Use Linux as a file server for Windows PCs
 

Hello everyone,

I would like to use Linux as a PC to host files for a a LAN of 6 PCs (Windows installed).
I also want, if its possible, to make all of these PCs in Roaming (..using Linux..), so a user can access his documents from any PC in the same domain.
Is all this possible? How can I do that?

Thanks for the answers.

I guess you are looking for sharing directories on the linux server with the Windows clients.

If so, check out Samba. You might also want to have some virus checking on the Linux server in order to protect the windows clients (guess you know you don't need virus checking for Linux itself).

Mons

Samba, samba, samba.

Read the Samba project's "Official HOWTO", and look into share permissions. The settings from there become a matter of personal choice (some people will say "duh" to me for that statement), meaning you can figure out how you want people to access their data from any computer. Isolating access to the domain is good, now it's a matter of whether or not to have the password synchronize with the name of the user trying to access the system.

There's a lot you can do here, and it's not so much a matter of security, but personal preference. :)

thanks for the quick answers.
I heard about Samba before, so with Samba I can even set the PCwindows in roaming?
Also, what I need is that every users will be able to have access to their Outlook Express from the Linux server.
Explain myself better:
From every PC I login , I shall be able to see my docs and my emails too, (I believe emails will be stored on Linux)?
Is that also possible?

Those email accounts are not in an exchange

i dont think you can use samba for the outlook express data as far as i know outlook express does not have the ability to store its data on a remote system.

as far as the data files, yes that is all on how you configure you windows systems. keeping in mind you are NOT in a native win2k/win2k3 server domain environment. so your desktops will NOT be "roaming" if that is what you are looking for.

only the stored data.

in short user1 will have a samba share that he can access, if the network share is mapped correctly and "saved". you WILL have to TOUCH every system and configure each system for each user 1 time. after that it should not be an issue.

that or create a batch script that will run for each user then you can just use http://windowsitpro.com/article/arti...indows-xp.html netmeeting to transfer the file to each system and go from there.