Small Business Server Setup

Tiernanism93 · 12-09-2014 12:11pm #1

Hey Guys ,

Just looking for some advice on setting up a small business server.

Long story short , the office will be made up of at least 3 people , I cant see this growing any time soon.

Most of these people are out of the office 70% of the time and use laptops. The server requirements are

1)File Sharing between the laptops(files will be anywhere from Word docs to Auto Cad Files.)
2)Backups Backups Backups
3)Possible access to the server from home

I have very limited experience when it comes to server setups , but will be taking on the challenge of setting this one up.

Can somebody give me the best solution to this situation , what kind of server is necessary, what OS is recommended , will a basic desktop do the job , and also the level of difficulty of the whole setup .

Any links to good tutorials also will help.

Appreciate any help as always guys

Belfunk · 12-09-2014 12:19pm

Tiernanism93 wrote: »

Hey Guys ,

Just looking for some advice on setting up a small business server.

Long story short , the office will be made up of at least 3 people , I cant see this growing any time soon.

Most of these people are out of the office 70% of the time and use laptops. The server requirements are

1)File Sharing between the laptops(files will be anywhere from Word docs to Auto Cad Files.)
2)Backups Backups Backups
3)Possible access to the server from home

I have very limited experience when it comes to server setups , but will be taking on the challenge of setting this one up.

Can somebody give me the best solution to this situation , what kind of server is necessary, what OS is recommended , will a basic desktop do the job , and also the level of difficulty of the whole setup .

Any links to good tutorials also will help.

Appreciate any help as always guys

How about Dropbox Pro instead of the server?

https://www.dropbox.com/pro

Tiernanism93 · 12-09-2014 12:23pm

Thanks for the reply firstly ,

Personally I am a massive fan of Cloud based anythung

Unfortunately , the guys i work with want something they have all used before, i.e. a traditional server. They would feel more comfortable having something physical sitting in the office that they could control 100% .

So im afraid we will have to stick to non-cloud solutions.

ED E · 12-09-2014 1:35pm

This would probably be better in Servers and Systems vs in here, a mod can move it for you if you'd like.

Theres no active directory needs no? If its just as a file host and backup you can run any low power box.

What I'd suggest:
Small form factor PC with sufficient drive bays, RAID card and enough disks to match your needs.
Windows 7 would be sufficient but you could buy Server 2012
An off site backup, this one is critical! You could use carbonite or similar here if you just want to pay a small subscription, or buy a drobo/diskstation and host it at another premises. Run nightly/weekly backups to that.

As for setting up the actual shares, once you have a storage pool of some kind its a matter of a few clicks in windows to share them with the LAN. Say you have a 4TB usable on the RAID, then just create shared directories for different projects/teams/whatever and then the storage available will just be used as needed. Staff can just "Map a network drive" to get access and have it permanently listed on their PC.

With regard to remote access, be careful. It can easily be done, but do it wrong and you'll find all your company info on pastebin.

Throwaway Account · 12-09-2014 1:42pm

office.microsoft. com /en-gb/business/office-365-small-business-premium-office-online-FX104355764.aspx

Office 365; Cloud and word/email traditional feel.

Tiernanism93 · 12-09-2014 2:25pm

ED E wrote: »

This would probably be better in Servers and Systems vs in here, a mod can move it for you if you'd like.

Theres no active directory needs no? If its just as a file host and backup you can run any low power box.

What I'd suggest:
Small form factor PC with sufficient drive bays, RAID card and enough disks to match your needs.
Windows 7 would be sufficient but you could buy Server 2012
An off site backup, this one is critical! You could use carbonite or similar here if you just want to pay a small subscription, or buy a drobo/diskstation and host it at another premises. Run nightly/weekly backups to that.

As for setting up the actual shares, once you have a storage pool of some kind its a matter of a few clicks in windows to share them with the LAN. Say you have a 4TB usable on the RAID, then just create shared directories for different projects/teams/whatever and then the storage available will just be used as needed. Staff can just "Map a network drive" to get access and have it permanently listed on their PC.

