WAMP setup for a school database

[anon]

Was going to post this in the spam thread, but thought it deserved a separate one.

The management at my school currently uses MS Excel spreadsheets to enter data in their archives. Earlier this year we had the idea of implementing something better and more versatile, and last week someone recommended a PHP script called "ALBA" (coded by national programmers!) which is a perfect solution. It's really well done - you can add records for everything from subjects to medical incidents, print report cards, and manage more than one school simultaneously.

I'm currently looking into creating and managing a WAMP (Windows, Apache, MySQL, PHP) setup to get that working, and eventually deploy it on a dedicated server, inside the intranet. If we manage to deal with the always-present bureaucracy, we could even submit this as an official project to the government and get paid for it (it will be done either way because we want to help, but if we can get extra money and receive acknowledgement, even better).

Anyway, I never did this before, so even though I already got the script running and working today, there's a lot I don't know about hosting and managing a server. Any advice regarding configuration, security, performance, or general tips applicable to this usage situation are all very welcome. Is my choice of programs ideal (I know I could use Linux, but this is hard enough for me already )? What am I missing? What things should I do or avoid?

Thanks!

PS: the vicerector's office has some of the pre-computer era records shelved - huge books, now yellow and brittle due to the passing of time. The oldest one I found was from 1920 (the school was founded on 1900). Interesting how all that would fit on a tiny 2.5" hard drive nowadays.

[anon]

[anon]