XAMPP and Apache Quick Guide
Categories: Web Server
Once you enable a web server, you can run your own web site, host your own files so that you can access them from work, allow friends or co-workers to view documents you want to share with them, and more.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through installing Apache on a windows machine using a package called XAMPP. There are many different web servers out there but Apache is free and works very well, so that’s what we’ll use in this guide.
Where we use yourhost.dyndns.org, replace that with the actual Dynamic DNS host you have created. If using CustomDNS, it will be something like yourdomain.com.
Installing the Server
First, go to:
http://www.apachefriends.org/en/xampp-windows.html#641and download the latest version of XAMPP using the “Installer" link.
Accept the agreement and use the default location for installation, which is c:\XAMPP
Once you reach the Options screen (Fig. 1), You should check all the boxes on that screen in the Services section as that will allow the server to run all the time, even with no one logged into the computer.
At the bottom, select for All Users and then click on Next.
Once you accept those settings, you are all set with the installation.
The final step in starting the web server is to run the XAMPP Control Panel (Fig. 2).
Make sure you click Start for Apache (and the other services if you wish to use them later on). When it's done, open your web browser and go to http://localhost/ and you should see your first web page!
Storing Files in the Right Place
You’ve got a bunch of pictures you’ve taken on your vacation and you want to share them with your friends easily with your shiny new web server. I store my web files in
C:\xampp\htdocs
so all that needs to be done is place the pictures into that directory. Visit http://localhost/ in your web browser and you should see a list of your pictures that you can click on!
Now all you need to do is make sure you point your Dynamic DNS host to your external IP and you should be good to go.
Troubleshooting
If you can not connect to your server using the addresses above, you need to check the following:
- Make sure yourhost.dyndns.org(or yourdomain.com) is pointing to the external IP, the one your ISP has assigned you. If not, log in and update it
- Check with your router manufacturer to see if you are forwarding port 80 properly
- Make sure no firewall is blocking access
- Contact your ISP to see if they are blocking port 80