From HostThyself

Things to get ready in setting up a standard hosting for a domain.

[edit] Register a domain

The first step in setting up a hosting is to register a domain name.

[edit] Setup DNS

After registering a domain, you need to setup the DNS to point to the host.

If you buy the domain and hosting together, the service provider will most likely have taken care of this for you.

If you have purchased the domain separately, you need to find a DNS server to setup you DNS. The domain registeration company may provide this service for free or at additional cost.

Alternatively, use a free DNS service such as EveryDNS.

[edit] Setup servers

The final step is to setup the servers - including web, mail, ftp etc.

Again if you buy a service these are normally setup for you.

If you are running your own server, you could use a tools such as Virtualmin to set up a virtual server.