SUCCESSFUL SERVER? Well it won't happen unless you spend a fortune on it, find developers if you don't know how to make plugins, get builders, hire staff members that aren't 8 year immature kids. And overall: If your looking to be SUCCESSFUL, you will need to dedicate yourself. That also means paying for hosting, which is cheap at start but as you grow it will become more costly. If your looking for a server with just a few friends, that is ok, you can get a 1-2 GB server from a hosting company which won't be that expensive, or you can host it yourself. But if you are looking to get Big, then you will pay a lot of money for it and still won't be an easy task.