Ideas for setting up Server 2003 for a learning environment

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general

[H]ard|Gawd
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Oct 14, 2004
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I'm getting a technet subscription and I'm wondering if anyone has any advice on how I should set things up to play around with some administrative options. I have a standalone machine right now that I use for files and am looking at getting the cheapo server Dell has on sale right now. The things I was thinking of are:

Create an AD domain. I can either replicate it to the other server or create another domain on the other server and create a forest.

Put some VM XP clients on the Dell server and have them as domain members

Setup some users and various OU's and use that to play around with GPO's

Use one of the servers as a web server and expose it to the internet and play around with certificates.

Load WSUS on one of the servers and use it to enforce system upgrade policies

Create a cluster with the two servers

Load SQL server onto the servers and do replication

Anyone think of any other ideas? Anyone have any advice on this?
 
one point i have to say is you're gonna need good specs to run multiple servers and client machines on one "Server."
 
AMD_RULES said:
one point i have to say is you're gonna need good specs to run multiple servers and client machines on one "Server."
Click to expand...

I built my own.

CPU isn't that important a decent C2D would work fine. Its all about memory and disk I/O

I run 8-10 VM at a time on my home built vm server running vmware server (not esx).

Quad Core Xeon X3210 (2.13Ghz).
4GB ram (this is where I'm going to upg. it would run much better with 6 or 8)
2x40GB SATA mirrored for the host OS
4x80GB SATA striped for the VM's.
 
oakfan52 said:
I built my own.

CPU isn't that important a decent C2D would work fine. Its all about memory and disk I/O

I run 8-10 VM at a time on my home built vm server running vmware server (not esx).

Quad Core Xeon X3210 (2.13Ghz).
4GB ram (this is where I'm going to upg. it would run much better with 6 or 8)
2x40GB SATA mirrored for the host OS
4x80GB SATA striped for the VM's.
Click to expand...

Agreed, you'll want a good chunk of memory and some decent disk I/O but memory is where it's at.
 
Hey oakfan52

what are you running as the base os. I was wondering if you have seen or experimented running vmware server from both windows and linux.
 
general said:
Anyone think of any other ideas? Anyone have any advice on this?
Click to expand...

It's fun just to dork around with. I use some older hardware...you don't need a ripping horsepower system to run your own server at home if you're just going to play around with it. For years I've usually run a Small Business Server as the center of my home network.

Fun to dork around with..fiddle with features. Just use it for overall playing around and learning whatever it is you want to learn.

Small Business Server is fun to play with...more features to fiddle with.
 
Thanks for the input. I just ordered one of the T105 servers Dell had on for 250. It's C2D, but I'm going to put 4GB ram on it. The disc subsystem will be basic for right now. Should the end user complain, I'll just tell myself to bugger off. :D

The other machine has a slower CPU, but has 2 Raptors in RAID-1, and a 6 drive SATA RAID running in hot swappable bays. I probably won't run VM's on this. Perhaps one at most for a cluster.

I was more looking for input on ideas of what to do in terms of the MS software. Anyone have suggestions?
 
Create a windows/sql cluster or two so you get the chance to see how they operate. Google for VMware's "Cluster In a Box" whitepaper to find out how to provide a quorum drive using VMware Server.

Maybe install Exchange and configure it just to get the ropes. There are plenty of guides out there on how to use gmail to set up a home email server.

Play around with ISA a bit - though keep in mind that it's performance WILL be horrible in a VM.

Play around with Sharepoint, WSUS 3, SMS/MOM/SystemCenter... have fun. :)
 
general said:
I was more looking for input on ideas of what to do in terms of the MS software. Anyone have suggestions?
Click to expand...

Well this is a question that really you have the answer to. Most of us in the field get software through tech, work, being a microsoft partner, MVP, or whatever. We use the licenses to install at home to "learn". To learn what? Whatever it is you want to learn..usually stuff relating to your job. Whatever your job is that brings you to sit in front of the server, or whatever "things" you want to learn.

What is it "you" want to get out running it at home? The answer is different for most of us.
 
general said:
Thanks for the input. I just ordered one of the T105 servers Dell had on for 250. It's C2D, but I'm going to put 4GB ram on it. The disc subsystem will be basic for right now. Should the end user complain, I'll just tell myself to bugger off. :D

The other machine has a slower CPU, but has 2 Raptors in RAID-1, and a 6 drive SATA RAID running in hot swappable bays. I probably won't run VM's on this. Perhaps one at most for a cluster.

I was more looking for input on ideas of what to do in terms of the MS software. Anyone have suggestions?
Click to expand...


They have a lot of trial software, and for some good periods of time I think. I thought you were getting a TechNet subscription, don't they have software you can get and stuff?
 
Just looking to put in place an environment that would let me learn server 2003 administration and have an environment setup that would let me build applications. I thought my outline up top would give a good idea of things I wanted to do.

Yes, I'm going to get Technet and it includes a ton of apps for testing purposes.
 
general said:
Just looking to put in place an environment that would let me learn server 2003 administration and have an environment setup that would let me build applications. I thought my outline up top would give a good idea of things I wanted to do.

Yes, I'm going to get Technet and it includes a ton of apps for testing purposes.
Click to expand...

I have only run vmware under windows. I doubt there would be a whole lot of differnce between running vmware server on linux vs windows. Big difference in performance and features by change to vmware esx which run off of a customized linux kernel.

as far as what to do. AD domain maybe setup multiple DC and congiure them for different sites. play with gpo's. WSUS. I don't play with SQL at all really because typically DBA's handle all of the administration of SQL where I work.

I would play with exchange 2003 and 2007.

clusters of all types (this is my main job function).

Setup a few terminal servers.

I'd fire up server 2008 and play with that as well.

I have quoite a few vm i just power up the one I need to do testing and or learning on.

The list can go on quite far...

SCCM (the new version of sms which has a new system provisioning system in it)
SCOM (the new version of MOM).

I test all my vbs automation scripts in vmware first as well.
 
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