sorry for this nooby question...its first time i will use os x lion server. I want to know if my late 2011 Macbook Pro is going to be able to handle hosting a website. Before i always used hosting services. I want to save money and host from home...How can i be able to do this using my own domain and machine.
You can host your own domain on a Mac with OS X Server but you will need a dedicated IP address or dynamic DNS service to keep your hostname properly resolved and you will need to keep your Mac connected to the Internet all the time if you're hosting your own web site and mail server.
Apple makes hosting look easy with its promotional material for Lion Server, but running a stable server that is reasonably safe from the miscreants who constantly troll the Internet requires being well versed in server configuration and server security. OS X Server falls woefully short on server security, particularly in relation to Apache, so make sure you really understand what you're doing before you embark upon this journey.
capaho wrote:
You can host your own domain on a Mac with OS X Server but you will need a dedicated IP address or dynamic DNS service to keep your hostname properly resolved and you will need to keep your Mac connected to the Internet all the time if you're hosting your own web site and mail server.
Apple makes hosting look easy with its promotional material for Lion Server, but running a stable server that is reasonably safe from the miscreants who constantly troll the Internet requires being well versed in server configuration and server security. OS X Server falls woefully short on server security, particularly in relation to Apache, so make sure you really understand what you're doing before you embark upon this journey.
Do you know where I can get those services you stated. I'm willing to pay for it if needed. How can I make it safe? I'm very willing to learn here. And if it was you...would you prefer hosting on your own with Lion OSX Server or just pay for hosting services?
Update: I've already got some domain name purchased on whois.com. which already is connected to their DNS, what im talking about is. ns1 and ns2.nameserver.com something like that.
i'm just planning to host my personal blog, using wordpress, or rapidweaver.
who marked this the correct answer...theres no answer yet.
You should be able to get a dedicated IP address from your ISP, or one of their competitors if your ISP doesn't provide them. You can use the name servers provided by your domain registration service to provide name resolution for the dedicated IP address.
To reduce the risk of compromise, you should use the firewall to close access to all ports that are not running services and restrict access to critical ports such as port 22 for SSH and port 5900 for remote desktop to only the IP address blocks you connect from. Read through your log files daily and block access to IP addresses running port scans, unauthorized login attempts, injection attacks, etc.
For Apache web server security, the Apache security module (modsecurity) is a must, but Apple doesn't provide support for it and installing it on OS X Server is a complicated process. It's an inexcusable, irresponsible lapse in security on Apple's part. Running PHP web applications on Apache without modsecurity represents a very high risk of having your web site compromised at some point.
Can i host with my own domain
