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I am in the process of learning as much as I can about LAMP. I was wondering if I should set a web server on my home network, or use a service like Rackspace (cloud space)? I need to have root access, to be able to access it remotely via SSH/FTP/HTTP, and to be able to install things like subversion, etc.

I currently have Comcast so I have plenty of bandwidth, but I am not sure if this would violate the TOS, and/or compromise the security of my home network. Pricing for these cloud hosts, seems reasonable ($11 per month plus about $0.10 per GB of bandwidth), but I am not sure if I will have to control I am looking for.

markle976
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    This is a duplicate question and there are numerous answers to it from varying perspectives. I like this one: http://serverfault.com/questions/36457/server-hosting-from-your-house-200-to-300-per-month-range – Warner Mar 30 '10 at 18:07

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Particularly for learning, I would suggest using a virtual machine. Install Linux inside virtualbox and you'll get all the control you need !

Dominik
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I'd suggest Linode or other VPS, it will be accessible and stable no matter where you are. You don't need to worry about your TOS then or your website going down when you reboot your computer or alter your home network. They will be a lot quicker (for other users) than your home computer as well as their connectivity and hardware is likely better than what you have at home.

Another benefit is you can run a mail server and/or a DNS server, both of which you will have a lot of issues with doing from a home machine.

Honestly bandwidth won't matter as much as stability and a static IP (imho).

You should have as much control as you require including the ability to issue remote reboots/formats and such.

Antitribu
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  • Thanks for the suggestion. I'm going to try out Rackspace Cloud hosting first and see how that goes, but I'll take a look at Linode too. – markle976 Mar 30 '10 at 19:10
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If you will be mucking with hardware or customized kernels, then a hosted solution will not work for you.

If you are just mucking with a LAMP stack and not doing anything lower level, go with a hosted solution. You can do everything remotely from home using SSH and X windows. The only advantage a VM image will have at home is that you can snapshot the image and do rollbacks. I would do hosting and spend your time working on the LAMP stack rather than fighting with Comcast to get a static IP once you are ready for other people to play with your site.

hurfdurf
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  • Thanks. I think I will go with the hosted solution. I can always use VMware on my laptop to play around with customized kernels, etc. – markle976 Mar 30 '10 at 19:06