I used to have a DSL connection with a fixed IP address. That enabled me to run my own web servers an whatever else I felt like, without having to conform to anybody’s “community standards”. Over the past decade I haven’t been doing anything directly related to computers (other than using Mathematica). I didn’t have a fixed residential address, much less a fixed IP address.
I now have an apartment in Washington DC, and want to get a static IP address. My current internet provider dosen’t offer one. I don’t even understand how I am connected, other than that a guy from my ISP plugged one end of an RJ45 cable into the wall and the other end into a WiFi/Ethernet router. The connection is very fast and stable.
The company that provided my DSL years ago has now been subsumed by Fussion Connect which doesn’t seem to have any interest in providing me service.
I see companies such as is*hosting who say they provide a VPN with dedicated IP address at 1 Gbitb/s. I don’t really understand what that means. For example, is that IP address configured on one of my network interface devices? Can I set up my own WiFi “hotspot” with an internal address range using the computer with the VPN connection? etc.
AWS is the primary entity which I want an alternative to.
Since it’s only $5 per month, I got an account with is*hosting. I haven’t figured out what exactly it will do for me, but I did get a virtual CentOS machine in Holland which I can access through SSH.
When I had a fixed IP Address on the DSL coming into the residence, I had a dedicated machine with two nics one facing the world and the other local. I ran all my servers on that machine, and used it for a router with masquerading.
My ISP provides me with a router and local DHCP. It seems like my server(s) with the fixed IP address provided by is*hosting could all be on one dedicated machine that doesn’t provide any local services. Someone wants $5000 for my old domain name, so that’s not an option.
I would contact the ISP again and ask them for the cost of a static IP option. If they won’t provide you with one, there are other options (a quick search shows about 9 residential providers in the DC metro area). If your current ISP won’t provide you with one, you can find one that will, and then the current provider can either compete or lose the business.
It’s amazing what the potential loss of business will do to motivate an ISP to do something, and if they don’t care, then don’t spend money with them.
As for the domain name…That’s between you and the registrar.
I haven’t had the DSL for over a decade. I’m confident that my current ISP isn’t going to provide a static IP address. If it isn’t outlandishly expensive, I’d be willing to pay for a commercial connection even though I won’t be making money with it. I just like the power and freedom. Hosting services have a nasty habit of de-platforming those whom they disfavor.
Had a thought last night, though - why not use a dynamic DNS service? I used to use one when I didn’t have a fixed IP address.
I also used it when I was with the cable provider in my area; they used dynamic addresses, but the address ended up being statically assigned, so even though it was issued by a DHCP server, it never changed unless my hardware changed or I moved.
It’s easy enough to check and see if the address has changed, and then update the DNS records. I use Route53 for my DNS domain, and all the hosts under the domain are CNAME records pointing to the main A record. If/when my address changed, I just detected it and updated the A record.
Many modern routers include functionality to connect to a DDNS provider and update the record when they detect a change.
Otherwise, the option really available if your provider won’t provide you with the services you want/need is to tell them that if they don’t provide the service you need, you have no option but to change providers.