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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2002
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    166

    Question Should I be an "engineer" to get a dedicated server ?...

    Hello,

    To create a site, I need notepad or UltraEdit and that's all, but I don't know anything about dedicated server...

    So, is it difficult to begin with a dedicated server please ? When I see what I can get with Serverbeach or else for 99$, it's quite interesting for me to think about it. (My favorite is Rackspace but it's too expensive for me this year)

    Thank you !

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
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    AU
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    1,049
    Cant do much on a server in notepad

    If you haven't used linux/unix before - you are wasting your time.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2002
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    166
    About Notepad, it's just to say that's I'm not a beginner to create sites And with dedicated server I'm a 100% beginner...

    So, even with a managed dedicated server, it's too difficult ?

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Aug 2001
    Posts
    615
    Skip the dedicated server and just get hosted somewhere... try www.earhost.com
    So we finish the 18th and he's gonna stiff me. And I say, "Hey, Lama, hey, how about a little something, you know, for the effort, you know?" And he says, 'Oh, there won't be any money. But when you die, on your deathbed, you will receive total consciousness.' So I got that goin' for me, which is nice." --Bill Murray Caddyshack

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Aug 2001
    Posts
    615
    Damn im nice to James/Earhost lately. I need a virtual hummer for this one.
    So we finish the 18th and he's gonna stiff me. And I say, "Hey, Lama, hey, how about a little something, you know, for the effort, you know?" And he says, 'Oh, there won't be any money. But when you die, on your deathbed, you will receive total consciousness.' So I got that goin' for me, which is nice." --Bill Murray Caddyshack

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2001
    Location
    Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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    Bot: If you really wanta toy with the idea, buy a reseller accounts, tons of people sell reseller accounts in the sub $20/month range, kind of like a miniature managed cpanel server.
    Myles Loosley-Millman - admin@prioritycolo.com
    Priority Colo Inc. - Affordable Colocation & Dedicated Servers.
    Two Canadian facilities serving Toronto & Markham, Ontario
    http://www.prioritycolo.com

  7. #7
    Join Date
    May 2001
    Posts
    1,593
    You should consider if you really have a need for a dedicated server. Most web sites host fine on a shared/resell account. It sounds like you just want to get one for the fun of it.

    This is entirely acceptable, provided you don't try to run mission-critical operation on it (don't sell webhosting or host a million-hit website), because just in case you may mess up.

    You should also find either a managed dedicated provider or at least some place with "nice" technical support. Rackshack is not the way to go due to their "reboot or restore" support policy.

    If all you want is to learn about Linux, you can also install a copy of linux on a spare PC and play with it. If you need the high speed connectivity, you can also try to find virtual dedicated server or virtual private server. These are a stepping stone before you leap into a real dedicated server, both in terms of experience required and the cost.

    Peter

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jun 2001
    Posts
    431
    Actually, you can hire someone by posting message in this forum or go to elance.com to see if anyone willing to do the job for you. In the meantime, try to learn linux by yourself. Using Enism or webmin web based control panel can save your time too.
    http://www.ebookeasy.com Free ebook for webhosting and dedicated server review

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jun 2002
    Posts
    166
    No I don't want to get fun with a dedicated server. I haven't got enough money to do that... I'm trying to find the best deal, like a lot of people I guess And next year I will create a site for a tour operator, so your opinions are useful for me.

    Now, I just want informations about dedicated server to improve my "reflexion" before to choose the right host for me. (My favorite host after Rackspace (too expensive) is Webreseller but they are moving this week so I want to wait next week).

    Thanks to your answers, I understand that I must learn about Linux. I will do that soon.

    I hope you understand my english...
    Last edited by Bot; 07-05-2002 at 12:28 PM.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Dec 2001
    Location
    Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    Posts
    6,896
    I'd highly recommend you do what peter recommended, setup a server locally, install maybe a 1 domain license of plesk which is free, and play with that.
    Myles Loosley-Millman - admin@prioritycolo.com
    Priority Colo Inc. - Affordable Colocation & Dedicated Servers.
    Two Canadian facilities serving Toronto & Markham, Ontario
    http://www.prioritycolo.com

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Jun 2002
    Posts
    166
    Yes, that's what I will do. This a very good idea. It is what I made to learn the HTML and PHP and it goes very well.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Dec 2001
    Location
    Los Angeles, CA
    Posts
    1,337
    What are you needing a server for?
    Ronny Fang
    Linux Problems Solved. | Built for the Hosting Industry
    Server Management. Node Management. Helpdesk Management.
    ( AcuNett, Est. 15 Years, RateLobby 5 Stars )

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Sep 2001
    Location
    Vienna, Austria
    Posts
    1,074
    if you're really set on a dedicated server perhaps you should checkout a managed server from www.nocster.com .
    they have a very good price, only, you'll have to deal with a setup. which, i remember reading they could possibly spread over a few months payments if you need.

    or look into starting out with a RAQ4 from somewhere.

