Going open source on a SO/HO server box
This is a blog made about a transition from one server system to
another, with several goals:
1. This blog may be served from the resulting system.
2. My (apperently unique) requirements will be met.
3. The proccess will be well documented. Anyone can learn from this blog.
4. The right persons might fill the hole that this blog exposes.
This blog is written by a computer user familiar
with MS Windows servers. I am trying to understand the what and
why of server configuration. Notice that I believe emphatically
that the "why" is just as important as the "what". This will let
a person expand one's own knowledge beyond what is taught. This
holds true for any form of education, especialy for tech.
If the why isn't adequate, the what is irrelevant to put it
simply. Doing something "just because" is asinine to say the
least. As a parent you only say "because I said so" just to get
out of explanations. (Yes I am a father, and no I don't use that
line!)
When finished, this blog will contain all the
nessacery steps to convert a Microsoft based server to a Linux based
server. It may even get you to a BSD server (with small
modifications to the process) although BSD is not my personal
goal. My goal is to provide an understanding of the software that
I have chosen to use on my server (apache, proFTPd, samba, rsync,
TightVNC, SSL/SSH, etc...) so that you may configure it to your liking,
and I might create a GUI for configuratoin that is multi-licensed for
compatibility with your favorite *nix based OS.
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Entry: 001
Feb 12, 09
When I set up my server some time ago, I tried many
different versions of Linux and found that none
of them had anything near an easy, intuitive and useful configuration
program. With all the networking I
do in my own home, I needed it up quick.. I was far too
busy a person to be bothered to learn why
apache and proFTPd would not start after installation. At the
time SMB support was a joke that I didn't
think was very funny. I had no choice but to go with Microsoft.
My server is currently set up so that it is my
gateway, DNS, DHCP server, fileserver (SMB/FTP). I
also have mirrored my favorit distro's repository to save bandwidth
(instead of 7-12 PC's, now it's just my
server that downloads updates). I still need SMB support for the
windows PC's that connect, so going NFS is
not an option at this time. I manage my server through
TightVNC at the moment, as it is a far more intuitive
option than webmin or the web interface that comes with windows.
What I want is a Linux server to replace this box.
I would like to be able to trust (to a point) remote
administration of this server i.e. over the internet. I have time
at the moment to learn how Linux server
software works, and learn C. I already know POSIX shell
scripting fairly well, but kdialog doesn't make
a great GUI.
The version of Linux that I intend to use will be
Slackware. The reasoning behind this is that when I am
finished setting this all up, I will be able to set it up on any
version of linux, and possibly improve the current
configuration software. It was either Slackware or Linux
From Scratch, so I chose to slack as it was quicker.
If you are a sysadmin and are up to the challenge of
why, then you can get credit
for your help. Please help,
as I intend on making the Linux community a little brighter in this
area. I will gladly give back the knowledge
that I gain in doing this.
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