What are the Costs of Running a Busy site like Stackoverflow with SQL Server

Question

My site is small now but it is steadily getting popular online. It is running SQL Server express and entity framework. I am not storing any pictures in the database, the database is storing just text. What kind of costs would I be looking at if my site gets big enough where I need to upgrade my database to a paid version and run the database on a separate computer?

My expenses now are: $100/mo -- Dedicated server $20/mo -- Windows Free -- SQL-E

So if I am running windows 2003 std and sql E. If I need to upgrade both windows and sql server what costs might I be looking at?

Do you think it is wise to rewrite my code in ADO.NET and abandon entity framework to lessen the costs?

Answer 1

Take a look at Scott Gu's announcement from this morning: http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2009/09/24/announcing-the-websitespark-program.aspx.

Use Windows Server/SQL/VS/Expression for web at no cost for 3 years