Linux Server (NAS)

[Splash]

Sounds about right, thank you very much. What is a 'BOT partition'?

I'm pretty certain he meant the Boot partition and that it was a typo. Essentially you have to be able to boot your OS in order to make the RAID available, and if your OS is part of your RAID array it won't be able to load.

I *could* be wrong though, but in this case I think it's unlikely

[oimi]

I'm pretty certain he meant the Boot partition and that it was a typo. Essentially you have to be able to boot your OS in order to make the RAID available, and if your OS is part of your RAID array it won't be able to load.

I *could* be wrong though, but in this case I think it's unlikely

So connecting an IDE HDD would be the way forward if I got the previously linked motherboard huh? So that the SATA ports can be free for storage.

[peterb]

Yes - a typo (it was late and I have been revising for an exam!)

Depends how you are approaching the RAID. If you are using a dedicated card (and I can't remember what you decided on) that is OS transparent, then then provided the boot partition is visible before the OS loads, there is no problem. If it isn't (because you are using a software raid such as MDADM, then you need a small boot partition (typically less than 100MB outside the RAID. Saves the power and heat of another hard drive and the overhead of 100MB is minimal considering the cluster size of a 1TB system (depending on how you partition it of course) The whole OS is likely to take up less than 10GB anyway - less if you cut down the other stuff (you don't really need a Gui, although it can be useful, but if you cut that out, saves the Xserver and all the stuff that Gnome/Kde r whatever) needs. But again, the veread for that is really minimal in comparison with the overall storage space.

Given that the smallest HD readily available is about 60Gb (and thats a 2.5 inch) you are going to be losing space anyway.

There are lots of ways to achieve this - there is no 'Best' way - its what works for you and you are comfortable with.

[oimi]

Yes - a typo (it was late and I have been revising for an exam!)

Depends how you are approaching the RAID. If you are using a dedicated card (and I can't remember what you decided on) that is OS transparent, then then provided the boot partition is visible before the OS loads, there is no problem. If it isn't (because you are using a software raid such as MDADM, then you need a small boot partition (typically less than 100MB outside the RAID. Saves the power and heat of another hard drive and the overhead of 100MB is minimal considering the cluster size of a 1TB system (depending on how you partition it of course) The whole OS is likely to take up less than 10GB anyway - less if you cut down the other stuff (you don't really need a Gui, although it can be useful, but if you cut that out, saves the Xserver and all the stuff that Gnome/Kde r whatever) needs. But again, the veread for that is really minimal in comparison with the overall storage space.

Given that the smallest HD readily available is about 60Gb (and thats a 2.5 inch) you are going to be losing space anyway.

There are lots of ways to achieve this - there is no 'Best' way - its what works for you ad you are comfortable with.

Hmmm, what you say is interesting.

In one sense, I would like the OS on a seperate hard drive rather than partition because the external backup will then have an identical copy of JUST the data stored on it. However, the overheads and power consumption you talk about are something of a concern to me too.

Would you advise the use of a RAID controller on this setup? Its been advise that I use a Linus software RAID, but I'm not sure.

[peterb]

Entirely your call. Good RAID cards are expensive - software RAID is quite mature in the LINUX environmemnt (can't comment n Windows). I use a very cheap, unsupported XFX card (not sure if they are available) which adds risk (which I mitigate against by having a spare card "just in case" and regular backups) Not sure what I'd do f I was setting it up again - probably software RAID haviing gained a bit of experience with LVM, but I'd want to experiment a bit first to get comfortable with it before putting into main use (although again, taking regular ackups mitigates against that risk)

You might wnat to look at Mondo Rescue (Google it) which gives an excellent bare metal recovery ption for a Linux OS.

But - when you get it running - don't forget to back it up - regularly. It'll save you a few sleepless nights.

