Do I need to register a domain name before I install Apache?

[Athanasopolous]

I have downloaded Apache for the Windows operating system and have read the installation documentation and I have a question.

I am getting Apache, by the way, so that I can:
(1) Edit and debug PHP without having to upload to a sever constantly.
(2) I can use Source Safe on my home computer. This is a somewhat long story. But, basically, Source Safe requires either IIS or Apache and IIS does not exist for Windows XP Home Edition.

Anyway, in the installation documentation for Apache, it reads:

Run the Apache .msi file you downloaded above. The installation will ask you for these things:

(1)Network Domain. Enter the DNS domain in which your server is or will be registered in. For example, if your server's full DNS name is server.mydomain.net, you would type mydomain.net here.

Do I need to register a domain name before I install Apache?

 

[Wishdiak]

Athanasopolous,

Short answer: no.

You should be able to access your Apache server using the local loopback address

http://127.0.0.1,

although you might need to tweak your httpd.conf to get that to work.

http://httpd.apache.org/docs-2.0/platform/windows.html

Wishdiak
A+, Network+, Security+, MCSA: Security 2003

http://www.wishdiak.com

 

[litton1]

You could check out amongst others

http://www.no-ip.com

for a free domain name, ideal while in the development stage

Binary Intelligence, true or false?

 

[Athanasopolous]

litton1,

Thank you for your help so far.

http://www.no-ip.com

says:

The host completetranslations.no-ip.info resolving to 24.107.20.213 has successfuly been added to our system.

Now what? I assume there is a place on my hard drive that I need to create to be the location of the website and I need to make it sharable to be read.

Wishdiak,

Thank you for your help so far. Apache HTTP Server 2.0 Installation Wizard asks for a Network Domain (e.g. somenet.com). I assume that I would put

http://127.0.0.1

there. Apache HTTP Server 2.0 Installation Wizard also asks for a Server Name (e.g.

http://www.somenet.com).

I assume that I would put

http://127.0.0.1

there as well?

 

[Wishdiak]

Athanasopolous,

Now that you've got DNS, you can configure your Apache server to listen for completetranslations.no-ip.info.

Just plug that info into the Installation Wizard, and you should be good to go.

Wishdiak
A+, Network+, Security+, MCSA: Security 2003

http://www.wishdiak.com

 

[lgarner]

You have no need for a domain name. You could:

a) make one up, and edit your hosts file so it resolves to 127.0.0.1
b) just use 127.0.0.1

You probably don't need to create the document directory; the installation most likely did it for you. Look for a DocumenRoot directive in the configuration file. Since you're using Windows, the directory can be read without any action on your part.

 

[Athanasopolous]

If I open a browser and type

http://localhost/

I get the default Apache page now. Coolness!

If I type completetranslations.no-ip.info I get a goofy yahoo search page redirect that shows my browser did not recognize the url.

I was kind of hoping it was released to the world since I set up an account with

http://www.no-ip.com

 

[Athanasopolous]

...BUT, ALSO when I type my IP in a browser, it does not work either

 

[lgarner]

$ ping completetranslations.no-ip.info
PING completetranslations.no-ip.info (24.107.20.213) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from overland10k.mo24.107.20.213.charter-stl.com (24.107.20.213): icmp_seq=0 ttl=116 time=70.5 ms

DNS Seems OK, assuming your public IP address is 24.107.20.213. You can verify that at whatismyip.com.

Is your computer actually connected to the Internet? Is there a router or firewall which might block http? Windows firwall, maybe? Does your ISP block port 80? There are a few things that could be wrong.

 

[Wishdiak]

Is there a router or firewall which might block http?

More likely there's a router that's not set up to forward port 80.

Wishdiak
A+, Network+, Security+, MCSA: Security 2003

http://www.wishdiak.com

 

[danomac]

Another thing is that if you are behind the router, you might not be able to use your external IP or no-ip.info address to get to your apache server. In my experience routers don't respond to that which is why you get a yahoo results page.

It's easiest to change the HOSTS file on your windows PC to redirect to your localhost or your NAT'ed IP if you are behind a router/firewall.

 

[Athanasopolous]

It is a wireless router.

 

[litton1]

are you using no-ip DNS update program? that is assuming you are on a dynamic IP

I apologise for not coming back, been tied up with work, it’s a rat race out there!

Binary Intelligence, true or false?

 

[litton1]

O yeh forgot, it may be that your router doesn’t support loop back so you may have to use your internal IP address. Have you tried to access the site from an external address like a mates house.
and the benefits of having a site on the net are:
1 boast to your mates
2 if your on a computer elsewhere in the world that uses a different browser than yours you can see how it looks.
3 it is a good learning curve!


Binary Intelligence, true or false?