[Nottingham] Broadband ISP and Modem advice wanted

[AB]

Hi,

NTL have let me down - I only have pay per minute dial up at the moment so I don't want to spend hours on the web finding the answers - please help.

I have a BT line.  I need an ISP and broadband modem/router.  I would be comfortable paying £25 per month.  I would expect at least 500Mb/s but faster would be preferred.  Fixed IP address seems like a good idea.  Unlimited downloads (or at least 4GB per month).  I would like SSH and VPN access to my network across the internet.  My brother, who will share the connection, would like remote access to his XP machine - remote desktop or whatever its called.  Ultimately I would like to host my own web server.  What are the issues with remote access and hosting services?  I don't need the complete how to... but just enough info to chose the right provider, service and modem - I can figure the rest out later.

This is new territory for me (hosting services on the internet) and I am concerned that I may be missing some important knowledge!

Can anyone recommend an ISP and package that may suit my needs?

Can anyone recommend a broadband modem/router?  What features should I be looking for?

I was considering Freedom2surf 'Connect Home' at £19.99per month because they offer fixed IP and they say that they don't block ports, however I suspect there may be better options I have missed.  Also its at the fastest speed available and unmetered from 1am to 6am.

By the way, why do Demon say you need a not NAT service to run an SMTP server?

Thanks,
Ashley
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