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home server?

P

patrick0982

n00b
Joined
May 2, 2005
Messages
10
I am thinking that i want to build a little personal server for me.. its going to be a basic computer i leave under my desk on in my cloest...
i was thinking about ordering a "barebone" system from Tigerdirect.com, then i was going to put on ethier xp pro, or xp media center, or linux...... never built one before but i am egar to do this and i was wondering if i am going on the right path... i dont want to built a complete system, cause of time and money but i do want to do as much on my own as i can???
any help you all can give me would be greaty appreciated....
Thanks, 4 the help!!
---patrick----
 
The big question is what are you going to use this server for? The backbone for a HTPC setup or a gaming server? As far as being a server, Linux or XP Pro would do well, as well as 2000. I wouldn't recommend XP media center edition for your server though. You really don't need a lot of fancy stuff like a hopped up video card or sound card. What I would stress on is RAM and CPU. You'll probably also want to set up some kind of hard drive array for large and spacious storage... but then again, it all depends on what you're going to be using this server for...

Give us some details on your plans for your shiny new server... and that will help us help you decide on what will suit you best for your hard earned cash.
 
i need a place to store all my music and my videos. i also would like to run my entire network off of it....i also do plan on having games stored on it,
also i read in a magazine that i can have my own email addy, i was wondering if this is true and how would i set that up?
i plan on have 2 - 200gig hard drives
i was thinkin about going - RAID but i am not sure - i have heard postive and negative, on that option so i dunno....
i am still in the planning part, lookin for help to get started
if anyone knows good web pgs about setting up/building a server please post them for me!!!

thanks
pat
 
patrick0982 said:
i need a place to store all my music and my videos. i also would like to run my entire network off of it....i also do plan on having games stored on it,
also i read in a magazine that i can have my own email addy, i was wondering if this is true and how would i set that up?
i plan on have 2 - 200gig hard drives
i was thinkin about going - RAID but i am not sure - i have heard postive and negative, on that option so i dunno....
i am still in the planning part, lookin for help to get started
if anyone knows good web pgs about setting up/building a server please post them for me!!!

thanks
pat
Click to expand...

1. A place to store music and videos and games.
Basically if all you are wanting to do is host files off of it, you won't need anything exceptional. Like I said before... I would focus on ram and CPU. For the ram part... I would stick in no less than 512MB... preferably 1GB+. CPU... dependant on how much you are going to be accessing this server. How many connections are you going to have continuously running from it? Are you going to be hosting games off of it? (i.e. - CS:S server) Or just storing game images on it? For the CPU... really depends. I would go with a minimum of a 2.5GHz or equivalent. Probably would go with a 3GHz+ myself. Gigabit ethernet would also be a plus, but not necessary. Just gives you room for expansion down the road. As far as your storage solutions. Twin 200GB drives would be a good way to go. I, myself would probably run a RAID 0 array for streaming music and videos, but then again keep in mind that any RAID solution is not going to necessarily protect your data in all cases. (Even RAID 1) Only a 1:1 backup to a separate drive/disk will give you that safety. You also couldn't go wrong using each drive separately. The performance of each drive alone should surpass what you'll most likely need anyway. Also get a good QUALITY PSU for your server. You'll end up with better stability and less headaches this way. :p

2. Personal email address.
Yes it is quite possible. You have to register your own domain, and set up your server to be a email server on the side of your file server. A static IP from your ISP would be a definate plus, but some ISPs may frown on you for creating your own web/email server on a residential circuit. In fact, there are a lot of ISPs that block those specific ports on non-business connections. This is just the beginning on setting up a personal domain for your own email address. If you're not familiar with setting up a server for email/web hosting and also not familiar with setting up your own domain and MX records and such, I would do a lot of research on Google and similar sources before attempting to do this.

As far as your operating system goes... Linux works great for all of this... BUT it's no walk in the park for a beginning user to configure Linux to do so... especially if you're a Linux n00b like me. :rolleyes: Windows will be a lot easier to work with and configure for the average user, and should also give you most of the configuration options you're looking into. WinXP Pro should work well for this situation.


If anyone else has any better/more suitable opinions for patrick0982, or feels I have made poor or unappopriate choices... LMK. I know there are a lot more people in the forums who would be able to give you better advice and options for your server and future plans with it. :D
 
512mb ram and ay 1ghz+,file servering isnt exactly that big a deal unless your having multiple streams stressing the full 1Gbps the cpu may choke i dunno.xbox works fine for fileshareing for me
 
Check out the Dell SC420. Wait for the right deal and you can pick one up for ~$230
 
You could even find an older box that is cabable of just that. Untill 84 days ago I was running a single pentium pro freebsd system with an 80gb drive for general storeage around the house, routeing and it was serveing a half dozen basic web pages for a while too. If all you want to do is basic file storage and host a personal website there is no need to have a 1ghz system with a half gig of ram. A pentium III 500 which you could probibly find in a college dumpster (move out time) in the next few weeks would more than do the trick.
 
guys I am in the process of building a server finally. Got all the parts and a CM stacker case. IT is going to be the backbone for my HTPC and so I can watch some movies in my room as well. What OS do u suggest I put on the server? I also want to be able to remotely log in say from a friends house and bein the server like I am there. I am thinking of putting 2003 server standard but some people are suggesting to put 2000 server because it is more stable and less bloated. What do u guys think? What I basically need to do is be able to share a drive and map it on the client computers so it appears as an actual drive letter. Also I want to be able to see certain folders on my computer but on my other computer I do not want any1 to see them as drives. How can I do this and what are ur suggestions?
 
maxse said:
guys I am in the process of building a server finally. Got all the parts and a CM stacker case. IT is going to be the backbone for my HTPC and so I can watch some movies in my room as well. What OS do u suggest I put on the server? I also want to be able to remotely log in say from a friends house and bein the server like I am there. I am thinking of putting 2003 server standard but some people are suggesting to put 2000 server because it is more stable and less bloated. What do u guys think? What I basically need to do is be able to share a drive and map it on the client computers so it appears as an actual drive letter. Also I want to be able to see certain folders on my computer but on my other computer I do not want any1 to see them as drives. How can I do this and what are ur suggestions?
Click to expand...

If you subscribe to Maximum PC magazine... they have a very good issue on creating a backbone server for a HTPC setup. Have lots of basic info on which operating systems and software work well for what you want to do, but it does not go into a lot of detail about the end setup for it. If you don't get the magazine.. look here at the current issue...
Maximum PC
If you're interested... you can probably stop at a bookstore of some kind and pick up the magazine for a few bucks and have it for reference.

EDIT:
dandragonrage said:
Linux + MythTV
Click to expand...
This is one of the solutions that Maximum PC was talking about. More robust than the MS setup, but harder to configure for the average user.
 
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