distribution for an old server

fhd · 02-26-2005, 02:19 PM

Hi, I want a tiny, fast server distribution.
It would be great if there were at least the following packages, so that I don't have to compile or search binary packages myself:

apache (1.* is appreciated)
postgresql
mldonkey
gift
nfs

My Server:

Code:

model name             : Pentium III (Katmai)
cpu MHz                   : 498.058
MemTotal:                125100 kB

I'm running Gentoo right now, but I'm not happy with it on this machine.
I really get along perfectly with gentoo, but compiling is a pain, and the binary Packages are not really what I was looking for, so I'll probably need a real binary distro.

I'm also getting along with OpenBSD very well, but I'm learning for LPIC-2 (a GNU/Linux oriented administrator certificate) and don't want to get confused on differences until I managed to pass the exams.

It is also important that I can install directly from a ftp mirror, because I only have a floppy drive in the server.

I thought about several distributions allready:

Deli:
Fast slackware derivate and perfect for old machines. I'm running it on my ancient laptop and it really works great, but it's still under heavy development and imho not fitting for a server.

Slackware:
Well, I only know that I don't like the package management

But I'm not familiar with it, what do you think?

Debian:
I like debian very much (have been using it alot), but it is a bit overloaded, even if I do a very careful (hours lasting) dselect.
But it would be perfect for LPIC-2 learning...

I usually don't like any of the rpm based distributions I know of, but if you know one that could fit for me, feel free to post it.

tia

acid_kewpie · 02-26-2005, 03:16 PM

you won't get gift prebuilt on anything... it's hardly core... even more so for mldonkey.... if you think debian is bloated, wouldn't you be a bit pissed to find things like that in there if you weren't going to use them?

sh1ft · 02-27-2005, 09:25 AM

Maybe give vector linux a try, its a derivitive of slackware and has slightly better package managment with dependancy checking included in the regular .tgz packages as metadata. Also I hear it's good for older hardware.

tomasch · 02-28-2005, 10:46 AM

You don [specifically] mention whether you need a GUI or not. From the Distros you mentioned I assume you do.

If you can work with a CLI (Command Line Interface) then I'd recommens Trustix or TinySofa.

Trustix is CLI only and TinySofa has the option for a GUI.

Ine either case, you'd be fine with using the CLI and installing Webmin for the admin side.

Regards

Tom

fhd · 03-03-2005, 01:31 PM

I did not mention, that I need quota support. Building the kernel is not a problem, and software is usually available on any distro I know of, so I didn't ask for it till now.

Same thing for NFS (Server).

Quote:

if you think debian is bloated, wouldn't you be a bit pissed to find things like that in there if you weren't going to use them?

That's true.

dpkg is after all a very good reason to use debian, I'll probably give the sarge floppy netinst a try soon...

Quote:

Maybe give vector linux a try, its a derivitive of slackware and has slightly better package managment with dependancy checking included in the regular .tgz packages as metadata. Also I hear it's good for older hardware.

Sounds very good, I like slackware (except the package management), so I'll probably give it a try.

Quote:

You don [specifically] mention whether you need a GUI or not. From the Distros you mentioned I assume you do.

If you can work with a CLI (Command Line Interface) then I'd recommens Trustix or TinySofa.

I usually don't like GUIs, and using a GUI to operate on a server is imho just wrong.
But, I need X11, the only reason for this is X Forwarding.
From outside, I want to Forward X Clients from my workstation, for this to work (without making my workstation directly sshable) I found no other solution than adding a X Server for this single purpose on my Server.

I couldn't find out much about Trustix while searching the web, but it seems to be interesting. Is a X-Server available for it, or do you really mean "CLI only"?

Thx for the information guys.