Need to find distro

[Rifter]

Hello all, i have limted linux experiance, been using mint for a few months and love it. I want to setup a file server in my home network and want to use linux because its free and more stable, i want it to be able to do the following:

1. Split my cable connection to share to 3+ computers/consoles
2. Firewall my network
3. Host a FTP
4. Share at least 2-4 1TB HDD's of storage to the rest of the network just for backups and media files the rest of network will be running Vista 64bit and or linux Mint 6.
5. Be able to have complete remote desktop control, do not want to have keyboard mouse monitor for the computer.
6. Be able to run 24/7 for years with minimal downtime.

Will be modern PC with specs as follows
AMD 7750 kuma Dual core 2.7Ghz
2GB DDR2 800 memory

Thanks for any input you can offer.

[Rubberman]

1. Plug your cable modem into a router such as a Linksys or similar router/switch.
2. #1 will take care of the firewall - it will give you a hardware filewall that is likely more secure than just about any software firewall you will find, at least without a lot of careful configuration.
3. A Linux system can do this easily, Mint included. Check your services entry in the Administration menu.
4. You can start a Samba server on your Linux box, and all your Windows machines will be able to share files on that. Another option is to plug a NAS such as a Buffalo TeraStation (which run embedded Linux) into the switch/router. They aren't too expensive, and provide a number of RAID options that are easy to configure via a web interface. They also support FTP access.
5. You can set them up to use a remote console either via a serial port of via the network. You can also remote-control them with a VNC client.
6. With a simple setup like you indicate, running 24x7 for extended periods should not be a problem, though a small UPS would not be amiss.

[Rifter]

I was hopeing to use the PC and not have to buy a router as i already have the hardware for the PC. I was also going to wanted to learn more about linux file sharing/connection sharing/etc. and administration as i will be able to use this with my new job. Will any distro do what i want?

[Rubberman]

I was hopeing to use the PC and not have to buy a router as i already have the hardware for the PC. I was also going to wanted to learn more about linux file sharing/connection sharing/etc. and administration as i will be able to use this with my new job. Will any distro do what i want?

You can use your PC as a router and firewall - LInux does that very well. It just is not as secure as a hardware firewall. And you will have to become familiar with a lot of tools to do it well. Also, to do this, you will need a second ethernet port and/or ethernet switch, which is (if your system doesn't already have one) going to cost about as much or more than a cheap Linksys or similar home/small-business router with included switch. I don't recommend the approach you seem to want to take, but if you are determined to go that route, then I wish you the best.

[Rifter]

I already own a 8 port gigabit switch, also the computer that i want to use has a 10/100 PCI NIC i was going to connect to the modem and a gigabit port on the mobo i was going to connect to the switch.

[Rubberman]

I already own a 8 port gigabit switch, also the computer that i want to use has a 10/100 PCI NIC i was going to connect to the modem and a gigabit port on the mobo i was going to connect to the switch.

Sounds good. That's what you need from the HW perspective. You can firewall your system with iptables or other tools - best to do some research to see what will be best for you. From what you have said about your hardware, you should be in pretty good shape there, though more RAM is always better. I'd recommend that you double the RAM. DDR-2 800Mhz RAM is pretty inexpensive these days. Another 2GB will cost you less than $50 USD. I just checked on buy.com, and 2GB is running only a bit over $20 in fact, with free shipping - at least if you're in the USA.

[egan]

For your purposes, you need a very barebones, yet extremely stable system.

I don't really want to turn you away from Linux, but perhaps FreeBSD would be a good candidate for the job. It has state of the art storage handling and it cited as the most robust operating system. But this might not be feasible if you are unsure of some of the basics.

Seriously, any Linux system would suffice, its just a question as to whether or not you need the full-fledged systems that so many distros are today.

[Rifter]

I will look into free BSD, like i said i have only been using linux for a few months as a desktop with mint 6 so maybe free BSD is worth a look. I could set this all up on a MS network in a matter of minutes i just wanted to learn more of the linux side of things. This is as much for a learning experiance as anything else. So if anyone could suggest a specific linux distro that would excell at what im trying to accomplish that would be great.

[b2bwild]

Why not debian? for me it works like a charm. Its easier.

[Rubberman]

Why not debian? for me it works like a charm. Its easier.

Not to diss debian - it's a fine distribution, but all the major scientific labs use RHEL-based systems, so they have a LOT of tools that are well-supported on that OS. For example, at FNAL (Fermi National Lab) where my wife is a staff physicist working in the computer division, they have arrays / clusters of 1000's of 64-bit x86 system running Scientific Linux to crunch petabytes (they might be up to exabytes by now) of data a month. Stability, reliability, performance, and security are all serious concerns to them. Since Rifter had emphasized his scientific computing needs, CentOS or Scientific Linux are good, proven selections for him.

FWIW, after 15 months of 12 hours a day using CentOS, I feel about it like you do for debian!