Ubuntu Private Server

Although I've always dreamed big, having a GoDaddy private (dedicated) server can be expensive. Their lowest-end, cheapest server might have some pretty decent specs, but also at a whopping $63 per month with a two year contract. Although the disk space, bandwidth, and RAM all stack up well, it's much easier to get your own private server. A private server will often come with lower costs and several benefits, although you miss out on some things.

Things You Lose

• Secure server location


• Low chance of data loss


• System rarely fails


• Better network security


• Higher power and bandwidth uptime

The tradeoffs, however, are enormous if you are on a budget. A personal dedicated server can offer lower monthly costs and tremendous long-run benefits. Plus, if you have enough skill, you can ensure that you don't lose many of the other benefits.

• Higher beginning costs, because you have to buy the server.


• You can always just geting something cheap to put Linux on.


• Could use an old system lying around


• Direct console access


• Absolutely no limits to what you can put on there


• Could get more bandwidth through a regular ISP


• Lower monthly costs (merely to the ISP and for power)


• Could make an equally secure network with enough talent


• Could get a Universal Power Battery to keep uptime high

Getting Ruby on Rails Setup

Getting Ruby on Rails setup with a GoDaddy shared hosting account is rather difficult. This blog should hopefully take you step-by-step through the installation process. Remember there are a dozen things that can break a GoDaddy rails setup, which makes installing on GoDaddy's shared servers a pain. Fortunately, though, their low prices can in many cases make up for the extra work, especially if it's a small, personal project with little-to-no budget.

Start by purchasing a GoDaddy shared hosting account, but you probably already have one. If you haven't, though, you'll have to ensure that you have a deluxe or premium account - the basic level accounts don't support cgi, perl, ruby, rails, or any of those things. You can buy three years with 20-30% off, totaling a little more than a mere $100. Remember, though, life would be a lot easier if you can afford your own server, a host that specializes in rails, or a virtual or dedicated server. I'm assuming you're already stuck with GoDaddy.