Re: [cobalt-developers] Geocities / Homestead type of website

["Steve Werby" <steve-lists@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

"W." <w_too@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Let's suppose we want the server to keep performing well and we decide to
> have a maximum of 500 domains per server. ( should repeat here that the
> intention is to use username1.site.tld, username2.site.tld, etc. and that
> these will be very small sites with static html pages.)
>
> My question was what happens if you have 1.000 or 10.000 users? We'll need
> more servers (if we supposedly stick to the 500 per server maximum).
> But
> what does that mean in view of point # 2 (could things like a username and
> password be used to *automatically* create a virtual website).

I understand your concern now.  Yes, if multiple servers will be used to
host the customer sites it does introduce some complexities to the software
you'll need to build.  But there are several good solutions.  Unless you
need to be able to manage the users and sites via the GUI, the project is
somewhat simpler.  What you need is an automated way to generate DNS
records, make changes to Apache configuration files on the appropriate
server in real time and then restart DNS and Apache to load the changes.
Personally, I'd recommend some kind of mechanism to limit participation by
users who will abuse the system.  A good start is to require a valid email
address and the best way to do so is to send a code or unique URL to the
user and to only setup their site after they enter the code on a designated
page or visit the uniquie URL.  At a minimum you'll need a single database
(I'd choose between MySQL and PostgreSQL depending on which is a better fit)
to store the user/site info., available machines (which you could add as
needed), and a way for the target machine to modify the appropriate files
and restart the appropriate services.  One solution is to run a script every
X minutes on each target machine via cron which queries the database and
determines if action needs to be taken.  If no site needs to be generated
nothing is done, otherwise the script modifies httpd.conf, access.conf,
records, etc. and the database record is updated to flag the record as
complete so when it's queried next the process isn't repeated for it.  There
are other solutions and variations to this process.  When I build systems
like this myself I always ask the client a number of questions and make sure
he/she is aware of the pros/cons of each so that the client can choose the
appropriate solution.  There are other mechanisms that should be considered
for security purposes, load monitoring and abuse.  That's really outside the
scope of this list so I'd recommend discussing with someone with experience
in designing and building systems like this.

--
Steve Werby
President, Befriend Internet Services LLC
http://www.befriend.com/