[Ilugc] sugeest for server

[Arun Khan]

On Sunday 14 Sep 2008, Thanigairajan murugan wrote:
> Hi Luggies,
>
> We have 100 nodes running php,ruby,java & Dotnet applications.
> In server side we  have M$ windows ADS,proxy,dhcp, etc.
> Now we planned to switch over entire server in to LINUX. (But most of
> the nodes are still M$ only) We planned to configure  centralized
> mysql server,samba, firewall,DNS,Apache ,etc. Please suggest me good
> hardware configuration and also distro (either debian or centos
> else..)

Either Debian or CentOS is a good choice for both servers and 
development type workstations (personal preference CentOS which is 
equivalent of RHEL).  Choose one and stick with it 'cuz  you need to 
consider their maintenance (upgrades etc.)

1. For the size of your network, a high end desktop system would do for 
DNS, LDAP, proxy server.  Recommend two systems one for primary and one 
for secondary (replica of primary).

2. A server grade hardwar for MySQL, Samba, Web server.  Suggest you 
find AMD/Intel channel partner. You will be able to order best of class 
hardware compared to name brands (no one of them give you a choice on 
the brand of hard disks for example) and the bundle will cost you less.

3. Suggest you also deploy a NMS like Nagios/Cactii for monitoring 
purposes.  This could be done on the systems for item 1 above.

4. For edge firewall, suggest an appliance (like Linksys, DLink) and 
ensure that all services on the WAN port are closed and then open up 
only the necessary ports for incoming traffic.

5. Optional - seek professional help for the migration in case you do 
not have in house expertise on the above.

HTH,
-- Arun Khan