My problem is as follows:

In my lab, we have 9 systems with the follwoing configuration:

P-3, 933MHz, 256MB RAM, 40GB HDD;
20GB: RedHat 8.0
20GB: Windows2000

These systems each have about 5 user accounts...
In addition we have guest account in all systems...

So whenever a user finds the system in which he has an account being used by some one else, he ftp's to his homesystem and get the files onto a guest account of the free system and works here and ftp's back his files to his home system...

Recently we have purchased 5 new P4s with 80GB hard disc...
As of now there is only windows2000 and a single partition...

I want to install RH9.0 in these 5 compus. I would like to make one of them as server and create all user accounts on the server and make all my prev 9 systems and the remaining 4 systems into clients... so that a user can logon to the server and work on his files and save them on the server from any system in the lab.

The prev systems were setup by some experienced person who is not avaiable right now...

Now the list of my problems:
1)I don't even know how to format the new systems so that I can load 20GB(WIN) and 60GB(RH9.) partitions... "So I need informationabout how to format and how to make the required partitions... I think I have a copy of partitionmagic... is it helpful?

2)I have never installed Linux in a system... but I know that Linux is supposed to be the last OS to be installed in a PC... so I have install Win2000 as soon as I format... I have all the required CD with me...

3)How to install Linux9.0, I have the CDs with me...

4)How can I make on of the new systems as server and how can I make the remaining 4 as its clients?

5)Do I have to reinstall RH8.0 in old systems to make them clients to this new system...

Please let me know where I can find all this information... I will post to the forum as and when Iget any doubts... I intend to go forward with the tasks I have mentioned above as soon as I get all the information .... So it maybe another 1 or 2 days before I can actually go forward with this "BIG" task...

Thanks inAdvance...

Sounds fun, but how deep is this going to go?

Are your client machines going to have normal access (local logons) and then just have a mapped drive where they must enter user/pass to get on?

OR

Do you want them required to have a password to even get on the machines.. etc..

Well, I don't know what mapping the drive is...

What I want is that the user should be able to login to the server and access his share of memory and hence his files only... His programs will be executed on local systems resources and the results will get copied to his space on server...

He should be able to do this sitting on any system...

Please post me the possible solutions...

One of my friends suggested that I have to give the IP address of server in each clients /etc/fstab so that they will be automounted... His suggestion is that I have to load one of the systems in Server mode and give all the clients IP addresses and that will do...

Unfortunatly our little network world revolves around design. Each has its pros and cons.

There would be a simple way to do this.

You can assign each computer to auto logon as a different user than administrator, and give them power user or just user (dependong on how much you want them to do, past running programs you installed for them).

Then setup a samba server, with multiple shares, setup on a user security level, only having 1 user per share, so that you wouldn't have 'john' able to access 'janes' information.

Then lastly, setup a desktop link to the list of shares on the samba machine for each client computer, and set the premission to read for everyone, and full access to administrators. (That way they couldn't accidently delete, move, the link to the shares).

^^ thats a pretty minimal setup, low security but simple.

You 'could' setup a samba pdc, and get super techincal wth logon scripts and user enviroments with roaming profiles. but I dont think you want to get that heavy am i right ?

Maybe your solution will work... actually I haven't understood much of what has been said... I will have to read some books or some material avaiable on the net before I can go understand the samba server etc...

well whichever you want to create I can give advice and a lot of 'howto'

But the more complex things get the more work required to keep them running, especially if problems arise.