[K12OSN] Managing a Samba PDC

[David Trask]

"Support list for opensource software in schools." <k12osn at redhat.com> on
Friday, March 11, 2005 at 9:41 AM +0000 wrote:
>>
>>Ok...first issue...you have 4 machines handling authentication and you
>>ONLY have 700 users?  I have one server and 600 users and don't even come
>>REMOTELY close to needing another server.  Did some M$ vendor sell you on
>>this idea?  I'm all for backups and BDC's, but there's a point where it's
>>overkill.  
>>
>    As I said before, this started out as 4 separate LANs, each with its 
>own PDC.  When we connected the campuses, I simply made one of the 
>existing servers a PDC and demoted the rest to BDCs.

Now I get it...missed that part ;-)
>
>
>>Anyway...you can easily build a Samba/LDAP server to handle
>>what you're doing now.  I use mine as my PDC serving roaming profiles for
>>Win XP and also auth'ing my Terminal server which is a member of the
>>domain.  It also handles all the auth'ing on the Linux side and houses
>the
>>users home dirs that are then exported to the various servers via NFS. 
>>The biggest issue is about users.  What I normally do....I wait until
>>summer...blow the servers away along with all the users and recreate from
>>scratch.  I give my staff another simple server to back their stuff up on
>>to (stuff they NEED to keep) and blow the rest away.  
>>
>    I've spent the last 4 years telling my staff to use the server to 
>store their files rather than the local HD.  Now that they're finally 
>understanding the concept that they can keep all their "stuff" in one 
>place, that gets backed up nightly, and access it from anywhere, I'm not 
>about to go deleting things.  If I'm going to move things, it'll have to 
>be just that- a lateral move in which all of their data and file 
>permissions are intact.  Is this possible?
  Yes....might be a little painstaking at first, but once it's done...it's
done.
>
>
>>Let us know and we'll help you along   :-)   Welcome over from the "dark
>side".  
>>
>    My first experience with the "Light Side of the Force" was Dan's 
>Guardian.  I took a "spare" PC, slapped RH9 on it and turned it into a 
>no-cost content filter to get the Feds. off our backs.  Since then I've 
>set up 1 pure file server using Samba, one K12LSTP server feeding 2 labs 
>and 2 libraries, a Web server hosting Mambo, and I'm currently 
>experimenting with OpenBiblio to replace our proprietary (and poorly 
>designed) library system.

Welcome!  I too use DG....I use it on an SME server.  Have used it for
about 3.5 years now.  Works awesome.  I also have a Mambo server also on
SME.  Keep us posted on your OpenBiblio progress.  We're using a Windows
product (server only...we use Linux machines with web browsers for the
clients)...called Winnebago by Sagebrush.  It works well, hence the reason
I haven't gone over to Koha or OpenBiblio, but I am open to change.  My
biggest thing is how to get the data from one place to another.  I've
learned the MARC databases are NOT the same from one to another contrary
to what folks may try to tell you.
>
>
>>You'll love the freedom and ease of use once you
>>make the change.  I love being able to easily manage my servers via ssh
>>from anywhere in the world....it's very liberating and allows me to get
>>out and go home more.   :-) 
>>  
>>
>    I use VNC over PuTTY for my NT servers.

So do I for my Win2k3 servers....but I must admit I work much more
fluently and faster using CLI over ssh into my Linux boxes  ;-)
>
>
>>PS:  As for backup? 
>>
>    Oh yeah, I almost forgot my FC2 box running BackupPC.  Thanks Les.
>
>>   ;-) 
>>
>>One more thing....go gigabit on this server...makes a WORLD of
>difference!

Meaning wire or switches?  Are you going between buildings or staying in
one?
>
>>  
>>
>    We don't have the infrastructure for Gigabit, but I am buying 
>10/100/1000 NICs in preparation for that day.
>
>C-ya,
>Mark


David N. Trask
Technology Teacher/Coordinator
Vassalboro Community School
dtrask at vcs.u52.k12.me.us
(207)923-3100