With regard to remote access, be careful. It can easily be done, but do it wrong and you'll find all your company info on pastebin.

This is exactly what I needed to hear , thank you!
Regards active directories , dont need anything there. An offsite backup wont be necessary,once again, staff decision. But a raid setup in case of redundancy is a must.

Will the raid set up be standard enough ,and the connecting of all other devices to the "server" ?

Cuddlesworth · 12-09-2014 2:27pm

Throwaway Account wrote: »

office.microsoft. com /en-gb/business/office-365-small-business-premium-office-online-FX104355764.aspx

Office 365; Cloud and word/email traditional feel.

Considering the amount of you and the fact you're out of the office 70% of the time, this would make the most sense.

Folders and files can be synced and worked on offline between the 3 people in a way which doesn't require securing your office network. Version history can help avoid confusion working on files offline.

You could couple it with a Synology NAS in the office synced with the 1TB of storage with office 365 for faster access there and more control over the data plus archiving.

Belfunk · 12-09-2014 2:30pm

Tiernanism93 wrote: »

This is exactly what I needed to hear , thank you!
Regards active directories , dont need anything there. An offsite backup wont be necessary,once again, staff decision. But a raid setup in case of redundancy is a must.

Will the raid set up be standard enough ,and the connecting of all other devices to the "server" ?

You should really consider an offsite backup. What if your office is burgled or a fire is starts raid won't be much use then.

ED E · 12-09-2014 2:33pm

RAID isnt a backup. Dont put all your company data in one place and not have another machine at least replicating it, even if its only 10ft away. Ignore the staff on that one.

Tiernanism93 · 12-09-2014 2:39pm

Belfunk wrote: »

You should really consider an offsite backup. What if your office is burgled or a fire is starts raid won't be much use then.

This is a small business within a group of businesses where the main company is in the middle of "webifying" everything and integrating a whole company server. The main company has already invested in a NAS solution with an offsite backup . The future plan is to get every company physically under the one roof , and connect everybody to the one server with the remote access also.
Most of this will be dealt with by an external company too.

What we want do to for now really is just have a common ground for this particular office with 3 people to file share and backup.The issue is spending a lot of money on a setup that will only be used for 6 months or less , if there is a cheaper solution to just file share for now and backup extremely important files to an external HDD even that is taken home every evening.

Also , thanks again everyone for the help and opinions! Feel free to correct me where im talking rubbish :P

Tiernanism93 · 12-09-2014 2:50pm

ED E wrote: »

RAID isnt a backup. Dont put all your company data in one place and not have another machine at least replicating it, even if its only 10ft away. Ignore the staff on that one.

I understand that Raid is not a substitution for backing up data , but its still necessary, in the case of hardware failures , we want to keep on trucking and not be bogged down for a day because the server is down! As we all know then where the finger is pointed!

But if the staff decides for now that they dont want an offsite backup, or to pay any subscription fees for cloud based solutions ,well then there is only so much I can do for them, which they understand and are willing to take the chance on.

Tiernanism93 · 12-09-2014 2:52pm

Also ,

Would an NAS not solve my problem for now , or is there something im missing out that they cant do?

http:// www. dlink .com/ uk/en/support/product/dns-320l-sharecenter-2-bay-cloud-storage-enclosure

Cuddlesworth · 12-09-2014 2:58pm

Tiernanism93 wrote: »

This is exactly what I needed to hear , thank you!
Regards active directories , dont need anything there. An offsite backup wont be necessary,once again, staff decision. But a raid setup in case of redundancy is a must.

Will the raid set up be standard enough ,and the connecting of all other devices to the "server" ?

From your questions, I think you're heading into a world of hurt.

Tiernanism93 · 12-09-2014 3:08pm

Cuddlesworth wrote: »

From your questions, I think you're heading into a world of hurt.

Crap. -_-

Not the most helpful comment ,but appreciate your honesty!

Okay , well lets just take it back a step.

