[aklug] Re: Need a little nudge in the right direction...

Valid questions...

First, the registry hack, 3 keys modified (bit flipped), one to reduce the
voracity with which windows searches DNS for the domain controller, and the
second relaxes the functional level it is looking for in the domain
controller, the third I believe prevents you from doing something stupid if
you enable roaming profiles.

The reason is two-fold...

1st, the SME server, and linux implementation of NT domain (not full AD,
think older but reliable tech, like SSH) has been unchanged for a really
long time. It is rock solid... dead simple, and there just aren't many
moving parts to go wrong. Since the OS also has the bare minimum running
necessary (albeit there is a pop/smtp/imap service I don't need), it is
lean and requires very little maintenance. It is VERY rare to have to
reboot the SME server, from experience.

2nd, the all mighty dollar... All said and done, installing an SME takes
about a 1/4 the time to install and configure, it costs nothing and has
greatly reduced operating costs. Plus the upfront costs of licensing are
eliminated. Windows servers need constant babysitting. Even with a good
RMM, which I have, you still have to manually reboot the things, and we all
know the longer between reboots the more painful the reboot will be. On
the flip-side, SME is Linux and to a large degree, compared to Windows, it
is a 'set it and forget it' affair. This means wayyyyy less maintenance
time for the client to keep the most basic need of central stored usernames
and passwords working. So total cost of ownership is a fraction of what a
windows domain will cost to maintain.

Bonus 3rd reason, backups are ridiculously simple. plug in a thumb-drive,
choose to backup to removable media, watch as tar does it's work. Move
removable drive to a new install, choose to restore backup, watch tar do
it's job, you have now migrated your DC to new hardware. Backup time is the
only factor, no architecture concerns, etc.

On Fri, Jan 15, 2016 at 8:53 AM Damien Hull <dhull@section9.us> wrote:

