Which Windows OS for home web server?

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GJSNeptune

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Linux is driving me crazy. If I were to try a Windows route, which OS would you recommend? I tried Server 2008 once before, but it didn't natively support the Intel NIC (crazy that Ubuntu uses it no problem), and there aren't any Server 2008-specific drivers for the motherboard. I was thinking of seeing if Vista or 7 drivers would work with it though.
 
Windows Server Web edition 2003 or 2008

I have never seen a intel Nic not supported by the Windows Server platform. BUT it is possible that an older nic card may not have the 64bit drivers required for Server 2008.

That said If you are running older non-compatible hardware buy Server 2003 wed edition.

OR alternative chuck out the $38 for one of the newer Intel NICs
 
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What issues were you having in Linux? It will be way less headaches in the end to fix those and stick to Linux. Especially a web server.
 
Can you provide a little more information on what you're planning on using the web server for? Are you looking to serve a few static pages on your home network, or did you want to serve pages to the world? Are you looking to do some web development?

You can run the Apache web server on Windows 2000 or later - you don't necessarily need to use a Windows Server operating system to run a web server, it comes down to your needs, priorities, money, etc..

Also, windows 7 drivers will typically work just fine with Windows Server 2008.
 
Web server specs are in my sig.

Linux is becoming a chore to deal with. Permissions, navigating to directories, pseudo-RDP. I'm just not a command-line person. It's such a headache that my web server just hangs out on my desk, powered off, because I don't want to keep trying to set it up. Ubuntu updated to 11.04, and I've been trying to set up ZoneEdit, but I'm having a ridiculous time figuring out how to install a DDNS client to keep my IP updated. I know it's the better solution, but it's becoming too difficult to bother with right now.

The plan is to start hosting my domains myself with DDNS. Nothing requiring crazy bandwidth. Doubt Time Warner will notice or care.
 
GJSNeptune said:
The plan is to start hosting my domains myself with DDNS. Nothing requiring crazy bandwidth. Doubt Time Warner will notice or care.
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It's probably more cost-effective (factoring in energy use) to just get yourself a VPS.
 
ameoba said:
It's probably more cost-effective (factoring in energy use) to just get yourself a VPS.
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Right, with the cost of hosting right now (srsly, unlimited domains/bandwidth/space at a decent host for less than $50 / year) about the only reason to host your self at home is to learn how it all works. It's a great way to get an understanding of web servers, linux, etc and can actually be a rewarding hobby. That said, it sounds like you are over that... so it is probably time to signup at hostgator, 1and1, site5, or whatever.
 
Why not just spring a few bucks for a new NIC card? You can easily find one online for under $20.
 
You can get a free VPS from Amazon for an entire year now. There's no good reason to host from home, especially if you have to use Windows for it.
 
EvanH said:
Can you provide a little more information on what you're planning on using the web server for? Are you looking to serve a few static pages on your home network, or did you want to serve pages to the world? Are you looking to do some web development?

You can run the Apache web server on Windows 2000 or later - you don't necessarily need to use a Windows Server operating system to run a web server, it comes down to your needs, priorities, money, etc..

Also, windows 7 drivers will typically work just fine with Windows Server 2008.
Click to expand...

I have Windows Server 2008 on my laptop using the Windows 7 drivers for a few pieces of hardware, this works.

Go look on here for drivers:
http://downloadcenter.intel.com/
 
CEpeep said:
You can get a free VPS from Amazon for an entire year now. There's no good reason to host from home, especially if you have to use Windows for it.
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It makes sense in some cases, like: 1) you're interesting in learning how to setup and administer a web server, 2) you like full control over your development environment and platform of choice, 3) you do a lot of work from home and need a test environment similar to your work environment, 4) You have all this spare hardware sitting around and decide "what the heck"

and BTW, I find nothing wrong with Windows based web servers, especially one running IIS7. I'd say it's quite versatile seeing I can run all kinds of stuff on it including PHP, .NET, Rails, etc..
 
http://www.aprelium.com/abyssws/ + filezilla + Windows XP Pro all tucked into a VM and tossed on a machine that is always on proves to be very minimal.

You can also add PHP as well as awstats to it.

I go this route for the occasional picture I host or to get a file when I am away from home. Not sure if this solution is for everyone, but the config was pretty easy and mine is tucked away on a hyper-v host.
 
