Make a Server Out Of An Old PC

Using an old Dell XPS, abandoned in my step-mom's office, I made a local server to host files for public worldwide access.

All you need is an old PC, high-speed internet, a router or switch for multiple computers, and PATIENCE.

Images WILL BE UPDATED LATER!!!

Step 1 Get the computer!

First of all, you need an old, or maybe new, PC to convert to Linux. Look around your house, find a friend who will give one up, or search for one online or at a flea market or something. Something like the one pictured below.

I found mine in my step-mom's office.

Comments

[darthbindy]

i got the same one, found it in the trash, iv been fixing it for a week now, and iv gotten it to the ubuntu boot screen were it asks if you want to try or install, but whenever i i select one then it just script screens........

[zutalors]

The last version of Ubuntu is a dud for older PCs, due to the new GUI it tries to use. Same thing happened when I tried to install it. The latest version of Debian with Gnome GUI works very well on the same PC, even better than older versions of Ubuntu ever did. Try that or, if you really want it, a version of Ubuntu before Oct 2011.

[harry599]

whaen you have to insert your local ip, is that the computers ip or the routers ip, because i dont have a static ip on my router so how would i get by that? Thanks Harry

[______]

type in http://localhost/ to see your site.

[hpiper-inkpen]

tar xvfz xampp-linux-1.6.3a.tar.gz -C /opt

it may be a typo and you did it right, but it's supposed to be:

tar -xvfz xampp-linux-1.6.3a.tar.gz -C /opt

[Computothought]

So much has changed since this instructable was one. though you could still basically use it.

[Leonardodanguyen]

um...I really bad at this so this might be a bad question but please answer me. Are we installing the Ubuntu Server Edition or the Ubuntu PC Edition?

[cornboy3]

 This really depends on your competence with unix and linux systems. If you have used ubuntu server before or you are master of the bash prompt then use ubuntu server. If you are somewhat new to ubuntu or are stumbling into the terminal for the first time then choose ubuntu desktop edition. As a side note, ubuntu server takes computational power to run because it only runs a bash prompt, no gui.

[skywagger]

Just set it up with GUI then Turn it off, even a n00b can do that

[olegarza]

Really good Question!!! 

[Derin]

will try this on an old compaq i bought from the ebay ps will 2.5 gb enough

[fallenspirit123]

it should

[Computothought]

I have run a minimal web serrver on a 2 gig drive with debian.But it took some fine tuning to do it. You can get a compact flash to ide adapter and compact flash pretty cheap now..You could also use the 2 gig drive as a boot drive ( if you can not usb boot) and connect a usb drive for extra storage. Usb drives are dirt cheap also compared to what they used to be. Some but not all cheap thin clients can easily be. be made into servers. Even some nas's can used be also. I used my nslu2 as a debian based web file server for a long time. .Freenas software is a another good starting point for older equpment..

[mage]

4GB storage is the minimum for Ubuntu unless you meant ram in which in that case you have more then enough

[Computothought]

I have used debian with as little as 100 megs of ram and a 10 gig hard drive as a web server with room to spare.

[mattronix]

hi i need help not tech i can install this on mattronix server2 but................ im crap with text interface i need GUI HELP!!!!

[reederda]

What do you do if the computer won't install ubuntu?

[Computothought]

(removed by author or community request)

[power Bills]

or you can Just download to a flash if you know what a USB port is in the back of most CPU I seen

[Computothought]

true if the machine is new enough to support usb. The latest version of debian no longer supports the floppy boot, but you can i9nstall the old version and then upgrade for free. I have done that on some old machines.

[djr6789]

please tell me what is thew point of this?

[mage]

for teh lulz

[mage]

would this werk on a laptop?

[N1CK4ND0]

This is EXACTLY what I'm doing!!! Ubuntu is coming in the mail and I'm gonna be hosting files so me and my clan can transfer information fast.

[joejoerowley]

I like it. Great instructable!

[A.O.C.]

This is really interesting, i would like to learn more and possibly do it myself! Any other informational links so i could learn more....i am dumb when it come to comps but i really would like to learn more

[bleachworthy]

I used to do this all the time, except I did it in a much simpler way. i just downloaded Apache webserver (to host web pages) and filezilla (for FTP transactions) build my site, set the permissions, changed my port fowarding settings in my router/modem, set up a free DNS resolution (a .TK name) and started spamming my link across the web, I eventually got a sponsor, and was making an extra hundred a month. Once I get up a hundred bucks or so, i plan to buy an old dell desktop with a P4, and a wireless card, and I'll be able to manage my whole site through a remote desktop connection, telnet, or SSH. it's an easy, fun way to earn an extra bit of cash, and learn computers while you're at it!

[Aquilla]

This sounds like the sort of thing that would make an excellent instructable, and I'd love to learn more about it.

[Alexizupinhea]

Who's the sponsor?

[theburn7]

wtf? my site name has been taken! http://www.theburn7.tk/

[theburn7]

So is WWW.THEBURN8.TK www.theburn7s.tk WWW.THEBURN9.TK WWW.THEBURN.TK WWW.THABURN.TK all are crummy and stupid, and the list goes on

[Kasm279]

parked sites

[theburn7]

i guess i have to go with co.nr

[Derin]

try .net

[REA]

probably parked websites. reagames.com is taken :(

[schimmi]

you just made me want to do that just for the extra cash, cause you can never get enough especially if you're 15 and without a job but from who did you get the domain name?

[tmccar]

How do you earn cash from this (get a sponsor and all that) as per Bleachworthy?

[Seski]

I manage my server remotely, too. I'm using a Samba server, connecting to every computer in my house. Also did the same with the DNS, set up a free domain.

[VitaminCM]

This is a really cool article.
Here is an article on <a href="http://www.vitamincm.com/reusing-anreusing-an-old-pc-as-a-server/">Using an Old Computer as a Server</a> with Step-by-Step video instructions.

[bth8]

would knoppix be considered good enough