And if you do have it Internet facing (in the sense that you want to access it from the public internet) check the configuration very carefully and don't forget to check the logs regularly (at least weekly) to make sure no-one has broken in. And consider very carefully how you are going to access it. SSH properly configured is pretty good but subject to attacks (record for me was 50,000 plus attempts one night - all failed) because it is a well known application. VPN to your router is probably OK. Webserver (Apache) can be a bit trickier, running a mailserver can be trickier still. Do NOT, EVER, allow Telnet access from the internet. FTP is also probably not a good idea.

[oimi]

Yeah, internet security is going to vital as you say.

Is there a way to use SSH without installing software on the computer I want to use to access my work from a different location (such as a library, where such applications cannot be installed due to restrictions)?

[Splash]

That rather depends on the host OS - many linuxes will have an SSH client installed out of the box, but if it's Windows then you'd need something like Putty - not sure if it's available as a portable app, or if you'd even be able to run a portable app in the situation you're talking about.

EDIT - ok, Putty can be run from a USB key or CD - take a look at http://portableapps.com/apps/internet/putty_portable

[peterb]

That rather depends on the host OS - many linuxes will have an SSH client installed out of the box, but if it's Windows then you'd need something like Putty - not sure if it's available as a portable app, or if you'd even be able to run a portable app in the situation you're talking about.

EDIT - ok, Putty can be run from a USB key or CD - take a look at http://portableapps.com/apps/internet/putty_portable

In a library you are most likely to encounter Windows, and the configuartion will probably (and should!) prevent you running executeables from a USB stick - which rules out Putty. Therefore you are looking at providing some srt of web access - so you will need to install Apache with access protected by some means or other. Simplest is password, safest is SSL - you will need to research this carefully - start with the Apache foundation pages (Google) and possibly a book (Amazon - search Apache) O'Reilly publish a couple of good ones. Read it - carefully - especially security aspects.

[Splash]

Out of interest... what kind of files are we talking about? Peterb makes a good point about the locked down status of library PCs, you'll probably find that you're unable to write to the local disk as well so I guess it depends on what kind of thing you're aiming to do...

[oimi]

Out of interest... what kind of files are we talking about? Peterb makes a good point about the locked down status of library PCs, you'll probably find that you're unable to write to the local disk as well so I guess it depends on what kind of thing you're aiming to do...

I'm talking about read/write access to word documents etc, if that helps.. I knew that executables would be a problem with the Windows client, which is why I I wasn't sure about SSH.

I've run an Apache Server before using Windows, so installation shouldn't be too difficult. Running SSL and protecting it will be a bit more difficult...

[peterb]

You don't have to run SSL - simple password (or better - password using MD5 digest will probably be sufficient.

[Singh400]

Just wondering have you ordered any parts yet?

[oimi]

I've ordered everything now :-)

[strike-down]

What did you settle for in the end?

[oimi]

1 100PCS MALE CONNECT UT-193 4.97 5.72
1 305M CAT5e CABLE standard 34.99 40.24
6 1m Serial ATA Cable 8.94 10.28
1 Corsair TwinX 2GB DDR2 6400 C4 21.64 24.89
1 75075R CAB STRIPER PUNCHDOWN 0.79 0.91
5 Akasa AK-195BL 13.9CM FAN+ADAP 27.45 31.57
1 AMD AM2 DCORE 5050E Energy Eff 44.49 51.16
1 CAIR 400W CMPSU-400CXUK 38.40 44.16
1 Edge DAS401 x2 SATA2 NAS RAID 111.11 127.78
1 Asus M3A78-CM 51.30 59.00
1 LG GH22NS40 22X SATA BLK OEM 14.34 16.49
1 SCAN FREE GIFT: 0.00 0.00
1 Targus Pa440E Travel Comb Lock 0.00 0.00
1 E Carriage 10.82 12.44
1 Auto. generated by E Orders 0.00 0.00
Sub Total £369.24
VAT £55.40
Total £424.64

Cooler Master Dominator 690 PC Case With Window / Black (PC Shop) @ £67.99

+ previously mentioned HDDs...

[strike-down]

Me personally I would have spent a bit less than that, but that is far better than what you were first suggesting . Should give you good reliable service for years When can we expect details on the build? Pics included