XAMPP with MODX on Win 2003 Server?

Just wondering about something for hosting.

My cousin is hosting my site for my daughter using IIS on a Win 2003 server platform.

If he downloads and installs XAMPP and grants me access to it, what would he and I need to do in order to the get the server side information pointed in the right direction to get it ’live’ online?

I am familiar with setting up the MODx files and install procedure, just not sure about migrating the site from IIS and if it can be done with an XAMPP install on his server.

Thanks in advance for any help!

My site is http://www.natalie-update.org if that helps for anything.

To quote the XAMPP website:

The default configuration is not good from a securtiy point of view and it’s not secure enough for a production environment - please don’t use XAMPP in such environment.

If he knows enough about securing the server, he could call "/opt/lampp/lampp security", but the philosophy behind XAMPP is to build an easy to install distribution for developers to get into the world of Apache. It works great for a lot of people to set up a local testing environment, and can make the transition from production to live site much smoother, but the default configuration has EVERYTHING turned on which = no hang ups for devlopment, but bad for hosting a site unless you enjoy getting your socks or your site rocked.

-sD-
scotty Delicious

Sounds ugly..... I don’t think he is that familiar with Apache, mySQL or PHP, so he probably would be a no go with that.

So, i assume that he would need to install each component individually (php, mysql, apache) on his server for me? Or just bite the bullet and get a good host......which, by the way, who is a good LAMP host that is inexpensive?

Thanks ScottyD!

Elliott
Burlington, KY

No problem Elliott.
Running a publicly accessible webserver is no trivial task. There are lots of security issues involved since you are opening your PC to the outside world, and 9 times out of 10, there is going to be someone out there who knows enough about loopholes to find a weakness and at best use your computer for something unintended and worse... trash your entire file system.

XAMPP, out of the box, is not ideal, but It could be configured to work if a person is inclined enough in the ways of Apache, PHP, and MySQL. It sounds like your cousin’s forté is IIS. You may want to see this thread for info on the intricacies of MODx on IIS.

As far as webhosts (cheap webhosting), you generally get what you pay for, but there are many exceptional hosts that provide a tremendous amount of service for a low price. I recommend http://site5.com webhosting. I have been with them for 2 years, upgraded service twice as my requirements increased, and they even moved me to a new server 8 days ago (my latest upgrade to the $5 deal) without losing a byte of data.

There was a forum discussion about web hosts you may want to take a look at. I definitely stick by my choice of site5. I would sign up with them again in a heartbeat.

-sD-
Dr. Scotty Delicious, Scientist.

sD,

The commercial site that I maintain is currently on a Win platform but i am considering taking to a LAMP. It is hosted by Network Solutions.....any thoughts on them as far as service / performance issues that you are aware of?

I am afraid that I will lose everything, including email functionality going from a Win platform over to a Unix based platform. I assume that once I pull the trigger and do it, I can at least get the old site up and running until I redo the site using the MODx base.

thanks,

Elliott

Well, I don’t have any personal experience as a customer with NetworkSolutions, but looking over their package deals, you may be able to get more bang for your buck if you shop around a little bit.

Losing everything can be tragic if it happens. As far as email functionality, almost all servers provide MX records for your domain so that any mail addressed to @yourdoman.url gets delivered to that mailbox (if it is set up) or forwarded to a specified email address. You can configure these in cPanel (or whatever hosting app your service provider uses). There may be a time frame of interrupted service where email sent to you during that period would be orphaned, but as long as you back up your email before you move, you shouldn’t lose a thing.

Before you pull that trigger, you may want to install XAMPP on your local machine, get MODx up and running, then as you have time, translate your site into MODx-ianeeze. Then, when you have your site fully converted and working on your local XAMPP server, find a host with Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP, export your local site’s Database, upload your modx installation’s folders to your new web root via FTP (you would need to upload the index.php, /assets/, /manager/, etc... that stuff), import the database into your new host (probably using phpMyAdmin or the like) and your good to go!

No rush to quickly get the MODx site up, plus it gives you some time to shop around for a hosting package you like while you are creating your site locally.

There are some other intricacies involved in switching from local server to remotely hosted server, but when you get to that point, I would be more than happy to help.

-sD-
Dr. Scotty Delicious, Scientist.

Thanks for all of the help! I am in the process of now translating the existing site into Modx-anese and am wondering about using the chunks. is this best for items that are static on each page or is something a little more better? I am putting everything into chunks for now, just because it is the easiest way that I have learned since I am new to this.

I will shop around and check out your recommendations also, and if I need help when I pull the trigger or something else comes up, I’ll definately be asking.

Thanks again!

Elliott

Chunks are the best choice for what you describe.

-sD-