Hello,
I would not buy my own server because:
- It is likely that your broadband connection won't be able to handle anything serious.
- Proper servers are expensive typically several $1000.
- You need to consider maintenance, backup etc
Have you considered looking at hosted VMS?
There are two main providers that can give you instantly a server that you can configure to your own needs.
Windows Azure Virtual machine:
http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/home/features/virtual-machines/[
^]
Amazon EC2:
http://aws.amazon.com/ec2/[
^]
In some cases it's even free.
Valery.