hello all,

ok - i try again:
would anyone of you guys be able to give me a hint on how to have my own domain hosted on my own server (apache) at home - it's currently hosted by an external isp..
i mean: so as to when you search my domain, you end up on my own server at home - and not on the one i rent with the external isp..

krgds
captain skywave

depends on a few things and also depends if you want to host your own dns server.

first of all on you current web host i issume it has an online CP go into it and have a look to see if it will let you specify the ip address or nameservers to use for your site if it does you can either set it up the simple way by

on your web hosts CP set the IP to your site as the IP address to your computer and make sure port 80 is open on it and if your using a router make sure you forward port 80 to the machine on your network thats running apache also make sure apache is running and no firewall is blocking port 80

the more complicated way (the way i do it) is to host your own DNS server using BIND

if your WEB host does also let you specify the name server to use for your website then you can do this also doing it this way you can host as many sub domains as you like and host your own mail server

first of all in the name server for your website put the publick ip address to your computer

then on your computer make sure you have bind installed and running with no firewall blocking UDP port 53

once you have done that creat a master zone in bind called "yoursite.org" (replace yoursite.org with your actual domain name) within that zone create 2 A records one leave it blank and the other call it name and in both put the publick IP address to your computer create a cname to yoursite.org and call it www and apply the changes this is pretty easy to set up if your using webmin

also i would advise doing a little reaserch on seting up a name server

to test it once you have it running use www.dnsstuff.com and use the dnsreport tool

good look and i dont realy have time at the moment to explain better is i have to go but i hope i have helped in some way

thank's berrance..

this is first time i'm doing small steps forward, regarding the setup to host my own domains..
i have to admit that i'm not all that prof within the specific details you provided - allthough i'm keen to go ahead..

i have just visited the domain control panel for my site with the external provider, and there is indeed lots of features to forward, transfer and what have we..
also i noticed a significant warning from the isp about setting up a dns-server at home, before being 100% sure how to do it - specifically warning you that you could loose your received emails for the domains..if you make errors in the setup at home..

i am inclined to try - as you suggested - 'the easy way' - by using the setup within the control panel at my isp..but i would prefer to run everything from home though..
the task ahead seems a bit daunting - but i'm not that easily giving up..

yes - indeed - i'm able to setup anything i desire at home - since i run the box with the suse9.1pro installed..
this includes setup of dns, apache etc. etc.
i have had a look at webmin - but i find yast also easy to use - so would you be able to direct me on the steps forward with yast..?

as i see from your reply - the setup comprises only: dns, http and mail setup.. am i right about that..? or is there more features involved..?

krgds
captain skywave

I host my website with my own server (on ADSL) at home, but I wouldn't recommend hosting your own nameserver.

Having your own domain hosted on another nameserver definately has its perks. It's one less service you have to worry about. I've heard a lot of good things about Zonedit, which is free. A few of their features include:

-e-mail forwarding (to another address, such as youname@yahoo.com)
-subdomains
-backup mail server, so if your own goes down, you don't lose important e-mails
-failover - monitors your webserver, and if it goes down, it fowards users to a different address

These features are especially useful for running your own server, since power can go out, DSL/Cable access can fail, among other problems.

mikeheggy,

ok - you are actually commenting on a topic - dns - which i find most complex to understand..
am i correct that a dns-server is one very critical one - and that it can cut you of from both internet and email - if not configured correct..?

..and also - is it correct that if i go ahead configuring - making wrong inputs - and then activate the dns-server from my home-box - that it will then mess up the dns-setup with my isp..?

krgds
captain skywave

I have this operating as well and have quite a lot of info with links to a few different configurations which you can fiind on my server . Because DNS is not really required unless you want to start hosting a big e-mail server I would not recommend you use it. You need to establish, as said above, whether you are allowed to do this by your isp and whether there are any bandwidth restrictions.

Yes, DNS is very critical - the internet and e-mail for that domain can be unavailble if the DNS is down. However, in my opinion the biggest issue is not that it's configured improperly (because that can always be tested), but if you're hosting it yourself, it can only be so reliable - unless you have battery backups in case of power outages, etc. Also, if you setup your own nameserver, it's one more service open to the internet that you have to be concerned with about security.

In my opinion, it would be much easier and make more sense to have the DNS hosted free elsewhere. What do you have to gain by hosting it yourself?

I don't agree that DNS is critical since in the majority of instances the registrar has a place holder, and therefore the A record for the DNS so it is merely a case of altering the A record to point to a different IP. If you don't have a high volume of e-mail local for the website can be handled by the server and external mail sent via the isp e-mail server.

The problem with hosting your own DNS from a home network connection is the lack of a permenant IP address. With domains hosted at home it's not a big deal to get the DNS provider updated when/if your IP changes and the propegation, or time until your new IP address gets spread around the net, are fairly quick because if there is a problem then it just checks your DNS provider who has the new IP. With DNS on a non-permenant IP address it's a little different because YOU are supposed to be the rock in the water that is always there to turn the domain name into the correct IP address but YOUR IP address may change.

Thus if you are hosting say a webserver and your IP changes, or your ISP goes down, then others can see that your name exists but can't get to it. If you also host your DNS server then when the same thing happens people trying your domain name get nothing at all back, as if you never existed.

That's true for people who have a dynamic IP, but some home DSL/Cable connections do have a static IP address.

hello all,

thank's for your advise - very interesting viewpoints..

i realize - again - as with many topics with my new linux-system - that i have to study more books and info before i have any clue about what to do with the different daemons..

i own my own domain-names - 5 of them - all with my own static IP addresses - so this should make the setup easier..
i will - however - for now, stick to my uk isp controlpanel setup..


TigerOC:
i was on your site to have a look at your recommendations for setup of dns - but i still need a more step-by-step walkthrough - preferrably via yast..

krgds
captain skywave