How to run test database in Django?

What setup do I need to learn web and database development?

• I have just started a MS in Computing and IT for people with no IT background. I want to start hosting my own websites, and the databases (MySQL) and environments (Django/Drupal/Joomla) that they are built upon. How can I do this without my own server?  Can I run a virtual machine on a laptop as I develop them, to test they actually work, debugging etc. Then, when I want to deploy them what is the best way to get server space.  Should I rent a machine from Amazon EC2 or similar? What would be the lowest cost option? I don't imagine any sites I develop will get huge traffic to begin with, I just want to practice the development and deployment of them.  I will then have up and running websites at the end of the course I can show employers. Many thanks, Justin

• Answer:

  I do not think that a VM or external cloud-based hosting solution is critical, for a 'start', while in a prototyping stage. If you need external access, all you need to buy would be a domain. Other than that, you should be able to host fairly powerful applications from just around 2-3 boxes, if you have to deal with small traffic and not very huge volume of data. You'll have lots more control this way, and can proceed quick independent of external dependencies. The power available in basic desktops and laptops today, should be sufficient to host low-traffic apps pretty easily. I run loads of applications, a tiny Cassandra DB, an IDE like eclipse, multiple browsers, mail clients, etc... simultaneously all the time on my laptop, with manage-able choking of CPU and memory. One thing that can be of help is to 'automate' the deployment seamlessly, so that, if later on, you wanted to scale to a much larger traffic, you got to move it to a setup like EC2 (which btw, I think is the most reliable, well-supported and cheap cloud-based application hosting solution out there yet), you can do so very quickly. You can just keep this in mind, while building your app. There are also cloud solutions like Google Appengine, or Heroku, or proxy providers, who can all provide you with reasonable storage/computing needs for quite cheap. While only still prototyping, relying on external cloud solutions can also be a painful exercise, if support level/quality is low enough and this would inhibit the pace of development. More often than not, you might figure out that, you can manage with a local setup that is completely in your control. But, surely, just go ahead and build your website on your own laptop/desktop(s) on day-1 without waiting to worry about an external environment where you could potentially host it later.