File Server for SOHO?

[Nadav Har'El]

On Fri, May 20, 2011, Amichai Rotman wrote about "File Server for SOHO?":
> This specific PC that acts as a server is dying (the hard disk is failing
> and caused the PC to crash a few times).
> 
> I am trying to "sell" him the idea of a Linux based File Server. The
> dedicated app doesn't care where the share is, as long as it seems as a
> Windows Share. I was thinking this is a classic SAMBA Server scenario.

Another option he might consider is forget about buying a general-purpose
computer, whether running Windows or Linux, and instead buy a dedicated NAS
("network attached storage") product.

A NAS product has the following benefits over a general-purpose computers:

1. Potentially be cheaper. E.g., if you don't need RAID, you can get for $140
   the WD "My Book Live 2 TB". For almost the price of a bare disk, you get
   a device that serves this disk on the network - amazing.

2. Easier to set up, less chance of misconfigurations, viruses, and so on,
   than a general-purpose computer.

3. Also easy to set up if you have complicated requirements. E.g., if you
   want RAID, you can get a NAS device that supports it, and it will do RAID
   out of the box, without any complex software setup.

> 1. A few "selling" points for the Linux based solution.

The only "selling" point for Linux on a server which will do *only* file
serving, as far as I can see, is the license price. You'd have to offset
this, however, by the administration cost - if nobody there knows how to
administer Linux but I assume they already administer the Windows machine.


-- 
Nadav Har'El                        |       Sunday, May 22 2011, 18 Iyyar 5771
nyh at math.technion.ac.il             |-----------------------------------------
Phone +972-523-790466, ICQ 13349191 |Happiness isn't getting what you want,
http://nadav.harel.org.il           |it's wanting what you've got.