> JP,
>
> I hate to dump on your Linux server, but what's wrong with Windows?
>
> I know I'm going to get hate mail and a few death threats for this.
> However, having been in the IT world for a few years I would take the needs
> of the business into consideration. Trying to get Windows to work with
> Linux servers can be a bit tricky. As you pointed out, you need to hack the
> registry. I'm not a fan of registry hacks. If the business can't find
> support when you're gone they're SOL.
>
> Server 2012 R2 or Server 2012 essentials would be my pick. In a Windows
> environment like this one, it just works.
>
>
> If the network had 10 or so workstations I might consider your Linux
> option. This is just my 2 cents.
>
>
> On Thu, Jan 14, 2016 at 3:07 PM, JP <jp@jptechnical.com> wrote:
>
>> Yes, Peter is right.
>>
>> It is based on CentOS with many pre-configured packages based on official
>> releases. During install, and anytime later, you choose which features you
>> want, similar to Roles in Windows Server, it grabs the necessary components
>> and installs them. You can still get to the yum package manager and install
>> direct releases with no modifications, the real tweaking is in the config
>> files of course. It really is very reliable, I have never had an install
>> fail on me, but I have had a much smaller set of installs to base
>> reliability on.
>>
>> http://wiki.contribs.org/Main_Page
>>
>> The history of SME server is pretty interesting, it has changed hands A
>> LOT but seems to have retained the contributors over the years. The
>> addon-packages were called contribs, hence the domain name hosting the
>> documentation.
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Jan 14, 2016 at 2:39 PM Peter Barclay PCNI <admin@pcni.us> wrote:
>>
>>> It's an all in one small to medium enterprise Linux server akin to the
>>> roll up Microsoft did with sbs...
>>>
>>> Sent from Outlook Mobile <https://aka.ms/blhgte>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Thu, Jan 14, 2016 at 3:01 PM -0800, "Lee Brumbaugh" <
>>> lbrumbaugh@gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> I've never used SME before, but how off the beaten Linux path is it? I
>>> mean is it just a gui on top of standard tools or heavily modified
>>> craziness?
>>>
>>> *Lee Brumbaugh*
>>>
>>> On Thu, Jan 14, 2016 at 11:25 AM, Tim Johnson <tim@akwebsoft.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> :) Coding not networking is my forte and I am quasi retired -
>>>> you're over my head here, but I'm sure Jamie can grok. Good luck.
>>>>
>>>> * JP <jp@jptechnical.com> [160114 11:22]:
>>>> > Thanks TJ
>>>> >
>>>> > One thing to add... I am likely going to run this on top of Hyper-V
>>>> 2012,
>>>> > it is free, and the replication is awesome. I previously was
>>>> XenServer all
>>>> > the way (after many years of ESXi)... but I have had some support
>>>> issues
>>>> > from Citrix on the XenServer in the past... costly support issues,
>>>> whereas
>>>> > the hyper-v is becoming so ubiquitous that tracking down an issue is
>>>> pretty
>>>> > simple.
>>>> >
>>>> > On Thu, Jan 14, 2016 at 11:12 AM Tim Johnson <tim@akwebsoft.com>
>>>> wrote:
>>>> >
>>>> > > Hello JP :
>>>> > >
>>>> > > You might want to run this by Jamie Hushower at Rent-a-Geek in
>>>> > > Palmer (I believe that he does a lot of business in Anchorage).
>>>> > > He used to be on SLUG (Susitna Valley Linux Users Group) before it
>>>> > > died.
>>>> > >
>>>> > > His phone number is 907 745-5060 and the website is at
>>>> > > http://www.geeksalaska.com/
>>>> > >
>>>> > > I've known him for at least 15 years. I believe he's been doing
>>>> > > networking all of that time.
>>>> > >
>>>> > > - tj -
>>>> > >
>>>> > > * JP <jp@jptechnical.com> [160114 10:57]:
>>>> > > > I have a client with a windows network of about 40 workstations,
>>>> the file
>>>> > > > shares are (will be shortly) on a simple NAS, and the rest of
>>>> their work
>>>> > > is
>>>> > > > on the cloud. At present, the only feature of Active Directory
>>>> they need
>>>> > > is
>>>> > > > the ability to login to different computers, they jump around a
>>>> lot, but
>>>> > > > they DO NOT need roaming profiles, just mapped drives.
>>>> > > >
>>>> > > > I have, on half a dozen occasions, setup an SME server to replace
>>>> SBS
>>>> > > 2000
>>>> > > > and SBS 2003 servers. I know that there is Win 7,8,10 support in
>>>> SME
>>>> > > with a
>>>> > > > registry patch, and I am testing it in a lab with Win 10 as I have
>>>> > > already
>>>> > > > had good success with Win 8 and 7 in past labs. So, technically I
>>>> know it
>>>> > > > is possible and reliable.
>>>> > > >
>>>> > > > Here is my quandary... the only negative I can come up with from
>>>> the last
>>>> > > > 15yrs of IT work and running both Windows and Linux emulated
>>>> domains is
>>>> > > > that I have in the past built something only I can maintain. This
>>>> is a
>>>> > > risk
>>>> > > > for the client, and it causes unnecessarily stress for me. So...
>>>> are
>>>> > > there
>>>> > > > any techs in Anchorage that have used SME server, so that if I am
>>>> hit by
>>>> > > a
>>>> > > > bus they could pick it up and run with it? Or does this risk
>>>> outweigh the
>>>> > > > savings on M$ licensing (about $4500), as I estimate the labor to
>>>> rebuild
>>>> > > > the domain to be a wash either way.
>>>> > > > --
>>>> > > >
>>>> > > > *JP (Jesse Perry)*
>>>> > > > voice/txt: 907-748-2200
>>>> > > > email: jp@jptechnical.com
>>>> > > > web: http://jptechnical.com
>>>> > > > support: helpdesk@jptechnical.com
>>>> > >
>>>> > > --
>>>> > > Tim
>>>> > > http://www.akwebsoft.com, http://www.tj49.com
>>>> > > ---------
>>>> > > To unsubscribe, send email to <aklug-request@aklug.org>
>>>> > > with 'unsubscribe' in the message body.
>>>> > >
>>>> > > --
>>>> >
>>>> > *JP (Jesse Perry)*
>>>> > voice/txt: 907-748-2200
>>>> > email: jp@jptechnical.com
>>>> > web: http://jptechnical.com
>>>> > support: helpdesk@jptechnical.com
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Tim
>>>> http://www.akwebsoft.com, http://www.tj49.com
>>>> ---------
>>>> To unsubscribe, send email to <aklug-request@aklug.org>
>>>> with 'unsubscribe' in the message body.
>>>>
>>>>
>>> --
>>
>> *JP (Jesse Perry)*
>> voice/txt: 907-748-2200
>> email: jp@jptechnical.com
>> web: http://jptechnical.com
>> support: helpdesk@jptechnical.com
>>
>
> --

*JP (Jesse Perry)*
voice/txt: 907-748-2200
email: jp@jptechnical.com
web: http://jptechnical.com
support: helpdesk@jptechnical.com

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Received on Fri Jan 15 07:31:07 2016