Baslinux mailing list

[James Miller <jamtat AT mailsnare.net>]

On Mon, 6 Oct 2003, Matrix Mole wrote:

> Ok, I'm trying to figure out what all files I'm going to need to make my
> BL box into a good and proper files server. Because this will be a home
> network between the BL box, a Win98 machine, and my wifes Mac, I know I'll
> need samba, and netatalk. I've also loked through my slackware7.1 disc for
> other needed packages as well. I won't list them all here. What I'm really
> wanting to know, is this: Do I need to install multi-user support for just
> the fileserver functionality? Ie, will I have to install a shadow package
> and create the users for accessing the file systems, or do I just need the
> server packages running? I'm still in the intellectual/design stage of
> this, mostly because I don't have cableing or router/hub/switch to connect
> the three machines up with as of yet.
>
> Slightly unrelated note (well, unrelated to BL kinda), does anyone have
> any suggestions on cheap methods of finding out about building and setting
> up home networks? Websites, books that are available in libraries (most
> libraries I've ever been in are roughly 5 years behind on the computer
> books section IME), anything that could be helpful.
>
Sounds like an interesting - and challenging - project.  Please keep us
posted on your progress: I'd like to know how to do this too.  Just as a
clarification: BL will serve, at one and the same time, as a user's
machine *and* a fileserver?  Or will it just sit there and serve files,
while all the user computing will go on on the Mac and Win machines?  I do
think user accounts are required by samba, but my knowledge of that is
pretty sketchy.  I haven't managed to get real far with samba in my Linux
computing career thus far.

On books: I tried looking over some books and webpages but I never found
anything that was really helpful (I did not search exhaustively, btw).
They probably helped a little, but what really finally got my home network
up and running was asking questions of other Linux users (e.g., BL's
Steven) who knew networking principles much better than me.  If you do
find that one crucial resource in book/webpage form, please do let us
know.  I'd like to consult it as well.  I wish I could donate you some
cabling: my wife's workplace updated their network recently and threw a
bunch of cat 5 cabling in the garbage which I, of course, dutifully
retrieved.  It's a whole lot more than I'll ever use - alot of it with
only one crimped end.  Probably would cost as much for me to ship you some
as it would to buy new, though :(

Keep us posted, James