Web Server and FTP server
 

Now forgive me but I know this is a daft question, I want to build an FTP server to do some remote backups, but I also want to setup a web server to test out some websites I am playing with. They must all face the outside world. So my question is this: can I build one machine to do both and is this a good idea, or should I keep them as separate machines. and what flavor of Linux would suit them.
Thanks for listening and I hope the question is not too stupid.

Paul :)

It shouldn't make any difference which 'flavor' of linux you decide on, you'll be able to install a web and ftp server on most (if not all) distros.

I'd say Apache is most common for webservers (correct me if I am wrong) and something like VS FTP (or whatever your distro's default is) should be fine.

Running them on the same server won't be a problem if you're just going to use them for backups and playing around with websites.

I strongly advise that you invest some time in making sure the server hosting your web and FTP servers is properly secured (firewalling, etc.) Also sure your web and FTP server themselves are properly secured (for example: if you are using the FTP server only for backups and you don't want any one else, but yourself having access, make sure you have anonymous access denied and a good password set for the user(s) that you use to access the server.)

Enjoy :)

Like Juvecu said, yep, it is possible to run both the servers on one distro. In fact, most of the cheap web hosting solutions do that, but more sophisticated hosting companies prefer to dedicate whole server for one job.

If you are an advanced Linux user, I recommend you opt for Fedora or CentOS to setup these servers. These will provide appreciable amount of default security level, but could prove to be quite difficult to configure for the first time. But if you are not that advanced, try using specialized Linux distros for this purpose which have all these servers (and more) already installed and configured for you, like PCLOSBE and CAOS.

Remember, if you want to learn while you use your servers, it's better you opt for a difficult to configure solution, like Fedora.

Thanks
 

Thanks Guys
I am still very new to Linux, but enjoying the fun of learning about it. I will have a look at the distros you suggested, thanks. I am not sure how it will all run on my very old 500mhz 512 meg ram but it will be fun.
Thanks again for the advice