Want to know more..

[Priapus]

Morning guys,

I've just started getting into servers and want to find out more about them. I'm talking about the type of servers used in big companys. The ones I have seen are in a tall cabnet and have a crap load of eithernet cables coming out of the switches etc.

It's this setup I would like to know more about and find out just how these setups work.

Is there anywhere I can do some reasearch on servers? Also, want to get to know SBS 2003 better.

Any info would be greatly appericated!

Robert

 

[growse]

A bit of a broad area really. Are you more interested in the physical side of things, like what hardware, cooling equipment and other suchlike are used to keep the servers running, or more in the design of the systems and services that run on the servers?

 

[t!mo]

Get a job?

 

[paradigm]

Large cabinets full of servers with lots of ethernet connections and SBS do not mix.

Decide what you are after, learning small office solutions, or large-scale enterprise solutions.

 

[Priapus]

Okay let me re explain what I am after here.

I want to learn more on all type of servers, hardware side and the software side. I do have a job, thank-you-very-much.

 

[brainchylde]

My advice. Think of yourself as a Doctor. If you have a heart problem, don't go to see a back specialist.

You NEED to specialise and become an expert in a small area if you want to earn a decent wage. Else you will likely become desktop support and not move far from there.

Saying your want to learn more on hardware and software side about servers doesn't really help. You mention the fact there seem to be a large number of ethernet cables running out of switches and so on. Is it networking you would be interested in? Or Server management?

Don't worry too much about the hardware side of servers - it's nothing more than an advanced PC, really.Lots of duplicity in terms of power supplies and so on.

If you want to learn about server software - build your own at home - there are a number of threads on here regarding building your own home server.

I'm not really sure what 'research' you want to do into how they work, though. They generally link back into a switch. THe cables can often look complex, but they aren't. If you want to learn about why all the cables are connected as they are and so on - it's network infrastructure you want, not servers.

But, in reality, the only way in which you will get a broader education on this subject is a) do it yourself - build your own server & small network infrastructure and fiddle around.. or better still.. b) get into a job where you can get involved in the server/network side of things. Preferably in an Small/Medium Enterprise where you will get exposure to the more newer technologies.

One of the big things you MAY want to consider learning about is Storage. Particularly Storage Area Networks and to a lesser extent, Network-attached Storage. I imagine this is going to be big business in years to come.

 

[paradigm]

That doesn't really explain what you are after.

How does furthering your knowledge help you in your current situation, are you the It support for a small business, or are you part of a large enterprise? Do you even work in IT at all?

Saying "all type of servers, hardware side and the software side" is so broad there wouldn't be one repository for information. What platforms would you require knowledge on, what applications would they need to provide, would they be public or private facing, etc etc.

Why specifically do you want to know, what is the situation leading to the request for knowledge?

 

[Sin_Chase]

Echoing some of the other comments here, you simply cannot learns "servers"

I've worked in I.T for ages and my server knowledge is entirely centric around my work, if I do not need to work on it, I likely do not know about it. My work happens to give me a broad range of expertise on what you are calling "servers".

For example, I do not work in environments big enough to justify Blade servers, as such, I have not worked on them. Nor have I deployed or supported a cluster environment.

I sell HP, running Windows.
Mail is handled with Exchange.
Web and AntiSpam I deploy marshal products.

I stick to this, unless there is an application and/or requirement for something else, we tend to stick to what we know. You would be wasting your time just learning areas for the sake of learning, without using it you will likely forget it. I forget Command Line active directory scripting all the time, I do not use it often.

There is nothing special as such about servers, think of them as big desktops, with expandability, high availability, scalability and in some cases specialist application.

If you want to pickup practical experience that you want to go towards a change in job (I do not know, you tell us?) then get a desktop and dump Windows Server on it and play. Learn how to setup a basic Domain Controller with File and Print roles.

 

[Priapus]

Morning all,

Okay I guess the problem is that I do not know a lot about them at the moment, hence why I didn't really know how to ask the questions. Thank you for pointing out all the types etc..

So, here goes again.

I work in a company who does networking, servers and IT support.

At the moment they have put me in a joniur position so that I can learn all there is to know on the types of work they do. Now, the areas which I need to know are theses:

• SBS 2003 - How to configur it, manage it etc.
• Exchange 2003 - Want to know how it works, how to set it up on the domain controller.
• Network infrastructure - Want to know why there are so many cables, which some seem to loop into two switches ( patch panels? ) and anything else regarding them.

Think that's all for now. I apologise for not being clear in the first place...

Regards,
Robert.

 

[Sp00n]

Do some training?

 

[paradigm]

• SBS 2003 - How to configur it, manage it etc.
• Exchange 2003 - Want to know how it works, how to set it up on the domain controller.
• Network infrastructure - Want to know why there are so many cables, which some seem to loop into two switches ( patch panels? ) and anything else regarding them.

