which version of linux?

zap

I have a P2 350 lying around somewhere and i was thinking of using it as a file/web server. I was thinking of puutting two network cards in it plugging the dsl gateway into the first one and then plugging the second one into the the router. Anyone any recommendations on what flavour of *unix to use?

aidan_walsh

The nice thing about Linux is that it works well on some of the crappiest hardware you can throw at it. For example, I'm currently setting up my old Compaq Presario in the same way you are using Fedora Core 2, and it runs like a dream.

Red Alert

Slackware is very good for older boxes and is good security-wise. That's what i'm using at the moment for my file server, although i'm thinking of converting to Gentoo after the success on my dell laptop. I was thinking of using an OpenBSD firewall as it's more or less unhackable, although in the installation process will eat you for breakfast!

tck

www.ubuntulinux.org is nice - great support (ubuntuguide.org and #ubuntu irc chan on freenode.net )

off topic : http://www.novell.com/linux/windowstolinux/publicservice/ hehe

Fenster

There's always Gentoo, if you can stand being considered a ricer kiddie by the Linux community (read a Gentoo thread on Slashdot ).

Capt'n Midnight

Depends on how much ram you have.
Less than 96 and you can forget about Knoppix or Ubuntu with a GUI
if you have 32MB or more you can run Knoppix in console (Knoppix 2) -perhaps you can do the same with ubuntu

most versions of linux let you use telnet / webmin / etc. so you can manage remotely without needing monitor or keyboard

Fenster

Capt'n Midnight wrote:

Depends on how much ram you have.
Less than 96 and you can forget about Knoppix or Ubuntu with a GUI
if you have 32MB or more you can run Knoppix in console (Knoppix 2) -perhaps you can do the same with ubuntu

most versions of linux let you use telnet / webmin / etc. so you can manage remotely without needing monitor or keyboard

Gnome and KDE are system hogs. Probably better off using Fluxbox or the like.

dahamsta

There's no logical reason to put a GUI on a machine that's going to operate as a server, Webmin and a shell are all you need. Personally I tend to avoid SuSE and Mandrake on servers these days; SuSE because it has a horrid filesystem layout, Mandrake because even the server-class install includes a load of GUI crap. I'd recommend Fedora.

adam

bminish

zap wrote:

. Anyone any recommendations on what flavour of *unix to use?

take a look at clarkconnect, it's pretty much designed for the job
clarkconnect

scojones

Slackware/Gentoo/Debian/FreeBSD.

dahamsta

bminish wrote:

take a look at clarkconnect, it's pretty much designed for the job

He has a point.

Does ClarkConnect do filesharing though Brendan? Last time I used one of these (SmoothWall) it was great as a router/proxy, but I had to switch to a full-blown install for mail/web/file/etc.

adam

mneylon

Debian, or a variant, is a nice option if you don't want loads of extra stuff you will never use.

tomk

dahamsta wrote:

Does ClarkConnect do filesharing though Brendan?

Indeed it does.

dahamsta wrote:

Last time I used one of these (SmoothWall) it was great as a router/proxy, but I had to switch to a full-blown install for mail/web/file/etc.

Smoothwall is strictly a firewall only, their position being that the addition of any other services introduces potential security holes.

Speaking of which..........

zap wrote:

I was thinking of putting two network cards in it plugging the dsl gateway into the first one and then plugging the second one into the the router.

So the box is going to have a public routable IP address - right? IMO, this is not a good idea (I agree with the Smoothwall approach myself). By all means, set it up as a file/web server, but on your internal network - you can forward ports to it from your router/firewall as required.

osmethod

OpenBSD or FreeBSD are good options also.

Bare in mind using a dual homed box as you suggest will require iptables to be configured in linux or pf in *bsd.

osmethod

mneylon

osmethod wrote:

OpenBSD or FreeBSD are good options also.

But neither are linux

tw0nk

Ive been using mepis for the last month after trying around 8 different distros, this is by far the easiest (installs from livecd to hd) easy setup of samba file sharing etc, comes with tonnes of software preinstalled, great online community on irc if you need help. It also plugs directly into the debian synaptic network so you can get whatever software you want from it with a click of a button and it will install.

ps. i promise i dont work for mepis : )

diarmuidmcd

I am a big fan of Slakware meself.. It runs very well on hardware with limited resources (Libretto 100ct with 64mb ram) and all the administartion apps are text based..

Suse is a very polished distro but really needs good resources to run well..