What to do with old crappy computer?

Get a T1 connection and start hosting websites off it. Thats one way to "make money", and get a T1 connection at the same time

*plum*

If nothing else, having a backup.

You could also turn it into a cheap (and highly configurable) router.

Hmmm.....so what would be involved in setting this up? The computer is old though, who would want it hosted on a PC tht sucks?

You'll be amzed what you can host on that pc, doesn't take much to host, you can get quite a few sites before it lags. Linux isn't much for taking up resources like windows.

Router is a good choice also though.

yeah my friend has a

pentium 3 1ghz with 512mb of ram and a 10 gig hard drive

and runs a 12 slot Counterstrike Source server with it

and a website server, a pentium 3 933 mhz with 256mb of ram and a 20 gig hard drive

So basically, after I transfer my old files to the new pc, installing Linux will wipe the old drive clean and install the new OS?

And then I can use the new Linux drive to host sies? I own and run http://www.nysportsboard.com and was thinking of creating some similar sites which are basically just php message boards and don' require much space. So I can host them on my old machine for free?

Try and get a 2Mb SDSL connection, this would be excellent for hosting websites as it provides lots of upstream bandwidth. This starts at around £200 a month and requires a seperate phoneline. This connection should be able to host 2 or 3 websites quite well, with low to medium usage. You could also use the connection to host a file server maybe? http://www.btbroadbandoffice.com/broadband/btq3/bt8?campaignid=bthomepage

*plum*

I was wondering when you were going to drop the bomb shell that is the cost.

So any suggestions which version of Linux I should install? Will installing Linux wipe all Windows file off the computer?

Basically this is what I want to be able to do:

Download music, movies, whatever without using the resources of my main PC. I have a KVM switch to alternate between which unit I am looking at. I download on the old pc and when I see it is OK - I add it to the shared network folder and bring it over to my new PC.

It's only about 35GB total on both hard drives but I may use it for some kind of storage. This should be an issue for a while - my new unit has a 200GB hard drive.

If possible, it would be great to host my own websites on there. I was going to start a few new boards similar to http://www.nysportsboard.com which shouldn't require much space because they will only be php bulletin boards. So does this mean I can register a domain name, then host the site on my old PC instead of paying a monthly hosting fee to someone?

First point on this is why bother installing an OS if all you are going to use the HDD for is storage and not actually boot off it ?

I have a couple of HDD's I use soley for storage and have not botherd to install an OS on either therefore increasing the capacity. Maybe not by alot mind, but seeing as I`m never going to boot from either, I didnt see the point in installing the OS.

Second, why download from one pc, just to move it accross to the second ? Wouldn't this defeat the point of having a storage PC ? It's up to you at the end of the day, but it seems silly to me.




You can host a home website from any PC as long as you set it up correctly.

Things you would need to look into further regarding this might be:
Server software [ I.E Windows 2000 etc ]
PC Configuration
DNS
IP [ Static - Unless you are going to leave you pc on continuously ]
Line rental cost
Overall cost

Not trying to put you off there, just giving you a few things to look into before you make up your mind.

How much do you currently pay for hosting because you might want to ask yourself if its going to be cheaper and less hassle to let someone else look after that side of things.

All SDSL lines have static IP adresses. 1Mb SDSL is £200 a month which is quite reasonable. If you want 2Mb then thats about £350, that sort of connection should provide enough to run a small file server or several websites. Fedora linux should be a good enough OS, its also free unlike most other Distro's. Apache comes installed as well by default which is an excellent hosting program.

*plum*

I was wonderng the same thing. But I have heard that Linux is more stable than Windows and takes up less resources and space so I can basically leave the unit running 24 hours day for a long time without worrying about it. But maybe it will be more trouble than it is worth to worry about installing Linux.

The reason I download on the old unit is because the mjaority of the files are bit torrented, and I generally like to scan the file and make sure everything is OK on the old unit before bringing on to my new PC.



I host through iPowerweb for (I think) $8 a month. But if I can do it for free on my own unit, I probably be more apt to runa several websites at once instead of concentrating on the single site I have running now.

It was just an idea, though. ANy other suggestions on what might be the best way to utilize the old unit?

If all your going to use your other PC is for storage, then there is no point istalling any OS, even Linux. If at some point you are going to want to boot from that HDD, then yes, install Linux if you want.



I thought you were going to turn it into a storage facility for your music ? I can understand your thinking behind downloading to a seperate PC, but why bother to waste space on your newer PC when you could store/play/modify everything via a network card to your storage PC ?




You might find its cheaper to stay the way you are with your current host as sometimes having a permenant iNet connection and static IP can be costly.

In my personal opinion, I would wipe your old HDD's and leave them in the old unit, get a baisc network set up and use it as storage for music etc. That way you can work from your new PC, but still access everything on your old PC. Basicaly, use it as a seperate PC.