Two websites....one forum...is it okay?

[BuckerBucker]

This is probably the stupidest question to date....but I just noticed a pattern by a Google robot that made me start thinking insecure thoughts......

I have two websites. My #1 website has a forum. The forum cannot be put on with that website because the server does not allow MYSQL, the database needed to run this forum.

I placed the forum on my #2 website server. There is no links from the actual #2 website to the forum. There is only links going from the #1 website to the forum on #2.

1. Am I breaking any unwritten Google laws that is going to cause me heartburn later?

2. Is there any problem having the forum on #2's server, without a link to it from the #2 website?

I am not trying to get extra google points for this forum, and don't care that I am losing counted hits. I just want to make sure I'm not crossing over into the "it's banning time" crowd. Thanks for your advice.

[grandpa]

unwritten Google laws

I like that..

The written Google laws [google.com] might be helpful. I really wouldn't believe that you've crossed the line into the dark side of anything, but I would think about switching the sites over to opposite servers. Seems like life would be easier and then you could move on to worrying about other things ;>

[mincklerstraat]

I can't imagine you getting banned from google for this, though it certainly isn't a way of maximizing pagerank. Given your needs, I'd leave things as they are, although moving the forum into a subdirectory so your site can coexist on the same server (and domain) might not be as hard as you think (in fact, it might only amount to 'moving' those files with ftp). If you're still likely to fret and fidget, you could always make your forum links point to a page that's still on your site, that has one big link 'click here to procede to the forums'. For the people to get from forums back to the site, a similar strategy. This is a 'wuss' solution, but I know I sometimes like to cave in for 'wuss' soutions and save myself the bother of learning stuff.