I'm running Server 2008 R2 Standard with Apache, PHP, and MySQL installed. So far so good. But if anyone following this thread has experience with FreeDNS and Windows DNS update clients, I have a couple questions.

I installed the Afraid Updater Service 2 client. It says to run it as a Windows service, which I think I am, but I don't think I see it under Task Manager. Not sure how to confirm it is working.

1) How does the DNS work when the web server is behind a router on a local network? It has to send my current IP, but FreeDNS has to be able to point to its local IP as well.

2) I'd like all my websites to have their own subdirectories under htdocs. Can I tweak nameservers to point to these subdirectories? Or what should I do here? I don't want subdomains. I just need to point to their respective directories.
 
GJSNeptune said:
And you replied to my thread why, exactly?
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Because I disagree with the assertion. Package managers like apt-get make installation a snap, and configuration is generally the same on Windows vs Linux. Plus it's more performant at a lower price. But hey, whatever works I guess.
 
william_fontaine said:
Because I disagree with the assertion. Package managers like apt-get make installation a snap, and configuration is generally the same on Windows vs Linux. Plus it's more performant at a lower price. But hey, whatever works I guess.
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It was a rhetorical question.
 
william_fontaine said:
Because chmod, cd and ssh are so hard!
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Some people like the GUI over the CLI. Changing directories in Linux can be a bit tedious if you forget the full directory you are planning to go to, or you make a typo in one part and have to start over.

For example:

cd /usr/jimbob/documents/word_files

You could easily miss type this as:

cd /user/jimbob/documents/word files

Generally, permissions in Windows can be complicated as well when you get into group policies. I don't think he is using group policies. Also, editing docs to use software is a pain. Edit this file to do this, edit that file to do this.
 
GJSNeptune said:
1) How does the DNS work when the web server is behind a router on a local network? It has to send my current IP, but FreeDNS has to be able to point to its local IP as well.

2) I'd like all my websites to have their own subdirectories under htdocs. Can I tweak nameservers to point to these subdirectories? Or what should I do here? I don't want subdomains. I just need to point to their respective directories.
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1) Dynamic DNS is going to update your external IP to your domain(s). You will still need your router and computer configured to have the correct ports forwarded to a static local IP address for the host machine.

2) Since you're using Apache you will want to look into Virtual Hosts in your main Apache conf file.
 
I don't know if you're a student, but students can get Server 2008 R2 for free from Microsoft DreamSpark if you sign up with your school email. And well, pretty much anything else, I'm running Server 2008 R2 with my SQL Server 2008 R2 among other stuff for dev. :p
 
ShadowStriker said:
I don't know if you're a student, but students can get Server 2008 R2 for free from Microsoft DreamSpark if you sign up with your school email. And well, pretty much anything else, I'm running Server 2008 R2 with my SQL Server 2008 R2 among other stuff for dev. :p
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That's where I got mine. My school's MSDNAA license was acting goofy.
 
contitego said:
Changing directories in Linux can be a bit tedious if you forget the full directory you are planning to go to, or you make a typo in one part and have to start over.
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If one day you do end up using linux again (or a mac), remember that you only have to type the first few letters and when you press (tab) it will auto-complete it for you.

It would be awful if you had to sit there and type it all out remembering the names perfectly, lol.
 
Cheetoz said:
If one day you do end up using linux again (or a mac), remember that you only have to type the first few letters and when you press (tab) it will auto-complete it for you.

It would be awful if you had to sit there and type it all out remembering the names perfectly, lol.
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directories?

I am fine with the commands, just the super long directories kill me. I didn't know about this feature. I am downloading Debian with XFCE live iso.
 
yeah directories. pretty much every modern shell gives you the ability to autocomplete dirs & file names by hitting tab. also, get to the shell history by hitting up. you can also go back/forth quickly in the command line entry by holding alt while you hit left/right.
 
also, you can use ctrl+w to backspace an entire word, or ctrl+u to delete the entire line. this is handy when you need to backspace long words or directories.

up/down arrow keys scroll through your history (or ctrl+p and ctrl+n usually do the same if arrow keys don't work)

good luck! once you learn the little tricks, CLI is FAR easier to navigate than a GUI.
 
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