Server Applications

gobby

Hey all,

I have started a my first full time job so I have a little bit of cash to splash around. Of course, somne of that will go into sorting out my pc with some more ram, better cooling etc.

But what I was wondering is this... Is there any point in trying to seperate some of my data by way of using a file server? What advantages would a setup like this have over a normal setup. Bearing in mind that there is two pc's (mine and the familys) and one mobile (work pc) with wireless.

I guess I should also mention that my pc is setup with a wireless connection cos the family dont want wires messing up the house!

I also have no interest in web hosting at the moment.

I partitioned my hdd a good while ago (160 gig -> 2x80 gig). The idea was to seperate documents and programs so that in the event of an os problem I could repair the os partition without disturbing the documents.

The only problem with this arrangment was that I ran out of space on the documents drive in no time at all. This is what has led me to thinking about the possible benefits of trying to seperate my doc's even more, by using a server.

Any thoughts or suggestions? Has anyone tried this approach before? If so why did you do it and how has it worked out?

Rollo Tamasi

One of my friends did the exact same setup as you purpose. He has something like 6 HD's full of music and programs on a PC which is permanetly connected to his 4meg broadband service. He then connects via FTP to his PC and downloads or play the audio files, etc.... The only thing i know for sure is that he has a UPS and is running windows XP. Thats all online thou.

If you want to do it offline you would need to setup a LAN and have a dedicated PC to host the files and then just use the printer and file sharing facility within XP to share the files.

I'm sure there are other & better ways to do this thou.

CuLT

I've recently done the same thing that you're interested in doing; I have to say it's been a worthy investment so far.

My favourite feature is the ability to use remote desktop, having two computers to run various applications is a godsend; I can startup a load of programs on the remote machine, minimize the desktop of that machine and browse away online, or do something else on my desktop machine without suffering any slowdown.

When I'm ready, I just fullscreen the remote desktop client again and everything's all loaded up

I have four hard disks in my server machine, having that in my room (when it was my desktop) could be incredibly irritating, not to mention the fans always on the go, so I relocated it to my attic and put a cable through the ceiling to connect a workstation machine to the server.

One of the problems that you'd likely encounter from attic location is a power source, which was already in my attic because of a previous need for a light source.

I actually starting writing a little article on the setup when I was in work to pass the time, you might be interested (attachment).

Rollo Tamasi

Thats a nice setup CuLT, will you adding a step by step guide to your home networking doc?

Gobby, here is a link to a thread in the web hosting forum about setting up your own web server. I know it might contain a bit of over kill for the job you want to do but it is worth a look if you want to learn some more...
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=92972

Rew

I dont see much point in having a LAN and a file sever for one person TBH. Its also worth considering the extra ESB costs now that electricity prices are going through the roof.

One potential benifit would be distriubting music and video to differnt rooms, not a cheap or easy thing to be doing though.

CuLT

Rollo Tamasi wrote:

Thats a nice setup CuLT, will you adding a step by step guide to your home networking doc?

Undoubtedly, I can have quite an amount of free time in work depending on how the days go. There are plenty of guides online about setting up networks, there's always room for more though I guess as everyone tends to have different needs and resources.

CuLT

Rew wrote:

I dont see much point in having a LAN and a file sever for one person TBH. Its also worth considering the extra ESB costs now that electricity prices are going through the roof.

One potential benifit would be distriubting music and video to differnt rooms, not a cheap or easy thing to be doing though.

Hmm, well this would be a major use of mine, I have all the music and video files stored on the server which is used for music and video distribution to the computers in the house.

I've outlined the actual costs involved, considering the amount most people can spend on a single gaming machine these days I think a home network can be a very cheap and useful thing to build by comparison; it's a fantastic learning experience for anyone interested in computers.

Rollo Tamasi

I have a wirless Netgear router and i'm considering setting up a complete wireless LAN across my 4 PC's, eventually i want to create a testing server running linux for php/sql and general site management so i'll defo be interested in the in's and out's of your setup.

gobby

Thanks for all the replies. Definitly food for thought.

@Rew: I still live with the oul pair so the network is actually for 3 peeps...

Lush

The cheapest, quickest & easiest way for you to gain more disk space is to buy a USB connected external HDD for about €185. Plus you can connect it to any PC... :cool:

gobby

Lush wrote:

The cheapest, quickest & easiest way for you to gain more disk space is to buy a USB connected external HDD for about €185. Plus you can connect it to any PC... :cool:

Yup, was thinking of that too. Mostly because myself and my mates dont seem to meet for LAN's anymore so I need an alternative method of data sharing.