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Poweredge 2500 Server Distro and Configuration Help

I recently received a Dell PowerEdge 2500 server as a gift. I am looking for a way to allow my parents to dial my home phone from their modem and connect to my internet(dsl) twice a week to check their email. From my searches on google it looks like linux would be my best option. I have tried several distros as home desktops before, but never for anything this involved. I would appreciate any help in finding the distro best suited to this task as well as acting as an FTP server. My parents don't need a remote desktop, they just need internet access. Would ispconfig.org do what I am looking for?

Which distro to use

Hey have you tried doing any of the distro tests?

Try this link will take you to a test which recommends what distro is best for you (of course is there opinion): http://eedok.voidofmind.com/linux/chooser.html

I know that I took one and it said I would be best with Ubuntu or something more for a beginner level. I however needed to use Fedora Core 5 because I am trying to get a web server setup.

Good luck!

So will any distro accept an incoming modem connection and connect it to the internet via the ethernet cable and my dsl?

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Originally Posted by engine_builder

I recently received a Dell PowerEdge 2500 server as a gift.

Excellent gift!

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I am looking for a way to allow my parents to dial my home phone from their modem and connect to my internet(dsl) twice a week to check their email. From my searches on google it looks like linux would be my best option. I have tried several distros as home desktops before, but never for anything this involved. I would appreciate any help in finding the distro best suited to this task as well as acting as an FTP server. My parents don't need a remote desktop, they just need internet access. Would ispconfig.org do what I am looking for?

Please, not another "which distro" thread. You're really looking for implementation instructions, not a distro recommendation. I can't think of a distro that won't do what you are asking. So it comes down to what you're comfortable with, not which distro can or cannot perform this task - they all can.

That said, I'm a little confused about your proposed solution. Does this mean that your parents do not have internet access and you intend to be their ISP - once removed? If they do have internet access, why not just set up your machine as a mail server and they can check their email whenever they'd like.

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Does this mean that your parents do not have internet access and you intend to be their ISP

Exactly!

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You're really looking for implementation instructions, not a distro recommendation.

That is kinda what I understood. Problem is what exactly do I need to implement? I know what I want to do.

Parents PC -> Telephone Line -> My PC -> Ethernet -> DSL Modem -> Internet

Has anyone done anything similar? I am not asking what distro(prob. SUSE or Ubuntu) so much as what protocols, etc. would I need and if there are any guides to doing a project like this.

Server Setup Guide

Follow the link in my post above, it's a Linux Dialin Server Setup Guide....