there are also a variety of tools available for free to assist in the configuration and management of a samba server..
http://us1.samba.org/samba/GUI/
SWAT (included with samba) and Webmin being the 2 that come to mind first, there is also the
redhat-config-samba tool
$350.00 PER SERVER does seem a bit steep for a tool just to assist with linux config. Might as well just buy RHEL and call RH support for assistance in configuring it. Webmin as cited earlier covers most if not all of the items listed on the Centeris page.. it's web based and can be used to configure Linux servers from a web browser on any platform..
I'll give the Centeris software props for a really nice, clean user interface though.. They did a nice job of putting it together.
I'm kind of curious why a tool to manage Linux servers CAN'T run on a linux machine.. shouldn't I be able to manage my linux machines from a linux machine ? reminds me of SecureComputings web Content filtering solution that runs on Windows or Linux but ALWAYS requires at least one Windows server to handle the reporting engine.. kinda defeats the purpose of choosing the linux based solution if you ask me..
and ultimately they support RH and Suse solutions, true they are the 2 gearing for enterprise shops, but I prefer to run Debian on my servers..
It is nice that they include CentOS in their supported platforms, When I was doing the trial of SecureComputings product which called for RHEL I tried to do the trial on a CentOS box, I mean I didn't want to go BUY RHEL just to run a trial. CentOS is essentially the same thing. unfortunately for SecureComputing they refused to offer support during the trial period becvause I was on an 'unsupported platform'.. I never got it working right and they never made the sale...
. Looking at the features and benefits page they do more than just create easy Samba configuration, they also have DNS and Apache configuration. After e-mailing Jerry Carter, Centeris is working on supporting Debian and Ubuntu as well as making the software Linux OS friendly. I guess you can say the more supported distros the higher user base. One word: sweet.
