Best for Multi-User computer

[n4pgw]

Hi,
I am Buck, in Lenoir, NC. I have worked with Linux a little in the past, but not enough to be proficient. I managed to setup a few file servers and an internet firewall during that time but I was not able to stick with it so I am back to square one for now.

I am interested in installing Linux on a spare computer and configuring it so I can run it from any one of the computers in the house. In addition to the Linux box, we have three different desktops and three different laptops running XP Home, XP Pro, Vista and Win98.

I would like the Linux box to be a general file server for our music and other shared files. I would also like users on the various MS computers to be able to log into the Linux box as terminals.

I think that what I am asking for is for the MS computers to be terminals for the Linux box which will store all the software, data, etc. and perform all the processing.


Which free-beer distribution would be easiest to setup and suitable for this wireless network?

Buck
Lenoir, NC
n4pgw.org

[b2bwild]

Ubuntu Server Edition / Debian
Without any questions.

[Roxoff]

Ubuntu Server Edition / Debian
Without any questions.

No, I question it. I hate brown desktops...

There are a number of server-type distros you could pick for this task. If it were me, I'd choose CentOS/RedHat Enterprise. But there are plenty of others, and the choice is down to personal preference.

For the stuff being required, any of the big distributions would deal with this easy, but as a server sticking with Debian, CentOS or SuSE is sensible.

[n4pgw]

Thank you for your replies. I have decided to download the Debian DVDs and go from there.

My decision is based on the answers above and the apparent size of user base which may equate to better support being available.

Thank you
I have lots to learn now.

Buck

[D-cat]

Samba (The Windows file-share interface for Linux) was developed on SuSE. Not only that, SuSE has one of the best "control panels" (Yast) of all the Linux distros, making it one of the easiest to administer, both in graphic desktop and text mode; One interface controls almost all aspects, instead of a dozen or more in other distros. It's ideal for those who are migrating from or interfaceing with Windows (or remember Novell Netware). It is also one of the heaviest, requires 512MB RAM minimum to run smoothly.

[n4pgw]

I visited the Suse site and it looks like red-hat enterprise. Did I miss something?

[b2bwild]

Its bit different.
personally i hate SuSE but you can always try it out.

[D-cat]

Red Hat is (or was) sponsored and developed by IBM. SuSE is developed by Novell. They are in friendly competition. They actually are not directly related; Red Hat spawned the Fedora project, but SuSE actually evolved from SlackWare- they only added in the RedHat Package Manager (RPM) to help manage the distro's software collection in a more friendly way (Slackware typically required you to compile everything from source).

I just personally find that SuSE (or OpenSuSE for the public) is the most administrator friendly distro (which is good for multi-user systems with file shares); the Novell boys really showed their talent on that one. Hint, don't default to KDE4 desktop, it's still buggy In fact, for most server functions, you don't even need X installed, Yast works perfectly fine in text mode, so you can save your resources and still have a central interface for setting up Hardware, Software, Samba (Windows) Shares, Users, Network, security, and other system administration tasks. It used to be all I used.

Yes, right now my Server is Ubuntu server, but that's only because I had to upgrade to use my new printer and SuSE 11 setup will not start on 128MB RAM. Prior was SuSE 10.2. If I could have gotten SuSE 11 to start on thin resources, I'd still be using it. Ubuntu Server has the necessary tools, but they're basic or primitive, and you have to seek them out. I guess I've just been spoiled.

[n4pgw]

I was looking for a 'free' as in 'beer' Linux. I keep seeing discussion about Red Hat, which is strictly commercial, and Suse. In times past, Suse offered a commercial product for 6-12 months and then opened it up for free. However, when I went to their site recently, I was unable to find the downloadable version.

Am I missing something?

Thanks
Buck

[b2bwild]

OpenSUSE is free, SuSE Enterpirse Server isnt.