r computer's IP address into a web browser's address bar. If you're not sure what your IP is, visit What Is My IP to find out. If your IP is 12.34.567.890, then type http://12.34.567.890 into a browser's address bar. [7]

If you ARE behind a firewall (like a wireless router), you'll need to open up port 80 on the firewall and forward it to your computer. This part is beyond the scope of this article, but will be covered in a future Lifehacker feature is covered in Lifehacker feature How to access a home server behind a firewall.

Enjoy your new home web server!
Further reading on running a personal home web server:

    * How to assign a domain name to your home web server
    * How to access a home server behind a router/firewall
    * Ask Lifehacker: Multiple subdomains?
    * Ask Lifehacker: Host my web site at home?
    * Automatic .htaccess generator

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Sorry Mac folks, but OS X comes with a web server all set up, so this tutorial's not for you. [back up]

[2] There are other web servers out there, but we're going with Apache HTTP server because it's free, stable, and my favorite. [back up]

[3] It doesn't matter what domain you put here. I chose homeip.net because it's descriptive, and one of DynDNS's home domains. [back up]

[4] A common during-installation error with Apache reads, "Only one usage of each socket address (protocol/network address/port) is normally permitted. : make_sock: could not bind to address 0.0.0.0:80 no listening sockets available, sh