File Server Advice

russ9898

russ9898

russ9898

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27 Dec 2004
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Staffordshire
Hi,

Im considering setting up myself a dedicated file server at home. I currently have several hard drives inside my desktop computer

1 x 500gb IDE Drive
1 x 300gb IDE Drive
2 x 160gb IDE Drive's (Raid 0) so 320gb

I have a spare 80gb hard drive lying around that i would use for some form of operating system on the file server but thats about as much as i know if im honest. i do some basic network sharing currently from my desktop pc but just using windows file sharing.

Whats the best OS to use for a file server?

Is it possible to get the drives shared on my file server to appear as though they are physical drives inside my computer like they currently are when i open my computer rather than just mapped drives?

Ive heard people mention using file servers as torrent boxes, what does this mean? would i carry on using utorrent on my computer but just setting the download directory to a folder on the file server somewere?

I presume all control could be done remotely via VNC or windows remote desktop?

I would have an FTP server installed on the file server, although it would have minimal use, mainly just for friends to access pictures etc, would be lucky to
get logged onto once a week in all honesty.

So with all that in mind what sort of spec server do you think i require?

Sorry for all the questions, any advice offered will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Russ
 
You will not need a high spec computer at all, an old Pentium 3 rig with 512Mb ram would be fine. Windows XP Pro would be fine for sharing files over a Network. You could try Windows Home Server which you can download a free 30 day trial and you can also register for the Beta which ends in June or July I think.

You can use Tightvnc for controling the PC from your desktop.

I think what peaople mean by torrent boxes are that they install their favourite torrent client on their server and leave it open 24/7 and download to the hard drives in their server. You can also download from your desktop to your server just set the download path to the hard drive on your server.
 
I've got a lame 1Ghz AMD, 256Mb machine downstairs with 700Gb in (over 3 HDDs) running Ubuntu Server edition - made some custom download scripts in bash and installed a torrent downloader - tied it together with Samba to make the drives accessible from my windows laptop machines.

Works like a dream, haven't rebooted in over 5 months.
 
If you want a file server that is JUST a file server you can get specific distributions like FreeNAS which are awesome for exactly that. If you want it to do other things like downloading then go with a Linux distro.

Personally, I wouldn't use ubuntu for it and would go for something a bit better as a server but its up to you.
 
Id like to point out if you decide on the WHS way of life, then you make the largest drive the system drive. It partitions 20gb for the OS, and the rest is storage. It does help with performance and how the system works.
 
teaboy5 said:
IMO i dont think you need a file server at all.

What wrong with just keeping the hard drive in your computer?
Click to expand...

My computer tower is running out of room, physically for more hard drives. I dont really want a larger tower under my desktop. A file server i have plenty of homes for such as a boreded out part of the loft which already has some cat5 coiled up waiting to be terminated as the house come pre wired for a network.

I also use XBMC (xbox media centre) and considering placing a couple more xbmc units around the house so would be much easier to have a media server thats on 24/7.

Thanks for the advice guys, im in 2 minds whether to go the windows xp or freenas root as both have their advantages.
 
I'd personally stick with Windows. As one person suggests you can use the trial of home server. Even a Windows 2000 machine would be fine.

For remote control on anything newer than Windows 2000 (i.e. XP / 2003 / Home Server) just use the inbuilt Terminal Services Client. Very easy to setup and already contained in the package rather than installing other items.

I wouldn't, personally, touch a linux distribution. For me I've been using Windows far to long and I know what I can do. With Windows everything is contained in there and if you've been using Windows then you will have no problems setting it up.



M.
 
just stick XP on the box, espec if youre not too fussed about setting up ACL's etc. perfectly reasonable for home use if you ask me.
 
neil_g said:
just stick XP on the box, espec if youre not too fussed about setting up ACL's etc. perfectly reasonable for home use if you ask me.
Click to expand...

Ditto. I've got an XP machine (nothing special: P4 2GHz, 512MB) on the network which I can remote control using Remote Desktop on my laptop, so no need for it's own monitor. This machine has all my downloads, music, photos and videos stored on it which I access over a mapped network drive.

I have uTorrent installed on the PC to enable 24/7 downloading without needing my laptop to be turned on. I also have Media Sharing enabled in WMP11 and this shared media appears in my WMP Library on my laptop. It can also be accessed from my Xbox360 if I wish.

Stick with XP. Everything you need comes as standard..there's no need for anything else!
 
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