I'm considering hosting at home not through a third party. Some of the content will be software that need to run reliably 24/7. Currently I buy the domain then redirect it to the IP of my webhost, so I'm guessing that IP has to be static. But when hosting from home, I will be using my regular home connection, which I think uses dynamic IPs. Is there a way to still get it to work with dynamic IPs?
5 Answers
It is not necessary to have a static IP to run a webserver from home as long as there is a static name in DNS that will update if your IP happens to change.
This is possible through a variety of DNS providers. Dyndns and No-IP are probably the most well-known providers. Another DNS provider, EveryDNS (which is now owned by Dyn), also provides this service.
Additionally, if you are using a router like the linksys wrt54g that allows you to put an open firmware on it (like tomato or dd-WRT) you can often automate the updating of the IP address with the dynamic provider so that when the router gets a new address from DHCP, it will automatically update with your dynamic naming provider.
You should also check your terms of service for your residential service. While this is technically possible, running a commercial website from your home is likely to be prohibited by your ISP.
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+1 For mentioning EasyDNS who can do dynamic DNS as well as DNS hosting. It's who I use myself for my DNS needs. Jul 4, 2010 at 3:26
You could use www.dyndns.com to monitor your dynamic ip and change the dns records automatically. I've used it for simple setups and it works well.
But, a home internet connection might not be the best solution for a reliable 24/7 software service that always needs to be available.
Some of the content will be software that need to run reliably 24/7.
Don't run it from home, then.
It's not necessary -- see the other answers re dyndns.org or similar.
However, consumer-grade DSL and cable modem connections are typically sold with terms of service that prohibit running servers; and even if servers are allowed, it's not realistic (at consumer prices) to expect 24x7 reliability and/or fast responses if something goes wrong.
I am having an issue with my home DSL right now where the provider reports that the ILEC needs to order new equipment to solve it, and it's expected to be online in 6 to 12 business days.
That's inconvenient and annoying for home internet service used for e-mail, web-browsing, and downloadable TV; it's totally incompatible with running a server of any importance.
I strongly suggest you consider using a VPS or a good host rather than trying to recreate a commercial hosting environment at home (cf. your questions re Hostgator and cPanel).
It is not needed to use a static ip, as the other allready stated there is things like dyndns that can solve this problem.
Some of the content will be software that need to run reliably 24/7.
The problem with dynamic ip:s is that they will change, and when they change your clients will use the old ip number until the dyndns is updated with will behave just like your server went off-line until the dyndns record is updated.
So it is hard to get 24/7 with dynamic ip numbers, meaning now and then your server will be unavailable for some time due to this reason.
