what distro and steps
 

hello linux gurus

May I ask what is the best free distro can we use for a linux server that will:
authenticate windows XP/98 logins
File Server
Proxy Server
Print Server
can be accessible by SSH / VNC

Can there be willing to give us some steps on configuring these

Thanks and regards

Hello,

You can use about any distro of Linux for all of those services, there are very few that have them installed by default. You'll have to look at the separate processes/services and install them. One distro comes in mind: Calculate Linux Directory Server, which is a Gentoo based distro (not one of the easiest if you're new to Linux) that comes with the things you need to replace a Windows domain controller (Features).

For proxy server you can look into Squid.
Printing can be done using Samba and/or CUPS.
SSH is installable (if not already) on any Linux. VNC is not advised since it's considered pretty insecure.

Step by step installation and configuration guides can be found on the internet using Google for all of the applications mentioned above. You'll not find someone here on LQ that will provide that. Also have a look at the Tutorial section here on LQ.

When you are performing an installation and you encounter problems or errors, that's when you turn to LinuxQuestions for help and answers.

Kind regards,

Eric

Try out Red Hat Distribution - A popular Linux Distribution for Newbies.
Thats simple to learn and not much complicated.
Try out CentOS / Fedora for Free OS Download.

Visit http://www.linuxhomenetworking.com/ for easy good tutorials

There are certain appliances based on popular Linux distributions or Linux kernel for UTM purposes. Ebix seems a nice thing. But I have not used it extensively so I do not know if it can actually work as authenticating server for windows boxes. But it as other features and more. It is free as well and based on Ubuntu.
If you want a full distro then look for CentOS5.4. It is the one I am using for certain similar purposes currently. Yes, it is also free.

Thanks
 

Thanks Guys!!!

Hi,

Scroll down an look at the 'Similar Threads'. Plus a search here on LQ with the proper keywords would produce a bucket of replies.

:hattip:

CentOS,Debian stable