Networks Windows - Linux network speed up

In the next few months I will be moving around some machines, adding new ones, and generally changing the way things work on my network. Currently my webserver/router has all partitions in Linux format which seems to be the bottleneck in my network. I can move files around but it takes some time for Windows to even read the file list on the Linux partitions.
example: When I save images from my camera (via my VIA machine) to my "/home/matt/public_html/images" directory, the Window's "Save As -- Save In" selections takes at least 10 seconds to form. All system specs are in sig.

When I install my new Linux drive, should I format the /home partition in NTFS format? Will this speed up my network times?

Right now I'm using Mandrake but the new install is going to be Gentoo. Will this change alone fix my issues? Is Samba the speed sucker I need to optimize?

Should this be in the Linux forum? So many questions.

69 Dude!!

 

my guess is samba is the issue. ive had similar problems.

 

Samba usually creates a bit of lag, my Mandrake machine has about 2-3 seconds of lag from a windows XP machine.

 

I agree. Your bottleneck is Samba... In addition, last I knew you couldn't format a partiton as NTFS under Linux, I could be wrong, but not the last I knew...

 

Samba was the issue. I didn't have the remote announce set properly in smb.conf.

I don't know if you can format an NTFS partition under Linux. I was looking around in Webmin's partition manager and found where you can add a new partition with any number of formats. Two of the options are:
NTFS volume set (86)
NTFS volume set (87)

 

I use Samba here and saving files to/from it from e.g. Photoshop, Notepad, Word, or copying files to it is as quick as local to the human eye... Mind, Ive got a 1 hop 100mb wire to the server? Only 350mhz/396mb RAM and a 7200 IDE disk...

Btw dont write to NTFS from Linux, tried it once recently and lost the filesystem.

 

having ntfs on linux(which, last time i looked into required some patching to obtain) would probably slow everything down as linux is for sure slow and unreliable writing in some non native file system type(qhich is also in beta stages) as opossed to it s native file system.
when the files leave the windows comp they wil leave in a common protocol and on the linux server they will get interpreted so file system should have nothing to do wit it.

please slap me if i am wrong.

 

ntfs is now properly supported in newer kenels (use 2.6 anyway, it's good) whereas a couple of months ago just touching an ntfs partition from linux tended to fry it to the point of re-install... just make damn sure you have the right kernel before you touch tham =)

 

NTFS wont do anything except slow Linux down. The file system on the HDD does not affect file transfers as the filer system is how the files are stored on the HDD it does not affect the actual data contained in the files.