Basically then, best solution to fileshare between the different Laptops in the office.

Tiernanism93 · 12-09-2014 3:20pm

May not be the ideal solution , but just connected a HDD up to the USB Port of the router here and works for copying and sharing files , as bog standard as it gets. But works for now.

Im going to take this opportunity to apologize to everybody who commented, I think I definitely over complicated this one.

Cuddlesworth · 12-09-2014 3:22pm

Tiernanism93 wrote: »

Also ,

Would an NAS not solve my problem for now , or is there something im missing out that they cant do?

http:// www. dlink .com/ uk/en/support/product/dns-320l-sharecenter-2-bay-cloud-storage-enclosure

Limited by your offices upload speed in terms of access.
High cost base for limited storage in the short term.
Not as redundant as a cloud solution.
For external access, ports need to be opened and the security is limited.
Not a good method of file/version control across multiple people.

Tiernanism93 · 12-09-2014 3:28pm

Conclusion time -

I think the office is asking me to do the impossible , they dont want to wait for the whole system to be set up by the parent group but also dont want to spend the money on setting up a short term solution for themselves.

This isnt even my job! I build and maintain the company websites, thus the reason my first suggestion was google drive or dropbox , but old fashioned staff asking for something they can use easily and not willing to spend a few hours testing out a trial version of the software.

I really appreciate everybody commenting and giving their opinions/solutions.

I think they will be fine using the HDD connected to the router for now for file sharing and then I will back it up in the evenings.

Thanks guys, and im going to leave the rest of it to the professionals.

advertsfox · 12-09-2014 3:38pm

I did up a diagram for you, it's a simple setup for you.

The SBS will just use RDP (Remote Desktop) Access from your laptops (on by default), shared drives, Dropbox as an online backup and a FTP Host (Filezilla is free and easy). The NAS can act as the source for your daily backup on the server via ethernet (preferred) or USB depending on the NAS itself. All laptops can then RDP in if required, access Dropbox from anywhere and automatically get the latest synced files and use the Shared Drive within the office. Tonnes of options.

Mr. G · 12-09-2014 7:25pm

Take a look at Zentyal

yoyo · 12-09-2014 8:09pm

Moved from Comp & Tech.

13-09-2014 7:09am

How about Windows Server foundation 2012 acting as a file share, these shares being backed up to the cloud via a service such as Keep it safe, gfi max, etc for compliance.

A Sonicwall TZ 205 to protect that network and to provide VPN access to the laptops.

shanec1928 · 13-09-2014 7:26am

Absoluty no point in wasting 100s if not 1000s on a server set up if for 6 months. Give people Hobson's choice of a cloud based storage ie Dropbox. Explain to them it's as simple as dragging and dropping the file. This is the best solution if people are out of the office most of the time.
If you do go the server route online backups are critical! Plenty of companies out their providing this service.

13-09-2014 7:34am

shanec1928 wrote: »

Absoluty no point in wasting 100s if not 1000s on a server set up if for 6 months. Give people Hobson's choice of a cloud based storage ie Dropbox. Explain to them it's as simple as dragging and dropping the file. This is the best solution if people are out of the office most of the time.
If you do go the server route online backups are critical! Plenty of companies out their providing this service.

It is simple, and here comes the but, where I work we have one customer who has dropbox with over 150 users, its a business account.

Problems do arise with dropbox and it can be a pain to deceipher, and comver with very little support.

Another issue with Dropbox is that personal accounts can be linked and associated with business accounts, causing security issues.

I would give Syncplicity a shot over dropbox, its EMC and there is greater features for admin control than Dropbox.

shanec1928 · 13-09-2014 7:52am

Just went with Dropbox as everyone knows the name other options like soonr. Is the same as you recommended.
Don't forget the additional costs from the server. Cabling if the server is going somewhere with out network points. Type of drives sas or sata. User cals which are bought separate from server 2012.All these costs add up and if only been used as a temporary solution it's an expensive one.

Small Business Server Setup

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