Hi guys. I've been AWOL for a while (whilst secretly lurking the Demote thread...), but I have a question... Say, A challenge for you all. You see, I'm going to start a new (modding) project soon, but I don't know what exactly to do with it. I am a student at a local college, in the computer sciences program. I'm having trouble with the subject of servers, so I decided a hands-on project would best help me grasp the concepts and practices. Also, I do actually have a need for a print server and possibly a file server. Now, there are several ideas that I have had, among the following: Turn into NAS server that is accessible on the interwebs as well as my home network. Print server (I need one badly) Something unique (Got any ideas?). Or, all of the last three (Leaning toward this one, kind of a general-purpose server). The thing is, I wouldn't be satisfied with just a file/print server, which is where the "unique" part comes in. I wanna see if you guys are as creative as your mods suggest. Any and all suggestions, no matter how small (from just a simple script) or large (major modding, i.e., a one-case three-node cluster or something crazy like that, idk what I would need a cluster for though...) will be fully considered. Thanks in advance! EDIT: Unrelated, 100th post WOOT.
A server OS with a load of dodgy hacks to make it do something it wasn't originally intended to do, is not exactly going to be the most stable of environments ... If you're looking for an excuse to use the software, you can install it, set up your own domain and a couple workstations etc to learn about it, perhaps do some of your MCSE? But it sounds like you're struggling to find a use for something free, when something else free (aka Linux) that would run on a machine of MUCH lower spec and power usage would also do it
I see what you're saying. Haha. The euphoria of freeness took over I guess, okay edited accordingly. Also, what about a kind of music server (like a jukebox, but with internet access for streaming) The thing is, I've been idle for way too long and I need to start on a project lol. I definitely need to learn, so yes I do see this as a semi-learning project, but also as just something to do. I don't have an awful amount of experience on servers... I own a compaq proliant (sp?) quad xeon 500 mhz server with maybe 4 gb RAM, quad 10000 rpm hard disks, and dual 500w PSUs... but it's a beast... bumps your light bill up by 40$. Instead, I was thinking about using a dual core atom-based server. I.e., I need to learn hands-on about servers (i'm a computer science student but the learning is crap at my school), as well as already having a need for a print server as well as a NAS server... I just wanted an idea as to what else I could do along the way so I could work in different areas at the same time thereby increasing the learning efficiency? Side info, I'm already pretty good with hardware, I just need to delve further into the software side of things, and maintaining and building a server as well as it's operating system (At this point, I guess linux, but what distro? debian-based or other?) would be fantastic in helping me to do exactly that.
If you're going Atom for the long term solution then I'd recommend you go Linux or Windows Home Server on it, and use your proliant with 2008 R2 to muck about with and learn on Although, I *THINK* R2 is 64bit only, not sure on that though. If it is your Proliant wouldn't run it. I personally prefer Debian, or Ubuntu if you want it a little more fluffy and user friendly. On Linux SAMBA provides windows SMB (server message block) file and printer sharing, so as long as your printer has a Linux driver, that would work. If not, you're probably best to pick a Windows based solution. If you wanted to use your Atom as a dedicated NAS without worrying about printer sharing, FreeNAS and similar NAS distros would be worth considering. Your final option is that you could run VMware ESXi - its free - on the Atom, running two virtual guest servers, one a basic Windows 2008 R2 for print sharing (and even a domain?) and then run a second one as a file server, which could be Linux. I don't know if I'd recommend FreeNAS or similar on VMware though as the RAID options etc would be meaningless on it. I wouldn't expect it to run blisteringly fast while booting the guests, but once its set up your remote access should be fine, and you'll be able to play with both.
