[ale] Hardware for a Samba file (and application?) server

[Keith Hopkins]

Ben Ostrowsky wrote:

> When our Netware 3.12 server started pooping out last week, I copied all
> the files (currently only around 7GB) to a Linux server and started up
> Samba.  (Linux to the rescue again, hurrah!)  It has no backup drive,
> though, and the drive isn't mirrored or anything.  So now that my
> organization sees once again that, yes Virginia, Linux can do that too,
> and cheaper, it's time to put together a machine to do this properly.
> 
> I spent most of yesterday working on my plan for a Samba file server
> (optionally to be an application server for X clients, too, since what
> else am I gonna do with that much CPU?).  I based it on the Ultimate
> Linux Box article (q. you definitely ought to v.) in Linux Journal. 
> I've listed the parts I'm thinking of below, but the interesting thing
> is that without going beyond DDS4 capacities, I've had a hard time
> pushing the price above $5000.  (We've got $6000 budgeted, and might not
> throw any more money at this until we replace it in three years or so.)
> 
> What I'm thinking about so far:
> 
> A Tyan Tiger with two 1.4GHz Palominos and four Registered PC2100
> 512MBs, the new 3Com 3CR990-TX-97 NIC that has some onboard crypto (even
> though we're not using it yet), an Adaptec Ultra160 RAID adapter, three
> IBM 36GB 10000rpm Ultra160 drives (I'm thinking 0/5), an HP DDS4 Ultra2
> LVD drive with ten tapes, a Pioneer SCSI 10xDVD/40xCD, a Matrox G450, a
> plain old floppy drive, a Lian-Li PC68 aluminum case with a PC Power &
> Cooling 450W power supply.
> 
> Short of case mods to make it look like the Mystery Machine, what else
> can I do to make this thing useful?  Maybe a fourth drive and just
> stripe 'em all to 36GB total?  That sounds like it's gotta be pushing
> some sort of diminishing return, but I dunno.
> 
> Guess I could rackmount it -- anyone have a favorite manufacturer of 4U
> cases?  I'm guessing that's what I'd need.  And I'm loath to turn my
> rack into an oven with two 1.4GHz Palominos, so great cooling would be
> important if I rackmount it.
> 
> Of course, if I go beyond DDS4 (20GB native, 40GB with an average 2:1
> compression) capacities, I could have four drives and mirror two for
> 72GB. Or 0/5 for 108GB, I think.  What's a decent way to back up that
> kind of data on a removable medium?  I heard DLT's more fragile.
> 
> ext3, ReiserFS, other journaling filesystem?  Haven't decided.  ext3's
> easy to install if I put RH7.2 on here... that's tempting.  But if I'm
> going to do things other than Samba with this, Debian's apt system is
> very handy.  And a certifiably completely Free machine is a nice
> voluntary quest, as it were.
> 
> Be gentle with me -- I'm fairly new to SCSI, RAID, and filesystems.
> 
> Evidence, anecdotes, rumors, propaganda and holy wars welcomed, but in
> that order. ;)
> 
> Ben
> 


Just off the top of my head, since I'm sitting here playing with the technology right now.... drop a Gigabit card into the server, and use part of that extra $1000 you have budgeted towards a 100MB-FastEthernet Switch with a Gigabit Uplink port.


Lost in Tokyo,
   Keith


-- 
What did the skeleton say to the bartender?
I'll have two beers and a mop...



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