Web Hosting DYI?

I have a computer that is a few years old and I was planing on getting rid of it, but a friend suggested I turn it into a server to host some web pages. what to you have to do to turn a personal computer into a web host? I already have a 24/7 internet conection for it, so how do I make my web pages avalible for anyone to view on my own computer?
Web Hosting DYI?
What OS is on it? If it's windows, short of windows server x, you'd either need to upgrade it to a server OS or use Apache. If (XP pro can host a site but will limit it to only a handful of active sessions at once) Apache on the other hand is free, and if all you're doing is hosting some basic webpages, it'd be the way to go.





Once you have a site built, which you can test on the server by going to http://localhost/, you can serve it to the net just by your ip address, or register a domain and forward it'd @ record to your IP. You should also get a static ip through your isp, there's ways around not having one, but most isp's only charge a buck or 2 a month for one.





Now if you have a router and/or a firewall, you'll need to open port 80, and forward traffic to your server box. The GUI for your router's configuration will allow you to do this.





Good luck!





~K