i invested some of my money in a dry cleaners business and here soon i will be the full time employee plus 1/3 owner. with the money i make from it i want to build a server. i know that is a pretty arbitrary statement. i want to get a server rack, HP 48 port switch, patch panel, maybe a POE switch, battery, and then the server itself. i dont know much about the different servers. what i should look for, whats crap and what isnt. so im looking for some advice. nothing extreme. i cant afford a $10,000 server. maybe you guys can link me to a few examples of good stuff and i can start learning.
windows or linux? big qustion there. i know BB is going to say its obvious. but lets discuss the options on both.
and anything else you guys can suggest for me.
server rack and equiptment
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bad_brain
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Re: server rack and equiptment
well, different from a desktop system where you can be pretty sloppy a server has to be 100% up to date (OS-wise I mean), so if someone does not want to use Linux there is no other option than to actually buy Windows.....because you MUST be able to get the updates.
and it's not just because "your server might get hacked", it's because "you might get your ass sued because your server was hacked and abused for spamming or attacks".
I have to admit I have worked with Windows servers all together maybe 24 hours...most was during my studies, and on some (luckily) rare occasions when having to retrieve stuff for customers from their old servers in the process of switching to me as host. but I hated every single second of it. for Linux you install a SSH client...and ready you are for remote administration...but on Windows you have to do silly mouse-pusher stuff in a graphical environment, and even if you get used to it I am absolutely sure that you never can reach the speed of the workflow like in a shell.
so yes, you guessed it, for servers the OS of choice is Debian, simply because it was created as server OS right from the start and is all about security and stability. with a standard minimal Debian install together with a decent hosting platform like EasySCP you can set up a working server system with hosting capabilities within 2 hours, and it's pretty secure already out of the box (of course you will have to make adjustments every now and then, a server system is never 100% done).
hardware-wise it is tricky.....you can get cheap 19 inch server hardware already, with P4 CPUs for example (which is enough for a beginner system), but the problem with old(er) hardware like that is the noise. 19 inch hardware is simply not made for a home environment, so noise pollution is not on top of the list for the manufacturers, and when I say such a system is loud then I mean REAL loud....you will not be able to watch TV or do phone calls in the same room then (and it will generally drive you nuts after a short time). so if you don't have a spare room or want to store it in the bathroom (which is hopefully far enough away from where you sleep) then you must look for newer models...anything with Opterons or Xeons should be silent enough already.
a rack itself is actually easy to build with stuff from the hardware store, but of course a real server closet is better because it provides a defined airflow and also some noise damping.
P.S. an additional problem with older hardware, but also with a some newer one stiill, are the standards...make sure NOT to get a server where you can only connect SCSI drives...those cost a fortune.
and it's not just because "your server might get hacked", it's because "you might get your ass sued because your server was hacked and abused for spamming or attacks".
I have to admit I have worked with Windows servers all together maybe 24 hours...most was during my studies, and on some (luckily) rare occasions when having to retrieve stuff for customers from their old servers in the process of switching to me as host. but I hated every single second of it. for Linux you install a SSH client...and ready you are for remote administration...but on Windows you have to do silly mouse-pusher stuff in a graphical environment, and even if you get used to it I am absolutely sure that you never can reach the speed of the workflow like in a shell.
so yes, you guessed it, for servers the OS of choice is Debian, simply because it was created as server OS right from the start and is all about security and stability. with a standard minimal Debian install together with a decent hosting platform like EasySCP you can set up a working server system with hosting capabilities within 2 hours, and it's pretty secure already out of the box (of course you will have to make adjustments every now and then, a server system is never 100% done).
hardware-wise it is tricky.....you can get cheap 19 inch server hardware already, with P4 CPUs for example (which is enough for a beginner system), but the problem with old(er) hardware like that is the noise. 19 inch hardware is simply not made for a home environment, so noise pollution is not on top of the list for the manufacturers, and when I say such a system is loud then I mean REAL loud....you will not be able to watch TV or do phone calls in the same room then (and it will generally drive you nuts after a short time). so if you don't have a spare room or want to store it in the bathroom (which is hopefully far enough away from where you sleep) then you must look for newer models...anything with Opterons or Xeons should be silent enough already.
a rack itself is actually easy to build with stuff from the hardware store, but of course a real server closet is better because it provides a defined airflow and also some noise damping.
P.S. an additional problem with older hardware, but also with a some newer one stiill, are the standards...make sure NOT to get a server where you can only connect SCSI drives...those cost a fortune.
Re: server rack and equiptment
at my last job we had a nice server room but it was mainly internal stuff for networking, not an actual server. all the servers were back in texas. it was a software firm so the server setup there was just amazing. im familiar with all the part that go with the server, just not too familiar with the server management itself. everything i have done with servers has been windows based. The perk was that we created windows accounts on the server and you could access them from any computer.