  14. #14
    Use the virtual servers like from Remarkablehosting.com or diginode.net or tera-byte.com, but if you run busy sites, those "virtual" plans has very limited in resources (some time even less resources compared to a shared account on a server loaded with many small sites)
    123finder.com - Browse/search 4-char domains or dictionary domains

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Jun 2002
    Posts
    166
    Thank you for your anwsers. I will practise (Linux, Plesk, etc.) before to get a dedicated server.

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Jun 2001
    Posts
    960
    I agree with what others said to you. I got a reseller account from VO for practise before moving to my own dedicated server. VO, diginode, splashhost, etc offer good reseller or virtual server plans with shell access, great for practising Linux!

  17. #17
    I happen to work for a major dedicated hosting provider (not going to mention who) as a dedicated hosting support technician. And I'm also a customer of ServerBeach. So it's going to be difficult for me to post this without sounding biased, but, here we go.

    I actually strongly recommend that you do not get a dedicated server yet, until you've had the opportunity to gain experience with Linux, apache, sendmail, and bind, at the very least. If you decide to try it anyway, I recommend even more strongly that you not choose ServerBeach at first, because of their (self-stated) lack of technical support infrastructure. ServerBeach's service seems mostly geared to people who already have experience in operating a Linux webhosting platform. This is not saying that you'll have a bad experience with them (I haven't). However, if you simply don't know how to properly maintain a Linux server, you need to go with a provider who can give (read: sell) you better technical support. I'm not saying this to drive business away from SB; I want them to succeed, if they stay in business it means I can have a cheap server! But it would be no good for you, or them, if you sign up expecting the world for technical support, and find that on your first experience getting hacked, you get cancelled.

    That being said, I do agree that you should get some experience first as a reseller. During this time, you would do very well to set up on a computer in your home or office an installation of RedHat Linux (or any flavor, really), and install apache, bind (DNS server), and sendmail. Start playing with it. Install it several times, actually! Learn how to build a kernel (taking the time first to learn what the Linux kernel does!) with all the different options. Learn how processes communicate. Learn about the file system, symbolic links, and user/file security. Learn how DNS works, how DNS entries propagate through the internet (and why it takes 24+ hours for a new domain name to appear). Learn how sendmail queues and delivers mail. Learn how SMTP works. Learn about utilities such as portsentry, tripwire, and iptables work. Learn about hosts.allow and hosts.deny. Learn that Google Is Your Friend, and that for any problem you've ever experienced, someone else on the internet has already had the same thing happen and has posted about it, and someone posted the solution already! Learn that Unix already includes full documentation for almost every application and configuration file on the system... you just need to know the man command. And finally... learn how to always read the README file before you install anything.

    Remember... unless you go with a provider who offers a "fully managed" hosting solution, you as a system administrator are completely responsible for what you do on your server. This includes leaving a security hole and getting hacked!!! Any hosting provider who guarantees to you that their network and their servers are unhackable is lying. Even the top three providers can't wave the magic anti-hacker wand. Almost all of the system restore calls we get (we don't repair hackings... we only offer reinstallation, meaning, unless you back up your data, you lose!) are because the system administrator failed to keep current with security patches, or failed to implement a solid security procedure. And a large number of spammers we shut down are because of admins who allowed unsecured formmail.pl scripts on their servers!

    The bad news is, I don't think I've mentioned even half of the things you need to know in order to successfully run a dedicated server.

    The good news is... resources to learn how to do everything I've mentioned above can be found in absolute abundance. You'll find that the Linux community is full of people who are more than happy to answer your questions about just about anything. And I think just about any Linux professional will agree that you'll never go wrong investing in the O'Reilly series of Unix-related books. Of particular note, their apache, DNS/BIND, and sendmail books are not only essential references, but you'll learn not only how they work, but why they do what they do. Most of the time, their books are written by the people who developped the software the book is about! (Their Learning Perl book is co-authored by the guy who wrote Perl!)

    Don't be discouraged. There's a lot to learn, but y'know, half of the fun is getting there. In the meanwhile, go with a reseller plan to get some cash under your belt... you'll need it to pay for all the books you'll be buying!

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