question with server

[Tony Dietrich]

On Friday 14 Jan 2005 19:19, Rick Stevens wrote:
> GoijI P wrote:
> > Like to select a platfrom as server between linux or MacOX server.
> > In general , which is preferred?. any experience with either one?.
> > clients are all going to be all windows. World only sees either linux
> > server or MacOX server. My concern is security for PC windows clients.
>
> I have no experience with MacOS X servers.
>
> I'm unclear as to what your concern is for the Windows clients.  The
> server has no effect on their security if it's a pure client-server
> model.  It's up to the client to enforce its own security.

True, but the correct choice of server CAN affect the security of the clients, 
if the server configuration and/or the availability of security-related 
packages is wrong.

Assuming the server is the only window for its clients to the 'Net, and it is 
essential to permit such access, then virus-checkers, firewalls (iptables or 
whatever) and other apps like squid running on the server can make securing 
client machines easier for the on-site tech, since he can relax a little 
about these issues on the clients.  (OK, I know a few desktop users that have 
little enough knowledge to be dangerous even then!)

So I interpret this question as 'Which OS running in a server config has the 
correct mix of packages available to make it simple for me to build a machine 
that can help me secure my LAN from network threats, given that I have a 
whole bunch of vulnerable machines attached to the net used by people who 
couldn't care in the slightest whether they do something that might 
comprimise their system.'

Answer.  Dunno.  Linux can do this.  I worked with MacOS for about 3 days 
once.  Didn't like it.  Personal choice.  So I can't do a comparison.

I did do some Googling, since this question interested me for some reason, but 
couldn't see any site that addressed this issue impartially.  The all seemed 
to be written by people that had an axe to grind for one OS or the other.

> If you're worried about the security of the server itself, ANYTHING is
> better than Windows.

Well yeah, although the users might not like it if we handed them ZX81's!
16k BASIC.

<shudder>

> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> - Rick Stevens, Senior Systems Engineer     rstevens at vitalstream.com -

-- 
Tony Dietrich
-------------
And on the eighth day, we bulldozed it.