What to do? Spare machine for server use, but not sure what kind of server to make.....

[Cheetah8799]

UPDATE: My little E-PC seems to have bit the dust. These things are so flakey, it's insane... I had it working, then just the other evening I put in the new CPU and it posted once, then won't post anymore... I've cleared the cmos, tried removing battery for a while, tried different ram/cpu, etc. nothing worked... My last chance is to let it sit overnight without the cmos battery and see what happens...



OK, here's the deal. I already have 2 servers running, both are small HP E-PC desktops which don't draw much power, but also aren't super fast. I have a 3rd that I just got working after having it sit on the floor for a while thinking it was busted... I'm still looking to get a CPU for it, which will probably be a P3 700mhz or so. It also has 128mb PC133 ram, and currently only a 6.4gb hard drive. But I could get a bigger hard drive as well. For onboard stuff it has 2 USB 1.1 ports, video, parallel port, 16bit audio, 10/100 nic, serial port, and that's about it. Also doesn't have a CD at the moment, but I don't need that anyway for a server once it's running. NO PCI slots for extra cards or anything like that.


Anyway, here's what I have setup:

Comcast 3mbps/256kbps cable internet connection
1 server running as Smoothwall firewall
1 server as personal web server / mysql server, only hosting small stuff over my meager 256k upload pipe.... (Check my photo gallery link in my sig to see how fast it is...)


So, what to do with the 3rd server? Here's some ideas I've had:

* E-mail server, although this could just as easily run on my web server... Probably setup to pull emails from my other addresses via POP3 and host via IMAP for SquirrelMail to be used as my own webmail service.

* Game server, although it won't have enough ram and CPU for most newer games that are out there. Plus, only 4 or so people could join before my upload speed was maxed out...

* Bittorrent server/tracker, for LEGAL torrents which contain stuff I would like to help share with the world.

* Samba file server. I already have plenty of HD space on my main rig, but this could come in handy I guess....


Any other ideas? I'm not quite sure what to do with it at the moment, so if anything interesting is suggested, I might just give it a try...

EDIT: Legit/legal things only please. I don't want Comcast, RIAA, or MPAA coming after me.

 

[40Hands]

I would say use it for a bittorrent server...for um yes legal files and stuff....

 

[DotheDamnTHing]

Originally posted by: BroeBo
I would say use it for a bittorrent server...for um yes legal files and stuff....

 

[Cheetah8799]

Originally posted by: BroeBo
I would say use it for a bittorrent server...for um yes legal files and stuff....

Seriously, legal stuff. I don't want Comcast shutting down my internet connection for that kind of crap. There are plenty of legal torrents. Examples: Knoppix and other Linux distros, game patches, game mods, etc.

EDIT: filerush is a good site to find legit torrent downloads.

 

[DotheDamnTHing]

(like homer) yes...legal torrents ....just j/k...are there any upload/download restrictions on the line?

 

[Cheetah8799]

are there any upload/download restrictions on the line?

Yep, 3mbps down, 256k up... I'm hoping Comcast will increase the upload speed some day...

EDIT: No port restrictions AFAIK

 

[DotheDamnTHing]

isnt 256 gonna be a restricting factor in any type of tracker hosting?

 

[Cheetah8799]

Originally posted by: DotheDamnTHing
isnt 256 gonna be a restricting factor in any type of tracker hosting?

Yes. I currently download w/ Azureus on my main rig, and can easily upload about 15kBps. The max is about 25kBps when I notice major download speed problems, so I like to keep it set at 15 or lower. So for a dedicated server, I'd probably only run 1 or 2 torrents full time, then maybe just do my own downloads through this server as well. When they complete, just move them off the server.

I'd probably use Azureus again.


When I say a Bittorrent tracker, it may not end up as a true tracker. Maybe more as a seed server for specific pre-existing and active torrents is a more accurate description.

 

[jjmIII]

A 700Cel will be great for a file server.

 

[Cheetah8799]

Any more votes out there? Only 1 so far.

 

[DotheDamnTHing]

make it two

 

[Carl Uman]

You could...
setup an NTP server for others to use
make an email server if you have problems with our hosts
setup a file server which is real nice if you have more than one computer being used regulary
use it for a file store/backup device

Not sure what distros have a feture like distcc from gnetoo but you can never have to much compile power

 

[Quasmo]

I have a 500mhz celeron toshiba laptop running

Apache 2.1 with PHP and MySQL
and Bulletproof FTP

I use it as a small file server too.
I mean as long as you have enough ram and HDD space and 50,000 people aren't accessing it, who cares what you put on there. (In terms of the number of programs)

 

[Carl Uman]

Not sure if it make the cut or not but check this out

 

[JackMDS]

This is Nice: Windows2003 for Home/SOHO Networks.

:sun:

 

[Cheetah8799]

Originally posted by: Carl Uman
Not sure if it make the cut or not but check this out

No can do on Myth because I would need a TV Tuner and other audio/video in/out ports. Can't add any of that to this machine.


As for Windows 2003, well, Microsoft is out of the question. Open Source software that runs on a Linux distro is prefered.

 

[Carl Uman]

my vote is for a file backup / samba server then

 

[Cheetah8799]

bump for more votes. My new CPU should be on the way, and I'll start playing with stuff hopefully later this week.

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Ah, E-PCs. Tiny itty bitty workstation boxes.

You don't happen to have any more, do you?

- M4H

 

[Cheetah8799]

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire
Ah, E-PCs. Tiny itty bitty workstation boxes.

You don't happen to have any more, do you?

- M4H

Nope. I've seen them on EBay though.