RelaX

My current server is an old 166 Mhz with 99Mb Edo RAM and an 8 Gb 5400 RPM Seagate that I managed to scrape together with a ClarkConnect 2.1 Home edition (RedHat based) Linux OS.
This was nice to experiment on, and I must say has served me loyally and outperformed my expectations, but is far from sufficient.

See, I am a PHP developer and am running some fairly heavy aps (like for instance Squirelmail and a BIG Content Management System by the company I work for) on the latest software (that I usually have to compile myself) like PHP5 RC2 and the latest Apache 2.
And it simply takes too long to compile a new version of PHP or Apache or simply to work with on and with the CMS or check my mail with Squirelmail.

I actually timed it once, it takes a full minute to simply log in to the CMS.

However due to the purchase of a new machine, the following has become available:
System board: 66M, Intel platform
CPU: 450MHz Pentium III
Fansink: Pentium III - 2 Pin for URM, SECC II
Memory: 3 x 128MB modules (PC-100) (= 384 Mb)
Disks: 3.5", 80GB DiamondMax Plus 9 (7200 RPM,8 Mb Cache)
3.5", 40 GB Maxtor (5400 RPM)
Graphics card: AGP Riva 128/8MB, Creative
Power supply: SPS 145W ATX API-7675 Rev. A H61
CDROM: 56x AOpen CD-ROM
Networkcards: 1 Winbond 10/100 Mbit
2 BenQ 10/100 Mbit (RealTek 8139 compatible)

Can anybody tell me if this will be sufficient? Or if there are tweaks possible/advisable.

I use the server as:
Webserver (with PHP5 installed and heavily used though not by many)
MySQL Database server (also heavily used)
IMAP Mailserver (just for my family)
Router (for 2 machines)
Fileserver (I use it to store all my movies (read: pr0n ) and mp3s and stuff, I have a LOT stuff like that)
FTP Server (just my own documents and some stuff for friends)
And I also have DHCP server and DNS caching on.

I am thinking of buying an extra 120 Gb Hitachi Deskstar for extra file storage, but other than that I have no idea.
I just want to set it up and not have to think about it again for at least a year. Just tweak the OS a bit, but leave the hardware untouched.

Tweaks for the OS are also welcome

__________________
The most likely way for the world to be destroyed, most experts agree, is by accident. That's where we come in; we're computer professionals. We cause accidents.
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Dragonlich

Have you considered using a "normal" Linux version? I've tried Clarkconnect, but now run Debian, because it's much more versatile. It's much easier to install/update software, and you can leave out stuff you don't need (which does take CPU time and memory).

Anyway, from the list you give, only the webserver and MySQL database server seem to require more than what you already have. I've got the mailserver, router, ftp server and DNS caching (as well as proxy server) running on a pentium 166, with 64 megs of ram. The webserver would be slowed down by this hardware, and the database server would probably crawl along, if it runs at all.

...therefore, the question then becomes: what are the system requirements for these two services? I suggest you focus on that.

RelaX

Yes I have. I spent an entire summer trying to get Debian to do everything I wanted, but failed because I couldn't find out just how to configure the routing.
Samba, Apache, PHP even Postfix aren't that hard, but I just couldn't get the hang of iptables and it is pretty important that it works.
Also I never did find out a way to set everything up at boot time, for say when there is a power failure, I need to be able to call home and just say: "Just press the button on the server" and I don't have to worry about reconfiguring the machine....

I have no idea.... I know that for normal HTML or even small PHP/MySQL projects, my setup would be sufficient, but I have no idea what the requirements are for large webservices like a CMS or a webmail client.

__________________
The most likely way for the world to be destroyed, most experts agree, is by accident. That's where we come in; we're computer professionals. We cause accidents.
- Nathaniel Borenstein

cthulu23

I would think that the most obvious tweak would be to turn off all unneccesary services. I'm not familiar with Clark connect, but I know that under vanilla Red Hat you can type "setup" as root and configure what services are started at boot.

Dragonlich

Have you considered using Webmin? That is a regular Linux web-based configuration utility, which can also be used in Clarkconnect. I've found it very useful, if only because it allows you to see things visually. SSH shell access is nice, but is quite a long way from your typical windows setup.

You're not the only person on this planet having problems with routing and IPtables. Use that fact, and google.com to search for solutions. Try sites like Linuxbeginner.com (even if it sounds cheesy) - they might have the perfect manual to get you started. FYI, I have set up Debian without too much knowledge (trial and error), and have found that most, if not all programs that need it will ask you during setup if you want to have them start up automatically.

Overall, Clarkconnect isn't bad (I thought it was extremely good, in fact), but it lacked features I needed. If you can do everything you need with it, by all means, keep it.

Finally, system requirements can probably be found using google as well. Or try the homepage of the developers - they can probably help you out. The Linux community tends to be rather friendly towards "new converts"; well, some in the community anyway.