I also want to set up an FTP server on it all, and a VPN. I dont understand how to do the VPN. i have never gotten one to work right. i mean, i can VPN into a computer and access the files, but i want to have a constant VPN connection and the files seem like they are local. when you go to your file manager the option for those files is on the left. not sure if i am explaining it very well.
I also want to set up an FTP server on it all, and a VPN. I dont understand how to do the VPN. i have never gotten one to work right. i mean, i can VPN into a computer and access the files, but i want to have a constant VPN connection and the files seem like they are local. when you go to your file manager the option for those files is on the left. not sure if i am explaining it very well.
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bad_brain
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Re: server rack and equiptment
a Linux server system can be customized especially for your need way better (and way more extensive) than a Windows server, of course it has a learning curve but different from Windows you don't just "have to remember how stuff is done"....you also learn to understand how things actually work (and there's lots of documentation to help you).
of course it's the best to start with a few services (usually web- and database server, and FTP), it would be too much trying to set up lots of services at once.
I am not sure if I understand you right there, because I see no need for a VPN there....you can mount a remote Linux system via SSH/SFTP like a local harddrive on other Linux systems and even on Windows....the connection is, when using those protocols (and not simply FTP), encrypted:
https://www.digitalocean.com/community/ ... s-over-ssh" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
and if you need help with Linux server administration..well, that's what I am doing all day since years already (on multiple servers)...
of course it's the best to start with a few services (usually web- and database server, and FTP), it would be too much trying to set up lots of services at once.
I am not sure if I understand you right there, because I see no need for a VPN there....you can mount a remote Linux system via SSH/SFTP like a local harddrive on other Linux systems and even on Windows....the connection is, when using those protocols (and not simply FTP), encrypted:
https://www.digitalocean.com/community/ ... s-over-ssh" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
and if you need help with Linux server administration..well, that's what I am doing all day since years already (on multiple servers)...
Re: server rack and equiptment
oh believe me im going to have a billion questions for you. ill try not to be too dependent on you and instead google the shit out of things first. however, for opinions i will need to ask instead of googling.
for example, you mentioned Debian for a server OS. is there one specifically you use and can recommend? after working at IBM on the linux team im more interested in linux than windows. we used RH there.
for example, you mentioned Debian for a server OS. is there one specifically you use and can recommend? after working at IBM on the linux team im more interested in linux than windows. we used RH there.
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bad_brain
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Re: server rack and equiptment
simply pick the "stable" branch of Debian, all kinds of install...erm..thingies...can be found here: https://www.debian.org/distrib/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
personally I am always using the network install CD (actually I use an USB stick): https://www.debian.org/distrib/netinst" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
its install a minimal system and when done you can pick some basic extras like a desktop environment or webserver for example....you need a working internet connection during the install though (9 of 10 NICs are recognized properly from my experience).
avoid RH, they went commercial years ago already and are the traitors of Linux, Debian is much better because of the massive community, because it's really open source, and because it uses apt as package management (to install additional software) with way more software in the repositories to chose from...apt is also much more user-friendly than Redhat's yum package manegement system.
personally I am always using the network install CD (actually I use an USB stick): https://www.debian.org/distrib/netinst" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
its install a minimal system and when done you can pick some basic extras like a desktop environment or webserver for example....you need a working internet connection during the install though (9 of 10 NICs are recognized properly from my experience).
avoid RH, they went commercial years ago already and are the traitors of Linux, Debian is much better because of the massive community, because it's really open source, and because it uses apt as package management (to install additional software) with way more software in the repositories to chose from...apt is also much more user-friendly than Redhat's yum package manegement system.
Re: server rack and equiptment
so i decided to download debian and run it in a virtual machine to start practicing and learning while i save up to buy a real server. i followed that link you posted. i chose the 64bit torrents (DVD) download option. it takes me here: http://cdimage.debian.org/debian-cd/7.7.0/amd64/bt-dvd/
Do i need to download the bottom 5 links? to me it looks like the debian DVD is broken up into 3 files and the update into 2 files. or is that the same file just different links to it? like mirrors? and what are the downloads above those. the first secton of downloads?
**seems they are just mirrors. i started downloading all of them and they are all about the same size. ill pick the largest one and install it. i figure it will have more options already installed and be easier for me to learn. i still dont know what the top download are though. the sum ones.
Do i need to download the bottom 5 links? to me it looks like the debian DVD is broken up into 3 files and the update into 2 files. or is that the same file just different links to it? like mirrors? and what are the downloads above those. the first secton of downloads?
**seems they are just mirrors. i started downloading all of them and they are all about the same size. ill pick the largest one and install it. i figure it will have more options already installed and be easier for me to learn. i still dont know what the top download are though. the sum ones.
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bad_brain
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Re: server rack and equiptment
yeah, it SHOULD be only the first DVD that is needed for an install...I am not 100% sure though because I am always using the network installer CD, been some years since I have used a DVD so maybe it changed in the meantime (but I don't think so).
Re: server rack and equiptment
Yep the 1st DvD is all you need but then be sure to remove the CD value as a source entry in /etc/apt/sources.list
