Host Your Own Website

Use any old computer in your house. This guide shows you how.

If you can follow a recipe, you can do this.

Don't know what to build? Try hosting file-social — it's a personal media stream you can post to.

What You Need

  • 1. Home wifi
  • 2. An old computer
  • 3. Maybe an hour

Step 1: Find a Computer

Pick any computer that can stay on all the time:

Old Laptop (Best)

Has a battery, so it won't die if the power flickers. Any old MacBook or Windows laptop works.

Desktop

Requires a monitor for setup, but can run without one after.

Raspberry Pi

Tiny, cheap, low power. Setup is different enough that we made a separate guide for it.

Step 2: Create Your Website

Make a simple webpage. You can make it fancier later.

1. Make a folder on your Desktop called "mywebsite"

Right-click Desktop → New Folder → name it "mywebsite"

2. Create a file called "index.html" inside that folder

Open Notepad (Windows) or TextEdit (Mac), paste this, save it as "index.html":

<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <title>My Website</title> </head> <body> <h1>Hello World!</h1> <p>This is my website.</p> </body> </html>

Step 3: Make It Visible

On Mac:

  1. Open "Terminal" (search for it)
  2. Type: cd Desktop/mywebsite then press Enter
  3. Type: python3 -m http.server 8080 then press Enter
  4. Don't close this window

On Windows:

  1. Open "Command Prompt" (search for "cmd")
  2. Type: cd Desktop\mywebsite then press Enter
  3. Type: python -m http.server 8080 then press Enter
  4. Don't close this window

Test it:

Open a browser on that computer and go to: http://localhost:8080

See "Hello World"? It works!

Step 4: Open a Door in Your Router

Right now only that one computer can see your website. Let's make it visible to everyone.

A. Find your computer's address

Mac: Apple menu → System Preferences → Network → look for 192.168.something

Windows: Search "cmd" → type ipconfig → find IPv4 Address

Write this down. Example: 192.168.1.100

B. Log into your router

  1. Go to 192.168.1.1 in a browser (or try 192.168.0.1)
  2. Username and password are usually:
    • admin / admin
    • admin / password
    • (or check the sticker on your router)

C. Add a rule

  1. Find "Port Forwarding" or "Virtual Server"
  2. Click "Add"
  3. Fill in:

    Name: MyWebsite

    External Port: 8080

    Internal IP: (your 192.168 number)

    Internal Port: 8080

    Protocol: Both

  4. Click Save

Test it:

  1. Go to whatismyip.com → copy that number
  2. Go to http://YOUR-NUMBER:8080
  3. See "Hello World"? You're on the internet!

Step 5: Get a Real Website Address

Right now people have to type a weird number to visit. Let's give it a real name like yourname.proxie.social

1. Pick a name and sign up

Go here and choose a name. (Example: joe.proxie.social)

2. Connect it

Fill out the form:

Domain: yourname.proxie.social

IP Address: (the number from whatismyip.com)

Port: 8080

Click "Create Site"

Done!

Go to yourname.proxie.social in any browser. Your website is live.

What Can You Put On It?

  • • About you, your photos
  • • Art or writing you made
  • • Photos to share with family
  • • Links to all your social media
  • • Whatever you want — it's yours

Just edit the HTML file from Step 2, or search for "website builder" to make it look nice.

Things to Know

Keep the computer on

Your website only works when that computer is on. Go to Settings → never sleep.

If it stops working

Your internet number probably changed. Check whatismyip.com and update it in yxorp.

Everyone can see it

This is public. Don't put passwords or private stuff on it.

Ready?