So for several years and several providers (Verizon DSL, Comcast Cable, and until recently Time Warner Cable), I’ve been running a small laptop as a web host.  It runs WordPress, Mediawiki, some static pages, and some other applications that I use (like MyTinyTodo).  I’ve also used it to host FTP for large files that I couldn’t attach to an e-mail, and many many other uses. It has proved a geeks invaluable tool. I used dyndns.org to keep up with any IP changes (which has happened a total of three times in five or six years). Now my upstream traffic is tiny and is probably not even noticed. The site gets very few visitors and viewing my web stats only a few MB per day worth of traffic. It was nice to have the ability to reach my home from the public internet.

Recently due to some changes, Time Warner has blocked incoming connections to my little server (I can’t even SSH to my home anymore) (and reading their fine print on their service they do not allow users to “run servers”). So while this pisses me off, I’m actually getting ready to physically move (again) from NC to NY so was considering hosting my sites anyway.

I went with the super budget hosting (iPage.com). In the event that I don’t like it, I can pay for a more expensive hosting solution, but I just needed basic transfer, MySQL, PHP5 and some tools to manage it with.  I also took good notes on things that worked and things that didn’t and kept good backups of my work and will continue to take backups of databases and file structure so I can move easily.

I didn’t transfer my domains, just updated their nameservers to the new hosting company. This in essence commoditized hosting as I can move at will to the provider which provides me what I need at what I am willing to pay (granted there is some elbow grease involved in the process).

Here is what I had to do:

Static Files – FTP them to the correct directory, point the subdomain to that directory, update nameservers on the Domain Manager on GoDaddy.

WikiMedia – a little more complex and I possibly could have simplified things – install new version of WikiMedia (create database, etc.), perform export on old server, perform import on new server, point subdomain to correct directory, update nameservers on GoDaddy. I also moved the extensions by simply moving the extension directory over and adding the extensions in LocalSettings.php … there are some files that I will move manually and one of my extensions isn’t working properly (probably a version issue with the new version of MediaWiki, but I bet I can fix that one by hand (sometimes coding is actually fun)).

MyTinyTodo – expand tar file, move database (export from old server, import to new server), run setup … super easy, point subdomain to correct directory

WordPress – followed instructions here – there were some limitations on the size of the SQL Import on my new hosting company (via their phpMyAdmin version) so moving the database had to happen in parts (the one large table had to be broken up into 8MB segments (I just used vi)), but it’s done now – point subdomain to correct directory, copy MX records and some other domain specific (subdomain) information from my old nameservers (dyndns.org) to the hosting company, update nameservers on GoDaddy.

Overall it was not too complicated. If you are methodical about the process you can move from one hosting company to another with little trouble and minimum downtime (or like I did from your own host to a hosted solution).

Here’s my $0.02 (and then some).

The idea behind this is to identify (and punish) the high bandwidth users. Comcast (and other broadband companies) have skated by for years on this “bucket-of-bits” concept where you buy a bucket of bits (we’ve all seen the UPTO 16MB commercials). This is a whole additional discussion which I don’t want to get into here, but in short I refer to that advertisement as fraudband.

So with this bucket-of-bits concept you pay a monthly fee for a connection and you use it as much as you want. The problem is that the *more* you use it, the *less* the provider makes for your usage. This is an upside down business model and I’ve tried to think of other companies that are incented to sell you a product that you shouldn’t use (help me out by commenting if you know of a successful business model that follows this upside down paradigm (and don’t say cell phone companies)).

What they are doing by opening this door is saying that your monthly fee (let’s say it’s $34.99) is good for upto 250GB of usage. If you exceed this amount you will get less traffic or have to pay an additional fee. But what happens for those *good* broadband users who don’t use their allocated 250GB? Do they get to a refund on the unused portion of their bits? How about roll-over bits?

If the formula is $34.99 for upto 250GB of data … can I pay upto $34.99 for what I actually use?

I work from home and as such am probably one of the heavier users. I also watch Netflix on demand on my TV via my TivoHD XL. I rent online movies from Amazon as well. I use Vonage. I don’t do it regularly (as it makes my VoIP phone almost unusable), but I have been known to share files via P2P and download a lot of content from non P2P sites as well.