Best way to learn SBS2003 is to have a play with it. As has already been stated in the thread, get a copy, get a spare (or virtual) machine set up, and just go through the install. SBS is a funny beast (and not reagarded by many as a "proper" server 2003 install) which wants to hold all the FSMO roles itself. In short, it doesn't play well with other servers at all.

If you are mainly working with SBS, then exchange, will be part and parcel (as I said before, SBS is odd) of the package. Play with it, get to know about connectors, how to configure mailing domains, and how the mailboxes are attributes of the users within active directory (users & computers applet).

You'll need to know about DHCP, DNS, WINS, and perhaps RRAS (Routing & Remote Access).

As for the networking aspect, it seems quite strange to me that you see lots of looped back connections with mutiple switches and redundant links in an SBS environment, as surely to god, the infrastructure would be overkill for the type of enviroment SBS can serve. Anyway, you are correct in calling the panels in the cab patch panels. The cables from the rear of the sockets will most likely be traced through the walls/ceiling to form structured cabling for the building, used for both voice and data comms usually. You'd then use the patch panels to "patch in" the wall ports to a switch (data) or PABX/PBX (voice). If there are any redundant links (multiple paths in a star topology network, between switches), then they should be running spanning tree protocol, to avoid packet duplication, and eventual network flooding. You may also want to look up VLANs, Port Mirroring, Teaming etc etc etc.

As has already been said, the field is massive, and the training for it can vary heavily depending on your working environment. But there is certainly nothing wrong with having a play off your own back and getting a feel for everything. Plenty of tutorials out there on sites such as Petril, Experts Exchange, MSExchange.org, etc etc.

 

[#Chri5#]

Best way to learn SBS2003 is to have a play with it. As has already been stated in the thread, get a copy, get a spare (or virtual) machine set up, and just go through the install. SBS is a funny beast (and not reagarded by many as a "proper" server 2003 install) which wants to hold all the FSMO roles itself. In short, it doesn't play well with other servers at all.

It does play well with other servers, just make sure they are member servers. SBS 2008 Premium is a 2 server solution now.

At the moment they have put me in a joniur position so that I can learn all there is to know on the types of work they do

You'll never learn all there is to know. I've been working with servers from the days of NT3.51/Netware 3 and SBS since v4.5. I still see new things on SBS, Exchange etc etc.

If your employer is good, they'll expose you to lots but not drop you in at the deep-end. As paradigm says, hands on learning is good for SBS etc. Get yourself setup with a virtual PC host so you can do some installs of SBS in a sandbox environment.

 

[paradigm]

It does play well with other servers, just make sure they are member servers. SBS 2008 Premium is a 2 server solution now.

Well yes, but he isn't talking about 2008, he was talking about 2003, which doesn't play well with others.

And by play well with others, I meant have another server that held a vital role, either exchange, or an FSMO role.

 

[Witor]

Not used SBS 2003 personally, Windows 2003/2008 here but i'm guessing the basics will apply.

Have a play with the following, assuming its available to you, to ease you into servers: (Virtual server or spare PC/server if available, end result is pretty much the same if youre testing/learning)

Installation of SBS/OS - Not hard, pretty much the same as a PC
Configuration of above
Setup of DNS/DHCP/AD - Creating users, groups, organizational units, DHCP scopes, DNS Zones, etc.
File & folder permissions, ties in with the above, Active directory wise.
Exchange 2003/equivalent - Creating mailboxes, permissions, connectors.

Note down the steps you take, problems you encounter, the internet is your friend. 99.99% of cases, a solution or walk-through will be available on the net in sources mentioned by Paradigm.

That alone should be enough to get your teeth stuck into for a while.

 

[paradigm]

Oh, also have a play with the GPMC, and get your head around group policies, how they can be used to manipulate users, computers, and software (such as software distribution by group membership) etc.

 

[Sin_Chase]

SBS2003 works fine with others as long as you don't have other servers wanting FSMO rolls or running AD.

I have plenty of SBS sites running separate TSs, Mail/Proxies etc.

It is true though its more of a Next Next next wizard to a fully fledged Windows environment.

 

[kefkef]

Quite a lot covered already, but one thing to remember, if you are in a junior position that means there should be more experienced people with you, don't forget to ask lots (and lots!) of Why, how, what questions of them. Have a little notebook in your pocket and make notes to review later (it's quite easy to think to yourself 'oooh, that was so easy i can do that' then come back to it 3-6mths later and not totally recall what to do!)

 

[Priapus]

Thank you so much for all the help guys. I really do appreciate it. Paradigm I will have a look at all the places and technologies you listed. At the moment I want to look at tutorials and find out what each of these server applications and exchange etc do exactly, then I will take a hands...as I do have a spare PC that I can mess around with. I agree plying with the software is the best way to learn!

Again thank you all so much for your time and effort in assisting me in this regard!

Regards,
Robert Clegg

 

[paradigm]

Feel free to add me to MSN if you want a chat (when I'm not at work that is).

 

[Priapus]

I will do so. Mind you I'm not on a lot these days but would be great to chat on there with you.

Regards,
Robert