Hi there,

I wasn't really sure where to put this, but as it is of general opinion and advice I thought this the best place.

So I have just built my first computer, it is basically a mid range gaming rig, with
i7 4970 intel processor
32 Gb Ram
3Tb HDD
500Mb SSD
Graphics card, though that is really immaterial to this question.

Now that I have got to grips with Virtual Box to some extent, and love the fact that any linux distro I run on it seems to run nicely, I have decided to make a major change to the system. The reason for building it in the first place is really to learn more about Linux admin but it's probably because it seems more geeky. So could anyone give me some feedback on the following idea and let me know if I am mad or not.

The plan
Install CentOS Server on the computer
Install Virtualbox on Server
then install a couple of different distro's that will be my main Desktop for everyday use including programming and development which I am learning also. I do play some games on Steam and they will stay on the Server, as after quite a bit of research, it seems that getting VirtualBox to use Gtx graphics card is way beyond my capabilities, though I do know someone who claims he has managed it.

So my real vague points here would be what is the best way to do this space and securitywise (Security is really only an issue as concerns learning commercial practices)

Do I just set up a minimal space eg, 50Gb for each Virtual Machine, and then use the server to be the main file server for them, or does that lead more to if someone gets in then they can get all my data, or is it better to just go for 500Gb machines each, and set up a shared folder as a portal between them all. What is the standard way to do this?

That all said, Actually, the main operating system on my computer is currently on the SSD and the Home folder is mounted to the HDD, so installing the Server would actually mean that I won't lose the Virtual desktop machines I have already set up in theory???

Kind regards
iFunk

I juse use my Linux (Debian Sid in my case) install as a day-to-day machine then install various distributions in Virtualbox as an when I want to learn something. I've had LAMP servers and even a Second Life server running on XP in a VM in the past for fun. If you're looking to game on the machine I would probably look at Fedora, Debian Sid or Slackware Current as the base OS or you may find libraries are too old to install current software however, this would mean that the OS could be unstable and need a reinstall if updates cause issues.

Ok, that's interesting. I've also just read that it isn't possible to use host Graphics Card at all, so sticking with desktop operating system is I guess the way to go.

A couple of questions for you the, as you have set up a server this way. If I set up a virtual server, would I be able to use this as a full on server, (so long as it's running of course) i.e. suppose I want to set up a file server for home, for streaming video or music and networking other pc's to it, is that possible, or is it inefficient and laggy.

It is certainly possible top use it as a server that way and as long as your processor and hard drive aren't slow you shouldn't find many issues if al you're doing is serving files and the like.

Moved: This thread is more suitable in <Linux - Server> and has been moved accordingly to help your thread/question get the exposure it deserves.

Thank you