

[a1nerd]

Good luck getting 10,000 members in only a year. I can't even pay people $100 to post.

Originally posted by netriones
ok. I am not getting 10k right away. I am assuming my goal will reach 10k in a year or so. just want to get a idea the bandwidth and webspace etc to run the forum at this scale.I think I'll just start up with a 10G bandwith and 500M space good enough? Then as the membership exceed certain level. I can upgrade the hosting plan.

[Qarce.Com]

Originally posted by a1nerd
Good luck getting 10,000 members in only a year. I can't even pay people $100 to post.

wOoOo,what forum is that lol.

[datacenterdirectory]

Originally posted by netriones
ok. I am not getting 10k right away. I am assuming my goal will reach 10k in a year or so. just want to get a idea the bandwidth and webspace etc to run the forum at this scale.I think I'll just start up with a 10G bandwith and 500M space good enough? Then as the membership exceed certain level. I can upgrade the hosting plan.

Get a dedicated server with dual xeons if plan on having a large amount of members posting actively at one time.

[aingaran]

Like someone else said, just start off with a shared account, when you need to upgrade then consider semi & dedicated servers.

[ldcdc]

wOoOo,what forum is that lol.

I suppose it's the one in his signature.

[slice16]

yes, start with a shared account, then go onto a managed dedicated... in my opinion it isnt a great idea to go to a VPS because you wont have alot of power... or ram

[spalla]

what would the forum about?

[accyroy]

May I recommend http://www.theadminzone.com as an excellent resource if you are thinking of running a demanding forum.