Trying to host a forum... damn frustrating

steveland?

OK I was going to post this in the web hosting section but it's kapput which i didn't realise so this seems to be the most appropriate forum but feel free to move it wherever


Anyways I downloaded phpBB http://www.phpbb.com/ and I want to find somewhere to host it for free. I need a host that supports PHP and MySQL (I have no idea what either of these things are but apparently I need them). I've spent the past two hours googling for free hosts like this but no joy.

What I want is kind of like the equivelent of geocities or something (ie i don't need a domain or anything). It's not gonna be a big board anyways (not like boards.ie anyways) and I'll just be using it to keep in touch with some friends and as kind of an experiment to see if I can manage something like this.

As I said all I need is some webspace and not a domain or anything I'll need to pay for or give out credit card details for.

Thanks,
Steve

mneylon

Have a look at the "sticky" in the closed hosting board

steveland?

Yeh thanks but i saw that already.

There's no just free webspace sites in it, and the only free site that supports PHP is tripod which it doesn't mention only supports PHP when you sign up for the premium space.

All i want is a host that'll support PHP and is free. I don't mind about bandwidth or anything (just need it to be FTP accessible too)

Edit: Right so i probably won't find a PHP supported free site... can anyone suggest one I'd be able to purchase for as cheap as possible (preferabely with a domain name if i'm gonna be paying)

jank

try http://www.host365.ie

you can but a cheap ass .com domain and host it the basic package, will cost you around 100 for the year but i presume there are cheaper crowds out there from the states that would do it for the like of 30 or 40 dollors

Google is your best friend here mate

steveland?

thanks i guess i'll hop over to google for the night then

buddy

The only way to get it for free is to make a plea to a host and convince them that a link back to them will be of benefit. It's not too dear to PAY for hosting!!

I know, imagine PAYing for a service - sheesh!!

LoLth

Goooooooooooooooooooooooogle........

now, dont say I dont give you anything.

steveland?

Cheers men...



happy birthday by the way LoLth... just seen ya at the end of the boards.ie/vbulletin page

egan007

Here's pretty sweet forum software that you can setup in 10 mins.
It's the easiest i ever used. - does not require php / mysql
http://www.yabbforum.com/

mneylon

egan007 wrote:

Here's pretty sweet forum software that you can setup in 10 mins.
It's the easiest i ever used. - does not require php / mysql
http://www.yabbforum.com/

It's also infamous for its security holes .....

egan007

Yeah - suppose it does depend on how secure he needs it

mneylon

egan007 wrote:

Yeah - suppose it does depend on how secure he needs it

You're missing my point.
Unless he's hosting it on his own machine the security implications are for the whole server, not just his site

steveland?

blacknight wrote:

You're missing my point.
Unless he's hosting it on his own machine the security implications are for the whole server, not just his site

I see. So if I went and set this up in space from, say, 50megs.com, this might be some sort of problem for them?

egan007

blacknight -
Would be interested on any info you have on security issues with running this on a server
Cheers
K

mneylon

The thing is that a lot of the lesser known open source scripts for forums are not actively developed, so holes don't tend to get patched until it is far too late.
YaBB has had quite a few holes in both the PHP and Perl versions in the past and the developers were very slow to respond.
If you want to be "safe" stick to something more mainstream and keep it up to date.

egan007

Yeah - i was taking to a guy who used to use it.
Have been reading about it's history, they seem to think that they have fixed most security issues with it in the latest version. I was trying to hack it myself but without success

The Muppet

Lycos will give you "free" space with PHP and a sql database to host your forum. They will show banner adds on your site when its up.

Fergal C

You might find something like http://www.ipbfree.com/index1.php? useful.

I run a forum myself and provide free hosting to members, link below.

http://www.hostbidder.com/index.php?showtopic=1343