My guess is that I’m a heavier user and that I’d exceed the upto usage, but when I don’t I will be doing everything I can to get credited for what I didn’t use in a particular month.

HDTV

So, I’ve been configuring my Mythbox as I have time.  Some of my hardware arrived late, but I put together the basic PC the first weekend, installed Ubuntu and did a burn-in (I am very happy with how quiet it runs).  My HDHomerun arrived a few days later and decided to interrupt my burn-in. I installed Mythbuntu and attempted to configure it. I hooked up my coax cable to the HDHomerun and ran a Cat5 to my switch and I was able to see it immediately in the MythTV configuration utility. I did a channel scan and was surprised to have 80 unencrypted hits. My jaw dropped, I had 80 HD channels over basic (analog) cable?

I need to backup here a bit and explain what I had learned through the internet and from a flier that I picked up at the local Comcast office, but even with the flier in my hand, I could not get a Comcast salesperson to give me a straight answer. It clearly states in the brochure that:

HDTV broadcast signals are included with subscription to Limited Basic Service. To receive other HDTV signals provided by the Company, an HDTV capable television set (not provided by the Company), Standard Service and an HDTV digital converter and remote are required. In addition to receive Expanded Service, Digital Starter, Digital Classic, Digital Preferred, Sports Enterntainment, Package or premium (i.e., HBO, Showtime) HDTV signals, a subscritpion to that service is required. (sic)

However, the salesperson was adamant that I needed to rent a digital cable box to get any HD (I did check and there is a Firewire out on the Scientific Atlanta box) even though it clearly states in the brochure that HDTV is included with the analog (limited basic) service (only the broadcast channels (NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox, and PBS)).

So, I was surprised and vindicated when I had 80 unencrypted hits. Unfortunately, I was soon to learn that some of those must be placeholders (for what I can’t imagine). I also can find NO information which channels are the networks, Fox, and PBS so I had to slowly change channels through all 80 and hope Myth didn’t crap out when there wasn’t actually any content on that channel. I have found the 5 19×8 (i) channels and plenty of upconverted 4×3 channels, but getting them to match up with the schedules from Schedules Direct is still somewhat of a mystery (help would be appreciated … please leave a comment). I do have to admit that watching the last few days of the Olympics in HD was very sweet … I’m still using a computer monitor as I haven’t convinced the wife to let me get an HDTV yet but the picture quality is great.

The remaining tasks are to install an analog capture card to get non-HD channels, figure out how to get the BlueRay drive working (if possible), get an HDTV (if possible), get the schedule to match up to the HD channels, and a few other odds and ends.

If anyone lives in the Blacksburg, VA area and has been able to decrypt the Comcast HDTV signals over the analog (limited basic) service, please drop me an e-mail or leave a comment here.

Comcast

I’m not sure when this started happening, but I can’t seem to isolate the problem and I’m assuming that Comcast is to blame. I’m running this blog on a PC in my house connected to the interWeb via Comcast residential high speed Internet. I’m keeping DNS humming along using DynDNS even though my “dynamic” IP address (via DHCP) has not changed since the Adelphia to Comcast migration (and hadn’t changed on Adelphia prior to that migration). Even before I was running this blog, I had a wiki using MediaWiki running (it still is).

Here’s what’s happening….I can add a comment or a new wiki page (which is an HTTP POST transaction) from home or remotely (outside of my LAN). However, I’m limited to the size of my comments (or wiki pages) when I’m remote (outside of my LAN).  Once I get more than a paragraph or so in a comment (or a wiki page) and hit “send” my browser just hangs.  Incidentally, this also happens when creating a blog post while logged in to WordPress.

I decided to run a test and had tail running on my apache server logs.  I noticed that when remote and creating small posts that my Web server would see the transaction and it would be posted.  I followed this with a large post and my Web server never registered the hit and my browser just hung.

I know for a fact that I created and edited several of the large posts on the wiki when I was away from home, so I know that this “issue” is new, but I’m just not sure how new.

Anyone have any suggestions or have a similar problem? If so, please post a comment below, but keep it short as if it’s long it won’t be posted…..